Crunchy French Toast

I just have one word to describe this French toast: Oh my.

And okay, that was two words. But that’s how good this French toast is. It causes me to lose complete track of how many words I’m using. It also causes me to stop what I’m doing and reflect on each and every bite of what I’m eating, which is the crispiest, crunchiest, most delightful French toast known to mankind.

You have got to try this soon, soon, soon! And that means now.

Crack some eggs into a dish…

With some half and half, or milk if you’re more sensible than me.

But please use half-and-half.

Violently whisk it together…

Then splash in a little vanilla. This will impact your life in a very positive way.

Never, ever, ever make French toast, pancakes, or waffles without vanilla.

Speaking of impacting your life in a very positive way, a little sugar would also be good at this stage.

Let me take this opportunity to alert you that one slice of this French toast is plenty for one person. My goodness gracious, is it ever tasty.

Finally, add a little cinnamon…

And violently whisk it together once more. Set this aside.

In a separate dish, make the crunchy coating! I reached for the Panko breadcrumbs, even though I almost always use them in savory settings (mac and cheese topping, fried mozzarella coating, chicken cutlet breading, and so on). Pour about a cup into the dish…

And (yes) add some sugar…

And cinnamon…

And mix it together until everything is totally combined.

And if that wasn’t enough, drizzle in a little melted butter…

And stir it into the crumbs with a fork, mushing and mixing until all the crumbs are lightly coated in the butter.

Now, thank goodness, it’s time to make the toast! I’m using good ol’ American supermarket-style soft mushy mass produced whole wheat sandwich bread to prove that crusty, artisan bread is absolutely not necessary when making delectable French toast.

I’m also using it because that’s all I had.

Quickly throw the bread into the egg mixture, turning it over to coat.

Lift it out, letting the excess drip off…

Then immediately set it in the dish with the sweetened, flavored panko crumbs, pressing very lightly to encourage the crumbs to adhere to the first side.

Turn it over and press to coat the other side…

And set it on a plate while you do the rest. Keep going until you run out of bread or egg mixture or crumb coating…whichever comes first!

Now. Sometimes when I post recipes here, I list steps that are optional. Please note: *This is not one of those times.* Melt a generous amount of butter in a (preferably nonstick) skillet. And that’s an order.

And when I say “generous amount,” I don’t mean a tablespoon. I mean several tablespoons—enough that the butter will swirl around and move in the pan a bit. And that’s because you need enough butter in the skillet to really bubble up and sizzle around the crumb coating; if the skillet’s too dry, the crumbs won’t be able to live the life they were born to live.

Place the French toast in the skillet and cook it over medium-low heat for about 4 to 6 minutes, watching like a hawk the whole time. If the crumb coating seems to be browning too fast, reduce the heat a bit. You want to give the inside of the French toast time to cook and set a bit before the crumbs get too brown, so it’s a bit of a balancing act!

Flip them over when the crunchy coating is deep golden and crisp (but not burned!) and let the toast cook for 3 or so minutes on the other side. (Add more butter to the pan if it gets too dry.)

To serve, put a pat of butter on top along with some strawberry slices.

How lovely and inviting does this look?

It’s about to get lovelier and invitinger.

You know what’s especially delicious about this dang darn ding durn French toast? The edges.

Holy crunchiness! If I’d had a sleeping baby in the house, this definitely would’ve woken him up!

(Pssst. How about serving this for dessert with whipped cream and caramel sauce? Okay? Okay.)

Here’s the handy dandy printable, friends! This truly is a treat beyond treats.

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Recipe

Crunchy French Toast

Prep Time: 5 Minutes Cook Time: 10 Minutes Difficulty: Easy Servings: 4

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 whole Eggs
• 1/4 cup Half-and-half
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• 1/3 cup Sugar
• 4 slices Whole Wheat Bread (or Any Bread)
• 1 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
• 1 stick Salted Butter, Melted
• Softened Butter And Maple (or Pancake) Syrup, For Serving

Preparation Instructions

In a pie pan, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, half the sugar, and half the cinnamon. Set aside.

In a separate pie pan, stir together the panko breadcrumbs with the rest of the sugar and cinnamon. Use a fork to stir in 2 tablespoons of the butter so that the crumbs are slightly moist. Set aside.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat the rest of the melted butter over medium-low heat.

One by one, dunk the bread in the egg mixture (turning to coat), then lay them in the dish with the panko crumbs, turning them over and pressing them gently so that they stick and totally cover the surface.

Place them into the skillet with the butter and let them cook on the first side for 5 to 6 minutes, watching closely to make sure the crumbs don't burn. (If they start to darken too fast, turn the heat slightly lower and watch.) Turn them over and let them cook for 3 minutes on the other side.

Transfer the pieces to individual plates and serve with butter and syrup. Delicious!

Posted by Ree | The Pioneer Woman on