Cinnamon French toast is a tried-and-true breakfast favorite that is super simple to make and mouthwateringly delicious. It is best to eat this first thing in the morning or during midday as brunch. Also, it is a very well-rounded meal, since you can put various toppings on it or consume it with other foods like eggs or bacon. This easy recipe will leave you coming back for seconds!
Why Make Cinnamon French Toast At Home?
Creating your own cinnamon French toast instead of simply buying packaged versions of them at stores has numerous advantages. For one, it lets you directly control how much sugar, eggs, and oil go into it. You get to control how long you cook it, which results in a crispier taste and satisfying flavor.
But, the most important advantage is that you get to choose which type of bread you use, which is super important in any French toast recipe. Brioche is the most popular homemade bread choice, because it is the cheapest bread option that also results in a fluffy feel. It’s the perfect bread for cutting into sticks and dipping them in warm maple syrup. But even normal bread, like sourdough, rye, and whole wheat, can still produce good cinnamon French toast.
And finally, the last benefit of cooking homemade is that you avoid the added sugars and artificial ingredients found in store-bought variations. Retail French toast has plenty of additives, preservatives, and unnecessary added sugars that honestly makes it unpleasant to eat, especially frequently. Instead of feeling satisfied, it tends to make you feel bloated and craving more food because of the density of the sugar. When you cook your own French toast at home, it tends to feel authentic, and that tends to feed into a better food experience overall. Simply put, it is healthier to cook your own toast.
Ingredients:
- 5 slices of day-old Brioche bread, cut thick*
- 3 whole eggs
- 1/3 cup of milk OR heavy cream
- 1 tbsp of sugar
- ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons of cinnamon extract
- 1 tsp of butter OR cooking spray (olive or coconut oil)
*Produces a yield of 5. French, challah, and regular store-bought bread are viable alternatives to Brioche bread if you do not have it.
Directions:
- Put the eggs, milk/cream, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Make sure the bowl is open enough so you can fit your bread slices in without hitting the sides.
- Soak your bread slices fully in the mixture. Make sure all sides of the sticks are fully coated.
- Set a large pan over your stove and heat it over medium heat. After about 5 minutes, coat the pan with the teaspoon of butter or cooking spray.
- Place your coated sticks in the pan and cook for 3 minutes, then flip and cook another 3 minutes or until golden-brown. Repeat until all sticks are done.
- Once ready, place your cinnamon French toast on a dish and let cool before serving.
The cinnamon sticks taste great when topped with maple syrup or warm butter. I personally like to pepper my sticks with powdered sugar to make it look amazing. You can also add additional cinnamon as a topping as well. If the sticks come out of the pan a bit soggy, simply cook it for longer.
Looking to cook your French toast with challah bread specifically? I have a challah French toast recipe where I explain the benefits and detailed instructions for using challah bread. This bread type is excellent for its incredibly chewy and spongy texture.
How To Store Cinnamon French Toast
For refrigeration, store the cinnamon sticks in your fridge within two hours of cooking. Cover the sticks with plastic wrap or foil to prevent them from drying out.
For freezing, I find it best to wrap the sticks in wax paper, then aluminum foil on top of that. When reheating, use the microwave for the fastest time, or cook it again on the skillet over low heat if you care about retaining the original taste. Either way, enjoy your delicious cinnamon French toast!
If you want to dive further on what types of bread work best for French toast recipes, or what else you can do to make yours taste even better, then head over to my pillar article “Homemade Healthy French Toast“. That post explains everything about French toast in more detail.
