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How to make French Toast (Secret Recipe)

My secret to French toast is stale bread, soaked for at least 5 minutes in eggs, milk, cinnamon and nutmeg, then fried in butter. The amounts aren't fixed, so add more of what you like. Ready in 30 minutes.

Written by Xhulio · Updated
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Two slices of dark golden French toast on a white plate, topped with raspberries while maple syrup is poured over them

What’s up everyone and welcome to today’s recipe on how to make French toast. Today we are making French toast, which is easy, delicious and very fun to make. What I like about this recipe is that it doesn’t require a fixed amount of ingredients. You can always add more from the things that you like or remove from those that you don’t like. With that said, let’s grab everything we need and start making it.

If you don’t like reading, watch the video here.

Tips for the best French toast

  • First, use stale sourdough or stale bread. If it is 2 or 3 days old, then it is perfect.
  • Next, use thick slices of bread, roughly 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick.
  • Next, let the bread soak for at least 5 minutes. That way the French toast will be very soft.
  • Always use real butter. If you use margarine or any sort of fake butter, it will not have the same taste. Real butter gives that brownish golden color.
  • Also, make sure the stale bread does not have mold. If it has mold, then throw it away. Don’t just cut the moldy part off. In bread, mold can grow below the surface.

Now you might ask why stale bread is the secret. Day-old bread can take more of the egg mixture and still hold together, so it can sit there for 5 minutes.

A slice of French toast cut open with a knife and fork to show the soft inside, with raspberries and maple syrup on top

Is French toast French?

Did you know that French toast is not French? According to a collection of Roman recipes from around the 4th or 5th century AD, the dish we now know as French toast existed as early as the Roman Empire. That collection is the cookbook called Apicius. The Roman version is often called pan dulcis, but in the cookbook the recipe is called aliter dulcia, which means “another sweet dish”. The Romans would soak bread in milk, fry it in oil and pour honey over it. Some versions of the text also have beaten eggs in the milk, and some don’t.

Others think that French toast was made by medieval European cooks who wanted to use all the food they had to take care of their families. They realized day-old bread could be restored when soaked and warmed. A French cookbook from the 1300s, Le Viandier, already has a version with eggs and sugar. In France it’s still called pain perdu, which means lost bread.

More breakfasts

If you love bread, you would love this one as well: How to make Trrahana (Trahana Recipe). If you like breakfasts with eggs and milk, my French crepes are another one. And if you want an Albanian breakfast, try my petulla.

Breakfast AmericanFrench

How to make French Toast (Secret Recipe)

My secret to French toast is stale bread, soaked for at least 5 minutes in eggs, milk, cinnamon and nutmeg, then fried in butter. The amounts aren't fixed, so add more of what you like. Ready in 30 minutes.

Written by Xhulio Tested in my own kitchen
Prep time
15 min
Cook time
15 min
Total time
30 min
Servings
2 people
Calories
555 kcal
Course
Breakfast
Cuisine
American, French
Cooking for
2 people
Units

As written.

Ingredients

0 of 8 ticked

  • Only have soft bread, like brioche?

    It works, but don't soak it for that long, or it gets very saggy.

  • No nutmeg?

    Leave it out, or add a little more cinnamon. The amounts in this recipe aren't fixed, so use more of what you like.

You'll need

  • Bowl (big enough to fit a slice of bread)
  • Fork
  • Frying pan

Instructions

  1. Make the egg mixture

    • First, we are going to prepare the egg mixture that we are going to dip the breads in.
    • Crack 2 eggs and start stirring them with a fork.
    • Make sure to use a bowl that is big enough to fit the bread in.
    • If the bowl is not big enough, the slices of bread will not be soaked properly.

    If you are cooking for more than 1 person, preheat the oven to 195°F (91°C) to keep the slices warm as they come out of the pan.

    • You need
    • 2 eggs

  2. Add the milk

    • And now it’s time to add the milk.
    • As I mentioned before, we can always adjust the ingredients for this recipe.
    • So if you want your French toast to be more on the egg side, make sure to add less milk.
    • In my scenario, I’m going to be adding about 1 cup of milk.
    • You need
    • 1 cup milk

  3. Add the spices

    • Mix it really well, and now it’s time to add ½ tsp ground nutmeg and 2 tsp ground cinnamon.
    • You need
    • ½ tsp ground nutmeg
    • 2 tsp ground cinnamon

  4. Soak the bread

    • After our mixture is ready, we are going to dip the slices of bread in it.
    • Now, the secret to the best French toast is to use stale bread and let the bread soak in for at least 5 minutes.
    • In my scenario, I am using a sourdough bread which is pretty stale, but if you’re using a brioche bread or some sort of bread that is very soft, make sure not to soak it for that long, because it will make the bread very saggy.
    Hands pressing a thick slice of sourdough into the egg, milk and cinnamon mixture in a plastic container, with a fork
    • You need
    • 2 slices of stale bread

    Stale bread, at least 5 minutes.

  5. Fry in butter

    • Next, let’s add the butter in a frying pan and then add the slice of bread and fry for 3 minutes on each side.
    • When the French toast is ready, it is going to look dark brownish on both sides.
    A slice of French toast frying in foaming butter in a dark frying pan, golden brown on top
    • You need
    • 1 tbsp butter

  6. Serve

    • Now that the French toast is cooked, let’s add your favorite fruits and some maple syrup.
    • And that’s how you make French toast.
    • You need
    • 100 g raspberries
    • 2 tbsp maple syrup

Nutrition per serving

Calories
555 kcal
Protein
22 g
Fat
17 g
Carbs
80 g
Fiber
7 g
Sugar
25 g
Sodium
775 mg

Estimated from USDA FoodData Central.

Ju bëftë mirë!

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Questions

Questions about how to make french toast (secret recipe)

What is the secret ingredient in French toast?

For me it’s stale bread, and letting it soak for at least 5 minutes. Bread that’s 2 or 3 days old soaks up the egg mixture without falling apart, so it comes out very soft.

Do you put nutmeg in French toast?

I do. This recipe has half a teaspoon of ground nutmeg and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon in the egg mixture. The amounts aren’t fixed, so add more of what you like and less of what you don’t.

How long should bread soak for French toast?

At least 5 minutes for stale bread, like the sourdough I use. Soft bread like brioche needs less time, or it gets very saggy.

Why is my French toast soggy?

Usually the bread was too soft for how long it soaked. Use stale bread, 2 or 3 days old, cut about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick. If your bread is soft, keep the soak short, and fry it until it’s dark brown on both sides.

How long do you cook French toast on each side?

About 3 minutes on each side, in butter in a frying pan. It’s ready when it looks dark brownish on both sides.

Is French toast actually French?

Not really. A Roman cookbook from the 4th or 5th century already soaks bread in milk and fries it. In France it’s called pain perdu, which means lost bread. The English name French toast first shows up in a cookbook from 1660.

What is pan dulcis?

It’s the name you’ll often see for the Roman version of French toast. In the Roman cookbook Apicius it’s called aliter dulcia, which means "another sweet dish". The bread is soaked in milk, fried in oil and covered in honey.

How long does French toast keep?

It’s best warm, as soon as it’s cooked. Leftovers keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge (USDA’s limit), or 3 to 4 months in the freezer. Reheat them until they’re hot, 165°F (74°C).

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