French Toast

About French Toast

French toast (often known as eggy bread in most of the UK - the exception being Scotland and Northern Ireland, pain perdu in French, pain doré in French-speaking parts of Canada) is a popular breakfast food in North America and Europe.

French toast is made with bread and eggs; some common additions are milk, water, or orange juice to thin the eggs, sugar, and spices such as allspice, nutmeg and cinnamon. Vanilla may also be added to the egg mixture. In restaurants throughout Canada and the United States, the bread is usually thick white bread made especially for use in French toast; when made at home, regular sliced bread is often used. Although often served as a sweetly spiced dish in the United States, others prefer a savory version, seasoned with salt and pepper instead, or even topped with a melted slice of cheese.

The eggs are beaten (and mixed with other liquids, as described above) and poured into a wide, shallow bowl. Individual slices of bread are then dipped into the egg mixture and flipped, so both sides are evenly coated. If desired, the bread may be left to soak briefly to absorb more of the mixture; however, too much soaking will make the bread fall apart, which is why some cooks prefer to use bread that is closer to the end of its shelf-life. The slices of egg-coated bread are then placed on a frying pan or griddle prepared with a coat of butter, and cooked until both sides are browned and the egg has cooked through. A substitute such as Egg Beaters can be used in place of whole eggs. Additionally, a liberal sprinkling of premixed cinnamon sugar may be applied prior to frying. Some people use nutmeg or cardamom as well.