- Today, I'm gonna show you how
to make the ultimate French toast.
(fast piano music)
(Natasha grunts)
(laughs) Hey everybody.
It's Natasha of natashaskitchen.com
We're making French toast.
It sounds fancy, but it is so easy to make
and this is gonna become your go-to recipe.
The egg soak is incredible.
We're gonna start with the bread.
There's so many different kinds of bread
you can use for French toast.
It's ridiculous.
Just use what you have on hand, or here's our favorites.
You can use thick style Texas Toast.
So this is pre-sliced, easy to use.
We use this bread in our caramel bacon French toast.
Mm. (laughs)
Make sure you try that recipe.
Or you can use just a regular country loaf of bread
and thick slice it.
Ignore my tiny loaf, it's all I had.
We ate it. (chuckles)
Or, you could use croissants, or croissants.
Oh, just nevermind. (chuckles)
Cut these in half, soak them the same way.
They are so yummy, such a treat.
This is like Christmas morning with croissants,
I'm telling you.
My go to favorite is an egg-based sweet bread.
You can either use challah or challah or you can use brioche
and this is a sweet bread,
and we're just gonna thickly slice this
to about 3/4 inches thick
and it's go time, so let's do this.
(counter thuds)
(bell dings)
This is about a pound of brioche bread
and we're gonna thickly slice that.
You should get about eight or nine slices.
Now day old or slightly stale and dry bread
will give you the best results for French toast,
so if you have time, arrange your bread slices
on a wire rack and let them sit out at room temperature
for one to two hours.
Now, in a large mixing bowl, crack six large eggs
and two large egg yolks.
Keep the egg whites to make yourself an omelet the next day.
Adding the extra yolks gives this a richer
and more custard-like flavor.
Now add one cup of whole milk or you can use half and half
for a richer French toast.
Also add two teaspoons of vanilla extract
and we're using our homemade extract
with just two ingredients.
I will link to this in the notes.
Then add one teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
To sweeten it up, I'm adding one tablespoon of warm honey
and you can substitute that with maple syrup or even sugar.
Now whisk that thoroughly until it's well blended
and the honey is dissolved.
All right, our egg dip is ready.
I'm gonna transfer that to a small casserole dish
with enough space to dip four toasts at a time.
This is a great time to preheat your oven
to 275 degrees Fahrenheit
and place a large cast iron or heavy bottom skillet
over medium low heat and melt in two tablespoons
of unsalted butter.
Now depending on the type of toast you use,
you wanna dip these for about 30 to 40 seconds per side.
You want the bread to absorb a good amount
of that egg mixture and it should feel
very moist and spongy.
Once the first side is moist, flip the breads over
and let them soak for another 30 to 40 seconds.
Now, you're gonna take them out of the pan
and let the excess drip back,
then transfer them to the hot skillet.
Also, it's best to do this process right next
to your hot skillet.
That way, you don't splatter egg all over the floor.
Add the toast to your hot skillet in a single layer
and you're gonna let those saute for about
three to four minutes per side until they're golden brown.
Make sure to cook over medium low heat
so they don't brown too quickly.
You wanna give the custard in the center
some time to set.
Once the first batch of toast is finished,
transfer them to a baking sheet and place those
in your warm oven at 275 degrees Fahrenheit.
That'll keep your toasts warm and will help the custard
continue to set.
To make the second batch,
melt in another tablespoon of butter,
then soak and saute the toast the same way.
Now transfer the rest of your cooked French toast
to the same baking sheet and keep those in the oven
at 275 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 to 15 minutes.
Oh yes.
I want some French toast.
I am so hungry for these and my kitchen
smells amazing right now.
Oh, mouth is watering.
And putting them in the oven like that is genius
because it keeps them all warm so they're hot and fresh
to serve all at once.
You don't have to wait.
And it helps the custard to set up inside of the toast,
so they don't get too flat, which French toast tends to do.
All right, we're gonna serve these up.
So I like to put them on a platter
when we're serving them family style.
Also, this recipe is super easy to cut in half
if you wanna feed a smaller crowd.
But French toast also reheats really really well.
So it's always a good idea to just make the whole batch.
Oh my goodness, these smell so good. (chuckles)
That egg custard, lightly sweet inside.
Mm.
Just irresistibly good.
Thick slices of French toast too.
Okay, and there's so many different ways
you can serve French toast.
You can dust it with powdered sugar, which is nice.
You can also drizzle with maple syrup,
add pats of butter while the toast is hot
and let it melt into the toast.
It is irresistibly good.
Also you can dust it with cinnamon sugar
or just serve it with berries,
'cause the toast is already lightly sweet.
So we're just gonna put berries all around the platter.
Just makes it look really generous and inviting
and perfect for a special occasion.
And then of course, raspberries.
Right, and then last but not least, some blueberries.
Just to vary up the color a little bit.
Blackberries are also nice.
Currants if you can find them.
Ooh, that blueberry's flying all over.
(Natasha chuckles)
All right.
It is time to serve.
I'm so hungry for these.
Okay.
Get a big thick slice here.
Actually, two slices.
Okay, yummy.
And then, while they're still hot,
and that's why I'm hurrying, because I wanna get that butter
on there so it can melt.
It's so good.
Let's give that a minute.
And then, a little dusting of powdered sugar.
It's so pretty.
And, maple syrup.
And now, we dig in. (chuckles)
Okay, here we go.
I cannot wait any longer.
Look at that, look inside.
Baking the French toast after it's sauted,
sets up the custard just perfectly,
'cause you definitely don't want a soggy French toast.
And this is just right.
Okay, here we go.
Mm.
That custard inside is almost like dessert for breakfast.
It's such a treat.
It's almost creamy in the center and then I love that
the outsides get a little bit crisp.
And it's never soggy.
Use this method and it will become your go-to.
I can't wait to eat the rest of this.
And it's the same when you reheat it.
It reheats so well.
I'm telling you, make the whole batch
and enjoy those leftovers.
I know you will.
I hope you enjoy this recipe,
and we'll see you in our next video!