How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (2024)

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This French Toast is cooked low & slow in clarified butter, which makes for a crispy exterior and custardy interior. The most perfect addition to Breakfast or Brunch.

Growing up, I was never a big french toast fan. It always seemed to be too eggy or too dry for my liking. This all changed once I started culinary school and we got to the breakfast module. My culinary instructor showed us the best way to make french toast, and I am sharing that method with you today.

How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (1)

French Toast Ingredients:

You’ll need a few ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen.

  • Brioche Bread: I love using brioche because it is thick cut, and it is made up of lots of butter and eggs, so it really compliments this recipe. I like the Brioche Bread from Trader Joe’s.
  • Milk: I’m using about a cup of whole milk here.
  • Eggs: You’ll two eggs for this recipe.
  • Vanilla Extract: just a dash of some pure vanilla extract will do.
  • Spices: The spices I use in this recipe are cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.
  • Sugar: You’ll only need one tablespoon of sugar for the french toast custard.
  • Clarified Butter: We’re using enough clarified butter just to coat the bottom of a skillet. If you do not have clarified butter, you can also use regular butter with a little touch of olive oil, just be careful to watch for any burning.
How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (2)

French Toast Tips & Tricks

My culinary instructor taught us a few key tips that helped me learn how to make french toast the proper way.

Tip 1: Use Clarified Butter

Clarified butter has a higher smoke point than regular butter since all of the milk solids are removed in the clarifying process. This means that it performs better under higher heat and will not burn as easily. Clarified butter also had a deeper butter flavor.

Tip #2: Let The Bread Soak Up The Custard

Dip the bread into the custard and let it absorb some until the bread feels spongey.

Tip #3: Cook French Toast Over Low Heat for 15 Minutes Total

The mistake that is most often made with french toast is not cooking it long enough so that the custard inside is cooked thoroughly. We’re going to be working over low heat here, so it is important to let it cook for 7 & 1/2 minutes per side.

Tip #4: DFWI!

If you don’t know, DFWI stand for “don’t F with it!”. We are often tempted to move things around or press on our french toast, but the best way to cook this is to just let it rock. Leave it alone. I promise it’ll be worth it.

How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (3)

Instructions:

Here are the steps you’ll need to make the best french toast ever:

  1. Combine eggs, milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, sugar & vanilla into a dish and mix to form a custard.
  2. Preheat a skillet with clarified butter over a low flame.
  3. Dip the brioche slices into the custard and let the bread soak some of it up until it feels spongey (about 10 seconds per side).
  4. Let excess custard drip off of the bread, and place into the preheated skillet. Cook for 7 & 1/2 minutes per side. Don’t touch it while its cooking! Just flip once after 7 & 1/2 minutes.
  5. Remove french toast from the skillet after 15 minutes and serve with your favorite toppings.

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How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (4)

Perfect French Toast

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4.3 from 3 reviews

  • Author: Speshyl Smith
  • Total Time: 20 minutes
  • Yield: 6 slices of French Toast 1x
Print Recipe

Description

This French Toast is cooked low & slow in clarified butter, which makes for a crispy exterior and custardy interior. The most perfect addition to Breakfast or Brunch.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 6 slices thick cut brioche or challah bread
  • clarified butter

Instructions

  1. Combine eggs, milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, sugar & vanilla into a dish and mix to form a custard.
  2. Preheat a skillet with clarified butter over a low flame.
  3. Dip the brioche slices into the custard and let the bread soak some of it up until it feels spongey (about 10 seconds per side).
  4. Let excess custard drip off of the bread, and place into the preheated skillet. Cook for 7 & 1/2 minutes per side. Don’t touch it while its cooking! Just flip once after 7 & 1/2 minutes.
  5. Remove french toast from the skillet after 15 minutes and serve with your favorite toppings.

Notes

  • Please read full blog post for tips and tricks
  • If you do not have clarified butter, you can use regular butter with a touch of olive oil. Leave heat on a low flame to avoid burning.
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Category: Breakfast

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Comments

  1. How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (5)Aniyah says

    I absolutely love your recipes, but this one… the eggs kind of overpowered every other ingredient. I followed all of the measurements, used 2 medium eggs instead of large but it came out tasting just like eggs.

    Reply

    • How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (6)Speshyl says

      Hi, Aniyah! Thank you so much for giving my recipe a try! I’m unsure as to why it came out eggy, because I myself am definitely not a fan of eggy French Toast, which is why this recipe usually works for me. Did you beat the eggs until thoroughly combined, keep your pan on very low heat, & use clarified butter (not regular butter)? If so, maybe try using only one egg and see if that makes a difference. Again, thank you so much for giving it a try!

      Reply

  2. How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (7)Samantha Wilson says

    How many calories does 1 have ?

    Reply

  3. How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (8)Brooklyn Hall says

    Im not much of an cook at all but I made these delicious French Toast this morning! Chefs Kiss (literally) thank you so much!!

    Reply

  4. How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (9)Jen says

    I’ve tried one other time to make French toast…I used this two weeks ago and it was the most incredible tasting French toast!!! My kids ADORED IT!! 11yrs & 16yrs old! They’re going to make it fit for Mother’s Day breakfast for me tmrw!! 🙏🙏🤞🤞

    Reply

How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl (2024)

FAQs

How to Make Perfect French Toast - The Daily Speshyl? ›

Whatever you decide on, the ratio of liquid to egg will still be about ¼ cup liquid to one egg, and one egg per two slices of bread. So, if you want to make four slices of French toast, you would need four slices of bread, two eggs, and ½ cup milk.

Should French toast have more eggs or milk? ›

Whatever you decide on, the ratio of liquid to egg will still be about ¼ cup liquid to one egg, and one egg per two slices of bread. So, if you want to make four slices of French toast, you would need four slices of bread, two eggs, and ½ cup milk.

Why does my homemade French toast taste like eggs? ›

If the balance is off and you include too many eggs or not enough milk, the finished French toast will have a scrambled egg-like flavor. When scaling this recipe up or down, keep in mind that you need 1/4 cup of milk for every egg.

What makes French toast unhealthy? ›

French Toast is a delicious breakfast entree that is loved by many. With this in mind, french toast can be very calorie dense with high amounts of added sugar and fat. But, it can be tweaked to reduce the sugar and fat content while adding some fiber to your breakfast - yay!

Is whipping cream or milk better for French toast? ›

A creamy custard is the key to incredible French toast, so skip the watery skim milk and go for whole milk or half-and-half. Straight heavy cream turns French toast into dessert, so lean that way if you're looking for decadence.

How do you keep French toast from falling apart? ›

Dry Bread Is Your Friend

The original point of French toast or pain perdu was to use up leftover bread. It was, in essence, no longer “lost bread,” but found in its new purpose. The bread should be dried out, without any doubt. Dry bread helps the eggs soak in without the entire piece collapsing.

What is the best bread for French toast? ›

For a solid French toast, aim for sturdy bread with a uniform texture and a soft crust. Hearty sandwich bread, brioche, challah, and shokupan (Japanese milk bread) are all great choices.

Is French toast healthier than pancakes? ›

Ready to find a winner? It's time for a food face-off. A typical stack of pancakes has almost 500 fewer calories than a plate of French toast—as well as 20 fewer grams of sugar. Pancakes keep up their lead with 78% less saturated fat than their French toast counterparts.

How do you know when French toast is cooked enough? ›

"You know when your French toast is done when the center is set and doesn't have a runny consistency once cut," Oliveira says. If you're cooking a thinner French toast or omitted eggs from your soaking liquid, a quick pan-fry will do the trick, with 3 to 6 minutes on each side.

Should I leave bread out overnight for French toast? ›

Ideally, the bread should be slightly stale. A drier bread will soak up all the custard. Bread can be left out with the wrapper open the day before cooking. If you find yourself in a pinch, dry your bread slices in a 275°F oven for 10 minutes before soaking them in the custard.

How can you tell when French toast is done? ›

If your slices are very thick, you may want to use a thermometer to check the center temperature of the French toast to make sure it's done. For standard 3/4-inch slices, griddling for about three minutes per side is a good rule of thumb.

Why is restaurant French toast so much better? ›

According to the chef, the difference comes down to two main elements: the use of high-quality yeasty bread and allowing it time to properly soak. While you can use regular old white bread at home, you may want to give yours an upgrade — try subbing in thick-cut slices of brioche instead.

Should I cook French toast in butter or oil? ›

Butter gives French toast a deep richness and comforting quality, which are what we crave on mornings we sizzle this breakfast staple. To prevent burning or smoking, use a combination of butter and oil in the pan to cook the toast.

Is it better to toast the bread before making French toast? ›

Use stale bread or toast the bread until it's golden-brown. It needs to be sturdy to hold up to the egg mixture. If the bread is fresh from the bag or you toast it too lightly, the finished dish will be soggy. Soak the toasted or untoasted bread for about 10 seconds per side to achieve the optimal texture.

Why is my French toast falling apart? ›

Attempting to use fresh, soft slices of bread may result in your toast falling apart before it even reaches the plate. One will find that this fancy bread is made even better with various toppings.

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