With a fluffy interior and a crispy exterior, this French toast tastes indulgent, but is so easy to make. It’ll bring everyone running to the breakfast table!
French toast is one of the few dishes that evokes an image of my father in the kitchen. He didn’t spend a lot of time there (he was a mow the lawn, play the guitar kind of guy), so there aren’t many of those. But he had his specialties: Biscuits and gravy, hard seared slices of Jimmy Dean sausage with scrambled eggs, and French Toast with lots of Log Cabin Syrup.
I hadn’t had French toast in years, when suddenly I found myself craving it to an obsessive degree. I set myself to the task and ended up making the best French Toast I can ever remember eating. (Sorry, Dad.)
The sudden appearance of French toast on this particular day came out of boredom. I needed an activity, I decided to make bread, I went fancy and made it swirly, thought about how that was too much swirly bread to “just eat”, made Cinnamon-Cardamom French toast. Welcome to Cynthia’s brain! It’s always buzzing in here. Mostly about food
Ingredients for Cinnamon-Cardamom French Toast
- Thick Sliced Bread You can make this Cinnamon-Cardamom French Toast with any bread you like. If you can find (or bake) an unsliced loaf of your favorite bread, all the better. I like a nice fat slice so that it doesn’t get too wet when dipped in the egg mixture. I know some recipes go for a real custardy texture, but that’s just not my jam. If you like it that way, slice thinner, and/or soak your bread longer. Do you.
- Eggs Whenever I write a recipe with eggs, I always use large eggs. It's an industry standard and makes writing and cooking from recipes easier. If you only have medium eggs, use the same number of eggs. If you have small eggs, use one more egg than the recipe calls for. And next time buy large eggs 😊
- Fresh Fruit You can certainly use frozen fruit if your fruit of choice is out of season but, if you can, use fresh. That's it. That's the memo.
- Maple Syrup Please. Please. Please, don't use "pancake syrup". It's nothing but flavored, colored sugar and so very sad. Invest in real maple syrup. You'll be glad you did.
- Milk Making the custard for dipping the bread requires milk. If you have a milk of choice, almond, oat, soy, feel free to substitute. If you are going for dairy milk, use whole milk if you can. We're having French toast here. Treat yo self.
Makes 1-8 servings, depending on who’s eating.
Want more ways to sweeten up your mornings?
- Chai Spiced Waffles with Maple Cinnamon Apples
- Cinnamon-Cardamom French Toast
- Breakfast Strawberry Shortcake with Whipped Greek Yogurt Cream
- Homemade Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop Tarts (Copycat)
Cinnamon-Cardamom French Toast
Ingredients
All the fruits
- 1 ½ cup sliced fruit
- 3 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
Blueberry Maple Syrup (optional, but exceptional!)
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1 cup real maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Vanilla Whipped Cream
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoon powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
The Main Event: The Toast parts
- 8 slices bread of your choice
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
Instructions
Macerating the fruit (not as violent as it sounds)
- Combine your fruit, sugar, and lemon juice in a medium bowl. Gently toss and allow to sit at room temperature until ready to serve. If you’re a plan-ahead kind of person, congratulations on that, and also cover the fruit and refrigerate until needed. Save some extra for later and put leftover whipped cream on it. You’ll thank me later.
Making whipped cream, the easy way!
- Whipped cream is usually made with a hand mixer, stand mixer, or (for the masochist) with a hand whisk. I like to make mine using my food processor. It’s so much faster and it makes a thicker, longer lasting whipped cream. It’s so easy too! Pour cold heavy whipping cream into your food processor. Add sugar and vanilla and pulse 8-10 times, just to get the splashiness out of the way. Then just let it rip for about a minute, or until fluffy. Careful, though! Don’t over-mix it or you’ll end up with the sweetest butter ever. Transfer to a bowl, eat a spoonful, and then refrigerate until needed.
Blueberry Syrup
- Place blueberries, maple syrup, and lemon juice in small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for 10 minutes, or until the blueberries have broken down and syrup begins to thicken. Transfer to a vessel with a spout for pouring, like a syrup carafe or even a measuring cup. Set aside to cool.
The Frenching of the Toast
- Whisk eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and cardamom and pour into a shallow dish, such as a pie plate. When I say whisk, I mean really whisk. I can’t stand it when there are clumps of spices on some pieces of bread and none on others. A vigorous whisking will avoid that catastrophe.
Can we make French Toast already?!
- Warm pan up to medium high heat, then drop 1 tablespoon of butter in the pan and allow to melt. Dip bread in egg mixture, turning to coat both sides evenly. (This is where you’d soak the bread if you’re into that. I simply cannot provide advice on that since custardy French toast is not my thing. Soak as long as you want, you maniac.) Place a piece of bread in the pan and cook 2-3 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip over and cook 2-3 minutes on the other side. Place on a wire rack set on a sheet pan (to prevent sogginess) and keep warm in a 200° oven. Repeat with the rest of the bread. Serve with fruit, blueberry syrup, and whipped cream.
Nutrition
The nutritional and caloric information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It does not assert or suggest that readers should or should not count calories, and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s or doctor’s counseling.
Peter Balmat says
I am a maniac.
So custard it will be.
Thank you
Cynthia says
Actually I’ve been enjoying my French toast a little more custardy myself lately! Glad you enjoyed the recipe🙌