My love affair with rediscovering french toast continues. Last week it was Apple French Toast, a pile of french toast dripping with self saucing stewed apple syrup. The week before it was Parmesan French Toast (insanely delicious!). This week it’s french toast sticks – eat it with your fingers (tick), tastes like cinnamon doughnuts but a whole lot healthier (double tick)!
Cinnamon French Toast Sticks
I’m loving coming up with fresh takes on french toast! Growing up I always adored french toast but it was always the classic version drowning in syrup. When I was in uni, I discovered how good it was to pile bacon onto it, and yes, still drown it in maple syrup. I used to call this a “Heart Attack On A Plate”. This was before the day when “sweet and salty” became all the rage and everyone I made this for were dubious until they took their first mouthful – then they were converted for life.
I digress. Back to these French Toast Sticks. Two big things it has going for it:
1. Food you eat with your fingers. Need I say anymore?
2. Tastes like cinnamon doughnuts. I can’t admit to any of my friends that I secretly love cinnamon doughnuts, deep fried puffy goodness dusted with sugar. It’s on my list of what I call “Dirty Foods”, food that is oh-so-bad-for-you-I-know-I-shouldn’t-eat-but-secretly-love. Throughout this blog there is no doubt that I will be disclosing many of my favourite Dirty Foods. You will probably be horrified. Or maybe not. Maybe a lot more people than I think secretly love KFC Popcorn Chicken.
The key to french toast sticks that are stiff enough to pick up without flopping is to use stale bread and to use a block loaf you can cut yourself into thick slices (the thicker the sticks, the less they flop). This is the way I like my french toast sticks, but if you don’t have a stale block loaf, it still tastes just as delicious using pre-sliced sandwich bread, it will just sag a bit when you pick it up.
I really do recommend using stale bread where possible for french toast – any french toast. It makes a huge difference because fresh bread soaks up too much egg mixture – even if you dunk it in really quickly – and you’ll end up with french toast that is soggy on the inside.
This recipe only takes about 15 minutes to make, and is super easy. French Toast you can eat with your fingers – something that no kid, big and small, can possibly resist! – Nagi x
Cute spins on French Toast
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Monte Cristo (Ham Cheese French Toast Sandwich)
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And also – Classic French Toast!
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Cinnamon French Toast Sticks
Ingredients
- 4 thick slices white bread, preferably stale (Note 1)
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup milk
- Salt
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon powder
- 3 tbsp butter
- Maple syrup to serve (optional)
Instructions
- Remove crust of each slice, then cut each into 3 equal thick batons.
- Combine the eggs, milk and a pinch of salt in a bowl large enough to roll the bread sticks in.
- Combine the cinnamon and sugar on a plate.
- Melt 2 tbsp of the butter in a large pan over medium high heat.
- Roll the sticks in the egg mixture quickly (do not soak them), shake off excess and place in pan. Cook in 2 batches.
- Turn to cook each side until golden.
- Immediately transfer to the plate with the cinnamon sugar and roll to coat. It's important to do this quickly while they are hot straight out of the pan so it sticks.
- Melt remaining butter and cook the remaining french toast sticks.
- Serve immediately with maple syrup to dunk the sticks in.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
More Tasty French Toast Recipes
I’ve been making these for our Easter celebration for the past few years and they are now a staple on the menu. Everyone arrives after church and it’s a bit chaotic, but everything is prepped the night before so it’s easy-peasy. I would hear complaints if I failed to make these. I’m not sure why I only make these once a year though!! They are delicious. Thanks for the recipe.
Awww, I love hearing that this is a part of your Easter tradition! Thank you so much for letting me know! 🙂
Absolutely delicious! Best french toast I have had in a while. I did this with ciabatta loaf which was stale and I didn’t want to throw away and it was divine! For those of you who have less of a sweet tooth, these are equally delicious with ham and cheese, just don’t coat them with the cinnamon sugar, or if you like chocolate, dip them in Hershey’s Chocolate sauce instead! Mmm!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this Katy!! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and let me know. 🙂 And HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Good morning 🙂
Two things I discovered while making this today:
1. If you don’t leave your bread out to stale, browning it under the broiler in the oven for a minute or two on each side gives you an equivalent sturdiness.
2. If you’re making extra to freeze, omitting the cinnamon-sugar coating will stop it from sweating out any moisture at all. This is also handy when making them in large batches for immediate use as they began to sweat after sitting for 20 minutes (I had a small pan so my extras sat around for a bit before I could bag them).
Question: Are you doing all steps to make fench toast sticks without cinn/sugar ? So when done with dipping/baking, freeze, then reheat in oven with cinn/sugar? Never tried and have 11 grkids to make for. They are still crispy, not soggy/flimsy? Thanks for any help.
Thanks for the wonderful tips Rose!
I haven’t yet tried this but it looks so good. how do you keep it from being to soggy and it’s so thick?
Hi Nancy! The trick is to use stale bread 🙂 That way it doesn’t soak in too much egg mixture. But enough soaks in so it isn’t dry on the inside!
How do u recommend best making fresh bread stale?
Hi Erika! The best way is to just leave it out overnight 🙂
Dear Nagi, I can’t thank you enough today. I made this first time for my sons lunch and I had some left so he saw those and jkept eating those and I had to first time stop from eating food ?. I told him I gave you same thing for lunch he said don’t worry I will eat in lunch too. omg. ???. Thanks to you for sharing delicious recipe. love
Oh I’m so glad! SO glad your son loved them!!
I Love french toast. Your recipe looks superior to others. I am anxious to try. I have never been able to pan fry decent french toast. I always burn, parts of it, while the rest is fine. Well not quite burn but blacken, uneven I guess, and not exactly fine but soggy,floppy. Like mom used to make. Horrible of me, but it’s true.
How I would love to make mine look like yours. Do you think I could bake them? Maybe use an electric skillet? I have so many concerns. I do not want to mess up using your recipe and have it look like mine.
Hi Katherine! I’m sorry but this won’t work baked. 🙂 If your french toast is soggy, I think one reason might be that you are using fresh bread. Try it with stale bread – makes all the difference! We’ve all had our moments in the kitchen. You should have seen the disasters in mine this weekend! So don’t feel bad! 🙂
You mentioned heating half of the butter you didn’t however mention what to do with it or the other half of the butter .
Hi Shelly! Sorry about that, I’ll fix it 🙂 I cook them in two batches so I use the other half of the butter for the second batch. I’ll update the recipe!
Hi Nagi,
I found this recipe on pinterest originally and the kids absolutely go crazy for it! I’ve made it a handful of times already, so thank you! I’ve got it up on my blog now too, linked back to you of course! http://www.kitchentrials.com/2015/03/10/cinnamon-french-toast-sticks/
Hi Katrina – thanks for coming back to let me know how much your kids enjoy it! Popping over to check out your take on it 🙂 Have a great day!
I made these at the beginning of the week. I used Texas Toast bread since it comes in thick precut slices. I left the crust on hoping that would help maintain the “stick”, also my son eats crust so I figured I would leave it. I made the whole loaf since I don’t usually eat that kind of bread and didn’t know what else to do with it. After coating the sticks in the cinnamon sugar mix I put them on a cooling rack so no moisture could build up. After they cooled completely I tossed what we didn’t eat into a freezer bag and froze them. Today I reheated some on a cast iron griddle in the oven and put more cinnamon sugar on them. They were just as good as the first time. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! And I’m glad to hear that you thought they reheated ok. I found they were too soggy and sweated too much, and even if I tossed them in more cinnamon sugar, it just disappeared in the sweat. Still tasty, but they didn’t look the same. So I’m glad to hear that reheating them in the oven worked, I hadn’t tried that!! 🙂
Hi Nagi,
I have tried your cinnamon french toast and jam jelly doughnut french toast recipes. They were so delicious, especially the cinnamon french toast.
Thank you so much for sharing, simple recipes but taste so delicious.
Posted the recipe on my blog (using Indonesian language) and link back to recipe tin eats, thanks.
Thanks for your lovely comment Monica! I am so glad you enjoyed both of them!! 🙂
Made this with a loaf of cubed King’s Hawaiian bread for Valentine’s brunch today. Life changing! Truly! What a treat. My family LOVED it!
SO GLAD you enjoyed it Kerry! Life changing? Wow, biggest compliment ever!! 🙂
This looks awesome! Just like French Toast sticks in elementary school, except I’m sure these taste WAY better. 🙂
I certainly didn’t have french toast sticks at elementary school!! lucky you!! 🙂
Hello! These look amazing ! I just wanted to know how stale does the bread have to be? How many days would you leave it out for ? 🙂 thanks !!
Hi Janelle! Even if you leave it out overnight on the counter, it will be stale enough 🙂 You don’t want it rock hard stale, otherwise it will be too stale!! Just a bit dry is enough. Ideal is to cut the sticks then leave overnight. 🙂
I wanted to bring these to a potluck brunch. There will be no place available to heat them. Will they be soggy if left room temp?
Hi Karen – they don’t go soggy but the sugar makes them sweat so you can’t see the sugar as well. So I would take extra sugar to sprinkle over them just before you serve it! It won’t stick as well, but it will make them look like they do when you first make them. The taste is the same though!
Nagi…I featured these beautiful French Toast Sticks as one of my faves for my roundup on #FoodieFridays! Come on over and check it out!
Thanks Mila!! I’ll pop over now and check it out!
I love this recipe! I have to admit though that I am a fan of food you can eat with your fingers! Pinning and will be sharing on my Facebook page tomorrow morning! I hope you will be joining us at Foodie Fridays again tonight! I have to say I am so excited to have found your blog!
Thanks Michelle! I’m so glad we “met” each other too, I love your blog!!
These look yummy! Found your blog on Foodie Fridays link party and started following on Pinterest.
Erin
http://theeveryday-mom.blogspot.com/
Thanks for stopping by Erin! I’m so glad you liked what you saw. Foodie Friday is fab!
Hello, I wad wondering what kind of bread you used exactly, not just white? And did you cut the crust off?
Hi there Stephanie! Yes, I used white sandwich bread that came in a block (rather than pre sliced). And yes I did but the crusts off to make them neater, but you don’t have to. Thanks for the question, I have updated the recipe to clarify this!
These look truly beautiful and I think I will try them in that almost chip like shape. Have you ever tried them as pain perdu (caramel covered french toast)? I once made “dessert egg and soldiers” with lemon custard for dipping and pain perdu fingers (recipe here, http://timedeating.co.uk/dessert-egg-soldiers/) – but I think it would work brilliantly with his as well – thanks!
I’ve never heard of Pain Perdu which I can’t believe because I am SUCH a Heston fan! Your Dessert Egg Soldiers look absolutely amazing. I am so impressed you made a Fat Duck recipe!!