As I sat on the park bench surrounded by freshly fallen snow, my mind began to wander toward the warm, comforting foods of my childhood. Dozens of hearty meals came to mind, but one stood out above the rest: French toast –the holy grail of breakfast foods.
After my childhood best friend gave me a bite during lunch in elementary school, French toast has held a special place in my heart.
The dish itself is extremely simple, only needing three major components: bread, a mixture to soak the bread in to give it its signature milkiness and any toppings you desire.
With its simplicity and heartiness in our minds, we decided to create two different types of French toast inspired by other breakfast items: a traditional version topped with meringue and simple berry syrup and a tiramisu version with chocolate syrup and meringue.
Mixed Berry French Toast
We started with the berry syrup, as we decided to use a time-consuming process known as maceration. We prepared around one cup of blackberries, blueberries and raspberries and placed them into a large bowl. Then, sugar was poured on top of the fruits until the ratio of sugar to fruit was around 1:1. I placed the berry mixture in the fridge to develop into a syrup as we prepared the rest of the dish.
First, we cut a loaf of milk bread into thick slices to ensure the toast maintains its structure and springiness.
Next, the milk bath was created with a mix of heavy cream, whole milk, vanilla extract, eggs, cinnamon and a bit of sugar.
After creating the milk bath, we began whipping together a simple meringue using egg whites and sugar. We added both ingredients into a large mixing bowl and whisked the mixture to aerate the eggs until they formed stiff peaks.
Each piece of bread was then soaked in the milk bath for around a minute on each side before we transferred them to a non-stick pan greased with a thin layer of butter on medium heat.
The toast was then cooked on each side until golden brown and placed into columns on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper before going into the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes.
After removing the toast and letting it cool to firm up slightly, I smeared a generous amount of meringue on top and topped it with the mixed berry syrup and berries.
For plating purposes as well as to have a drink with the meal, we poured a latte to complement the toast.
Cutting into the toast, it had a near-perfect texture, with the only downside being the milk had not fully soaked through the toast.
However, even without the entire toast being soaked, it was still sweet enough for my liking, and the syrup was a sweet yet tart accent to the entire meal. The fluffy and airy meringue paired with the syrup gave the dish a lighter aspect compared to the traditional heaviness of French toast.
After tasting the mixed berry version, we moved on to the tiramisu rendition of the entree.
Tiramisu French Toast
For this version, the toast and meringue were prepared the same way. However, the milk bath replaced cinnamon with a shot of espresso to give the toast the signature coffee taste associated with tiramisu.
After soaking, searing and baking the toast in the same way as the mixed berry toast, we added meringue on top, a chocolate syrup drizzle and a dusting of cocoa powder before plating.
Much like the mixed berry version, the tiramisu French toast had the same springy texture.
Taking our first bites of the dessert, we were pleasantly surprised by the bittersweet taste of the the chocolate syrup cutting through the bitterness of the espresso. Despite this, the espresso notes were much subtler than expected, so we could have added another shot into the milk bath.
While both dishes were amazing in their own right, for me, there was one clear winner. As the tiramisu French toast was decadent and heavy, it lacked the brightness provided by the mixed berry version.
This led to us finishing the mixed berry version over the tiramisu one, as the richness of the chocolate sauce became too much for the espresso to cut through, leading us to set it aside after a few bites.
French toast is a breakfast item every person needs to try. Requiring only staple household ingredients and taking us only a little over half an hour to make, this dish can easily be made from the comfort of your own home.
Individual toppings can be chosen for each person, creating a taste that caters to their specific preferences.
Acting as a canvas for everyone’s unique taste, French toast offers a hearty, comforting meal to melt away the troubles of life.
