My Hawaiian Bread French Toast is made with lightly sweetened rolls, dipped in a cinnamon egg custard, and griddled until golden brown and delicious. The combination of crispy and fluffy and sweet is ready in about 20 minutes and is absolutely irresistible!
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Hawaiian rolls. We all love them. Tiny little pillows of fluffy sweet bread that are so delicious that you could snack on them on their own. Making Hawaiian Bread French Toast with them? Now we're at a whole different level of addictive.
When I was a kid, my Dad made breakfast on the weekends, and he always made the best French toast, and all my traditional French toast recipes are an homage to him. In this recipe I took an entire pack of a king’s Hawaiian rolls and cut them in half, sandwich style. I gave them a quick in-and-out dip in a my Dad's French toast custard and then griddled them until they were golden brown and crispy and it was over.
I love all kinds of French Toast, but I really think I hit the jackpot here. It's a simple and easy breakfast recipe, it's delicious, and it's only 15 minutes away from being your reality.
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Ingredients
I don't include vanilla extract in the ingredients, because their sweetness makes up for it, but you can add ½ teaspoon if you like. Now go get these simple ingredients together guys, because you are about to have the best fluffy French toast of your lives!
See recipe card below for quantities.
Substitutions
Luckily, French toast takes to substitutions very well. If you have dietary restrictions, maybe these ideas will help.
- Dairy free - Feel free to use your favorite flavored non-dairy creamer or plant based milk or even pineapple juice in its place.
- Other dairy - I like half-and-half, but you can use the milk of your choice, or even heavy cream.
- Egg free - In place of eggs, you can use a commercial egg substitute or add ½ cup unsweetened applesauce + one tablespoon of cornstarch to your dairy.
Variations
I think this sweet Hawaiian rolls French toast is perfect as is, but here are a few ways you can play with your food.
- Fruity - Make my peach French toast by sautéing ripe peaches in brown butter.
- Fall vibes - Give these Hawaiian rolls a Fall vibe with pumpkin spice or apple pie spice in place of the cinnamon.
- Happy Holidays - Make my eggnog French toast using Hawaiian rolls and make everyone's Holiday brunch just that much more merry.
Instructions
Oh my gosh, this is such an easy French toast recipe that results in the most fluffy texture. It really is the ultimate breakfast treat. As always, I recommend reading through all the instructions below, appreciating the process pictures I provide, and then gathering your ingredients and making yourself a delicious batch of Hawaiian bread French toast.
- I sometimes slice my King’s Hawaiian sweet rolls in half, or you can leave them whole. Either way, place them on a wire rack and let sit out overnight, or place in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes to allow them to dry out a bit. This will help the rolls to absorb the custard better, without getting too soggy.
Step 1: Whisk eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl.
Step 2: Warm a large nonstick skillet, cast iron pan, or electric griddle, to medium heat. Melt butter or brush oil on the surface.
Quickly dip, don’t soak, a few pieces of rolls into the egg custard.
Step 3: Place pieces of bread on the griddle or pan in a single layer and cook 2-3 minutes on the first side, or until golden brown with crispy edges.
Step 4: Flip over and cook 2-3 minutes on the other side. Place on a wire rack set on a cookie sheet (to prevent sogginess) and keep warm in a 200° oven. Repeat with the remaining rolls.
Dust with powdered sugar and serve with warm maple syrup, and fresh fruit.
Serving suggestions
The thing I love about King's Hawaiian french toast, other than its absolute dreamy texture, is that you can serve it with so many toppings. I love to serve mine with warmed fruit like in my brown butter peach French toast or the maple apples from my breakfast pork chops recipe.
But an accidental finding during our rigorous taste tests was to wrap them, breakfast pigs in a blanket style, around link sausages. Give 'em a dip in warm maple syrup and just try to stop eating them. Impossible!
Recipe FAQs
The soft and fluffy Hawaiian rolls absorb the custard very quickly. Just give them a quick dip to avoid them becoming saturated. You may also decide to keep your rolls whole and cook them on all 6 sides, for a bigger even fluffier bite!
Allow your French toast rolls to cool completely, then place them in an airtight container (or zip top bag) and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Preheat your oven to 350°F, place pieces on a large sheet pan, and warm for about 10 minutes or until heated through. You can also microwave them for 30 seconds. I actually like to place them in the toaster until hot and crispy.
Yes, just like a classic french toast recipe, you can let the pieces cool completely and then transfer them to a freezer bag and place in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let defrost for 30 minutes and then microwave or toast them.
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-Cynthia
📖 Recipe
Hawaiian Bread French Toast
Equipment
- Electric griddle ~or~
- Nonstick pan ~or~
- 9 inch cast iron pan
Ingredients
French Toast
- 1 package Hawaiian rolls 12 rolls
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup half-and-half heavy cream or nondairy also work
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of kosher salt less than ⅛ teaspoon
Instructions
- Place hawaiian rolls on a wire rack. You can slice them in a half, or keep them whole. Let the rolls sit out overnight or place in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes to dry out.
- Whisk eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Warm large nonstick pan, cast iron pan, or electric griddle, to medium heat. Brush melted butter or oil on the surface.
- Quickly dip, don’t soak, a few pieces of Hawaiian bread into the egg mixture.
- Place pieces of bread on the griddle or pan and cook 2-3 minutes on the first side, 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.
- Dust with powdered sugar, warm maple syrup, and fresh fruit.
Save This Recipe! 💌
I'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later, plus you'll get great new recipes from me every week!
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