Baked French Toast

Baked French Toast

Baked French Toast

Baking instead of panfrying French toast is great on cold winter mornings, especially if you’re making breakfast or brunch for guests. Prepare the dish at night and bake the next morning while assembling healthy accompaniments, like fresh fruit and sauteed spinach. This recipe produces four to six servings.

Ingredients:

3 eggs

¾ cup half-and-half (or whole or 2% milk)

½ cup skim milk

2 teaspoons vanilla

½ teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon turbinado sugar

2 to 4 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts (or walnut dust, i.e., the residue that settles at the bottom of a container of walnuts)

1 tablespoon butter

5 or 6 large slices challah bread (enough to cover bottom of 9-x-12 glass pan)

Preparation:

Lightly grease 9-X-12 glass baking pan.

Collect walnut dust and/or finely chop walnuts.

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Sprinkle walnuts (and/or walnut dust) onto bottom of greased baking pan.

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Slice enough challah bread to cover bottom of pan.

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Melt butter.

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Brush melted butter onto both sides of each slice of bread. Lay buttered bread in pan, gentlyly pushing it onto walnuts.

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Whip together eggs.

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Whip in dairy products.

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Whip in vanilla.

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Pour liquid mixture over each slice of bread. Then, with spatula, gently turn each slice over.

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Grate nutmeg.

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Sprinkle nutmeg over each slice of bread.
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Cover pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate until most liquid is absorbed, overnight is okay.

Remove pan from refrigerator and uncover. With spatula, very gently turn each slice of bread over. Sprinkle each slice with turbinado sugar.

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Bring pan to room temperature by placing on top of oven while preheating it to 425 degrees Farenheit.

When oven is ready, bake for 20-25 minutes, until bread is puffy and slightly browned.

Serve hot with drizzles of maple syrup.