Recipe Notes: Everyday French Toast

6 June 2019

Recipe from Cook's Illustrated, March 2019

I have written several blog posts about French toast, trying different recipes, and I have written about its connection to my dad. I haven't made French toast in a while, but this new recipe inspired me to make some this week. The cooking method is special, this recipe allows you to cook eight slices at a time. Even when cooking dinner for two this is very attractive. But does it work and how does it taste?

The "trick" used in this recipe is to cook the French toast in the oven rather than on a griddle or skillet. A rimmed baking sheet was sprayed with cooking spray and the oven heated to 425° with a rack in the lowest position. Another rack was placed 6½ inches from the broiler element. (The recipe said it should be 5 to 6 inches but my choices were 4½ and 6½.)The custard mixture was prepared by whisking together eggs, vanilla, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Melted butter was added while whisking and finally milk (2% as that is what we usually have on hand). The egg mixture was poured into the rimmed baking sheet. Eight slices of white sandwich bread were placed on the pan and then quickly flipped. I used homemade Japanese Milk Bread. My bread slices were smaller than the store-bought slices used in the Test Kitchen and they did not soak up all of the egg mixture. I poured off the excess to make clean up easier. The bread was baked on the lower rack for about 12 minutes until the bottoms were golden brown. The rimmed baking sheet was then moved to the upper rack and the broiler was turned on. After about 2½ minutes the top side was done. Total time to prepare eight slices of French toast: 40 minutes.

Yes, it works, and it tastes great! This is a wonderful new way to make French toast. All eight slices were done at once. No cooking a few at a time then keeping them warm in the oven until all are done. No getting up from the table to return to the kitchen to tend the next batch. The toast was crispy with a nice, creamy, vanilla interior. It kept well in the refrigerator and was good after re-heating in the toaster. This is the way to go when making French toast.