My friend Melissa shared this epic French toast recipe with me from her days assisting at L'Academie's recreational school, and of course, we dusted off our culinary school notebooks and made a fresh loaf of brioche from scratch the day before our brunch. Any store-bought brioche or challah would work great here (day old is best), and you'll definitely want a bread with a little more flavor, depth and texture than regular white sandwich bread. While you could really use any crushed cereal you prefer, we opted for classic cornflakes, yielding a perfect crunch without overpowering the sweetness of light brown sugar. The recipe comes together fairly quickly with minimal prep time, so it's easy to prepare in the morning before a special breakfast or brunch. It also freezes beautifully if you want to make the whole dish ahead and just re-toast in either a traditional or toaster oven before serving. We served ours with this delicious, homemade Decadent Salted Caramel Sauce but it would be perfect with pure maple syrup as well.
INGREDIENTS:
- 4 Large Eggs
- ¾ C. Heavy Cream
- 1 Tbsp. Pure Vanilla Extract
- 1-½ tsp. Ground Cinnamon
- Freshly Grated Nutmeg or a pinch of ground nutmeg
- 1 Loaf Brioche
- 3 C. Cornflakes
- 2 Tbsp. Light Brown Sugar
- 2-3 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
- 2 Tbsp. Powdered Sugar for dusting
INSTRUCTIONS
Step 1: Gather all of your ingredients.
Step 2: Using a bread knife, lightly trim the ends of the brioche, just to remove the excess crust, and then slice the loaf into 8 even slices (the easiest way to do this is to first slice the loaf perfectly in half, each half in half, and each section in half to end up with 8 even slices). Set aside.
Step 3: In a sealed Ziploc bag, add cornflakes and light brown sugar. Shake to combine. Using a rolling pin, carefully break the cereal into smaller pieces but don't crush the mixture too finely. You'll want a little texture. Pour the mixture into a rectangular dish, such as a loaf pan. Set aside.
Step 4: In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, heavy cream, vanilla extract, cinnamon and freshly grated nutmeg (don't be too heavy handed with the nutmeg, a little goes a long way). Set aside.
Step 5: Heat an indoor griddle to 350℉, or set a large, nonstick pan on the stove over medium high heat, and bring to temperature.
Step 6: Set up a parchment lined sheet pan near the egg mixture and grab the brioche. Using tongs or clean hands, dip each slice of the brioche into the egg mixture on both sides, and immediately lay onto the sheet pan. Repeat with all eight slices, allowing the mixture to soak through.
Step 7: Once the grill (or nonstick pan is hot), melt the butter.
Step 8: Dredge each piece of soaked brioche through the cereal crumbs, coating both sides thoroughly.
Step 9: Immediately lay the prepared brioche slices onto the griddle (or pan). Repeat until all slices have been coated and are cooking, turning after 3-4 minutes per side or until golden brown and crispy.
Note: If you won't have enough room to cook all 8 slices at once, work in smaller batches, then move cooked slices to an additional parchment-lined sheet pan and hold warm in a low oven, about 200℉.
Dust Cereal Crunch Brioche French Toast with powdered sugar and serve with homemade salted caramel sauce or maple syrup.
Cereal Crunch Brioche French Toast
Equipment
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Cutting Board
- Bread Knife
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Microplane Hand-Held Grater if using fresh nutmeg
- Wire Whisk
- Ziploc Bag
- Rolling Pin
- Rectangular Dish (such as a loaf pan)
- 1-2 Large, Parchment-Lined Sheet Pan(s)
- Indoor Griddle, or Large Nonstick Pan
Ingredients
- 4 Lg. Eggs
- ¾ C. Heavy Cream
- 1 Tbsp. Pure Vanilla Extract
- 1-½ tsp. Ground Cinnamon
- Fresh Nutmeg or a pinch of ground nutmeg
- 1 Loaf Brioche
- 3 C. Cornflakes
- 2 Tbsp. Light Brown Sugar
- 2-3 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
- 2 Tbsp. Powdered Sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Gather all of your ingredients.
- Using a bread knife, lightly trim the ends of the brioche, just to remove the excess crust, and then slice the loaf into 8 even slices (the easiest way to do this is to first slice the loaf perfectly in half, each half in half, and each section in half to end up with 8 even slices). Set aside.
- In a sealed Ziploc bag, add cornflakes and light brown sugar. Shake to combine. Using a rolling pin, carefully break the cereal into smaller pieces but don't crush the mixture too finely. You'll want a little texture. Pour the mixture into a rectangular dish, such as a loaf pan. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, heavy cream, vanilla extract, cinnamon and freshly grated nutmeg (don't be too heavy handed with the nutmeg, a little goes a long way). Set aside.
- Heat an indoor griddle to 350℉, or set a large, nonstick pan on the stove over medium high heat, and bring to temperature.
- Set up a parchment lined sheet pan near the egg mixture and grab the brioche. Using tongs or clean hands, dip each slice of the brioche into the egg mixture on both sides, and immediately lay onto the sheet pan. Repeat with all eight slices, allowing the mixture to soak th350℉rough.
- Once the grill (or nonstick pan is hot), melt the butter.
- Dredge each piece of soaked brioche through the cereal crumbs, coating both sides thoroughly.
- Immediately lay the prepared brioche slices onto the griddle (or pan). Repeat until all slices have been coated and are cooking, turning after 3-4 minutes per side or until golden brown and crispy.Note: If you won't have enough room to cook all 8 slices at once, work in smaller batches, then move cooked slices to an additional parchment-lined sheet pan and hold warm in a low oven, about 200℉.
- Dust Cereal Crunch Brioche French Toast with powdered sugar and serve with salted caramel sauce or maple syrup.
