Breakfast of Champions: A Drool-Worthy French Toast Recipe for Fall

This post is sponsored by Walmart. All opinions are my own.

Now that the baby has finally arrived, Jeff and I are spending a lot of time at home. Like A LOT! So, I’ve been dusting off my kitchen skills to make meals at home that are easy and delicious. And there’s one breakfast meal in particular I’ve been making lately that I wanted to share: homemade French toast…using a Cuisinart Griddler® Multifunctional Grill and Cuisinart Custom Classic Toaster Oven Broiler.

I partnered with Walmart to bring one of my all time favorite breakfast staples to life and added some seasonal grilled fruit for good measure to make it special. Because if I’m going to be eating nearly every meal at home, while trying to figure out this whole new parent thing, the least I can do is be a bit extra with the meals that I’m making. Haha.

A little backstory on my love affair with French toast and where the inspiration for this recipe came from…

When I was a kid, there was this place called Bob’s Marina that we’d go to for breakfast every single weekend. My grandparents lived nearby too, so we’d meet them there and all have breakfast together. I always, ALWAYS ordered the French toast and my parents and grandparents would sit outside with coffee while my brother and I ran around by the water playing with the ducks and swans that would walk up the dock. Sounds kind of unsafe, but I promise they were always watching us.

Anyway, we moved away years later, but when we’d go back to visit my grandparents, we’d also go to Bob’s and I’d order the same thing. Fast forward to me a grown adult, and that little hole in the wall spot is still there. So every time I go back to California to visit family, we  go there. And that’s where the inspiration for this French toast recipe came from!

So now that you have the whole story, here’s what you’ll need to make your own French toast from scratch, just like my childhood favorite.

Toaster Oven French Toast with Grilled Fruit

Ingredients for French Toast (makes 4 servings)

• 1 medium loaf of sourdough
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 6 eggs
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup flour
• 4 tablespoons of butter

Ingredients for Grilled Fruit

I used apples and nectarines (2 of each), but you can use any seasonal fruit that sounds good for grilling. Pears, peaches, and even citrus would be other good options to try.

• 2 apples (any kind)
• 2 necatrines
• 2 tablespoons of butter

Recipe

1. Start with day old bread (or even a couple of days), sliced 1-2 inches thick depending on your preference. Preheat the toaster oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

FYI – I used the Cuisinart Custom Classic Toaster Oven Broiler for this part of the recipe. It’s really convenient for those times that I don’t want to mess with my full size oven and it’s stainless steel, so it matches all my other kitchen appliances. Highly recommend giving it a try – it’s super affordable too.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, cream, sugar, vanilla, and salt. While stirring, gradually sift the flour into the egg mixture.

3. Next, add sliced bread to the egg mixture and let them sit for 5-10 minutes (depending on thickness of bread slices). Flip over once, halfway through, if batter doesn’t soak all the way through to the top of the bread.

4. Now it’s time to bake. Add 2 tablespoons of butter to the baking pan that comes with the Cuisinart toaster oven, remove bread from the bowl (letting any excess batter drip back into the bowl) and bake. I found that 14-17 minutes per side works best (again the timing will be dependent on the thickness of the bread).

5. When the French toast is ready to flip, add 2 more tablespoons of butter to the pan and flip all the pieces of french toast. Bake for another 14-17 minutes. Or until both sides are golden brown.

6. While the second side of the french toast slices are baking, it’s time to get the grilled fruit ready. Add 2 tablespoons of butter to the non stick grill plates of the Cuisinart Griddler® Multifunctional Grill. Wash apples, nectarines, etc thoroughly and slice into 1/2 inch thick pieces. Or slice whole apples and nectarines in half for a thicker treat, since the hinged, floating cover of the Cuisinart Griddler® adjusts to thickness of food.

Grill your fruit for 3-5 minutes on medium heat or until your fruit has softened but isn’t soggy. You can also use the searing feature for those crisp grill marks like mine.

7. Once the french toast is ready, remove from toaster oven and top with freshly grilled fruit. Are you starting to get hungry right now, or is it just me? Then, as a last little touch, I add butter and syrup.

Need a caffeine pick-me up? What about a latte to go with your french toast… You can make lattes at home with the Keurig K-Latte Brewer. Just use the coffee shot button and milk frother for fresh milk (works with skim, soy, almonds, etc.). I have one too…remember the ‘latte the day away’ brunch?

What’s your favorite breakfast from your childhood that you still make today? Think you’ll give this homemade French toast a try?

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This post is in partnership with Walmart. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that help keep Paper and Stitch running.