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Tomorrow is National French Toast day.
But what exactly is French toast? Well, it’s not French. This delectable treat is believed to have originated in Ancient Rome and was called Pan Dulcis. They were dipped in milk, and sometimes egg, then fried in oil. Medieval cooks wasted no food. Stale bread was served in this manner. It’s also called eggy bread, gypsy toast and nun’s toast (to mention a few). The French call it pain perdu, which means lost bread.
So where did it get the name French toast? The story goes that in the 1700s Joseph French “created” the dish and intended to call it French’s Toast. Unfortunately he forgot the apostrophe and advertised it as French Toast. So lets celebrate tomorrow, November 28 with this dish that is known in some form around the world.
Here’s a recipe to try right now! Get out that stale bread, cover it with milk and eggs and let it set overnight. Bake it in the morning and serve it with the toppings of your choice! It’s delicious – AND easy!
Here’s How to Do it:
The first thing to do is to prepare the casserole about 12 hours ahead of time.
Lightly grease an 8X8 baking dish. Tear the bread into large pieces and lay them in the bottom of the dish.
Put the eggs, milk, vanilla, sugar, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon in a large bowl.
Beat everything together.
Pour the mixture over the bread
and gently pushing down the bread to make sure it’s all fully saturated.
Next, cover and refrigerate at least over night.
About three hours before breakfast, remove the casserole from the refrigerator and preheat the oven to 350°.
While the oven is heating and the casserole is coming to room temperature, place the butter and brown sugar in a bowl,
mix together well.
Take the buttery sugar and drop it by the spoonful evenly across the top of the bread mixture.
Now, place the baking dish in the center of the oven and bake for about 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. It will be a beautiful golden brown!
Allow to cool and top with your choice of toppings. We enjoyed it with real maple syrup and fresh blueberries! Make it a holiday tradition!!
© Copyright 2020 The Lazy Gastronome
- 4 large slices dry or stale bread - French bread is best
- 3 large eggs
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 Tablespoon white granulated sugar
- pinch fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup softened butter
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar
- Toppings of your choice
-
The first thing to do is to prepare the casserole about 12 hours ahead of time.
-
Lightly grease an 8X8 baking dish. Tear the bread into large pieces and lay them in the bottom of the dish.
-
Beat together the eggs, milk, vanilla, sugar, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon together. Pour the mixture over the bread and gently pushing down the bread to make sure it's all fully saturated.
-
Cover and refrigerate at least over night.
-
Remove the casserole from the refrigerator and preheat the oven to 350°.
-
While the oven is heating and the casserole is coming to room temperature, mix the butter and brown sugar well.
-
Take the buttery sugar and drop it by the spoonful evenly across the top of the bread mixture.
-
Place the baking dish in the center of the oven and bake for about 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
-
Allow to cool and top with your choice of toppings. We enjoyed it with real maple syrup and fresh blueberries! Make it a holiday tradition!!
© Copyright 2020 The Lazy Gastronome
Here are some things that are perfect to use for this recipe!
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Wow, this looks delicious – and so interesting to learn the history behind French Toast… thank you!
It was delicious – it serves four but us two ate it all! Thanks for stopping by!
I’m sure two would happily finish it – or one if there’s only one around!! x
LOL – us two did finish it!! Thanks for stopping by!
This looks delicious. I would definitely make this for my family. Thanks for sharing with #omhgww
My husband at most of it. He loved it. Thanks for stopping by!
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Thank you for sharing at #OverTheMoon. Pinned and shared. Have a lovely week. I hope to see you at next week’s party too! Please stay safe and healthy. Come party with us at Over The Moon! Catapult your content Over The Moon! @marilyn_lesniak @EclecticRedBarn
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Thanks for stopping by!
This looks so good, it reminds me of bread pudding which I love. Going to make it this weekend, I am so excited. Thanks for the recipe.
So nice waking up to breakfast ready to go! I could eat this for dessert and call it bred pudding.
Such a perfect brunch for me today. It is so delicious and easy to make. I love it!
perfect for brunch! It was an instant hit on the weekend for everyone
Helen, this sounds fantastic. Bookmarking so I can try this out later.
Thank you for sharing this with Sweet Tea & Friends this month.