I’ve had peanut butter toast several times. I used to be such a finicky eater as a child that I would not even eat sandwiches or cereal. I would, however, cheerfully eat peanut butter on toast, so I did so for breakfast each and every morning.
Here is how my morning was like. I dragged my sleepy little self and the most recent Nancy Drew book over to the table every morning after staying up too late reading Nancy Drew books in bed the night before. I would read my book and then a plate of peanut butter toast would mysteriously materialize in front of me (thanks, Mom). It’s kind of charming and kind of awful that the peanut butter smears on the corners of my old Nancy Drew books.
I’ve grown to appreciate sandwiches and cereal eventually, but neither are my favorites. I continue to stay up too late, and peanut butter on bread (or avocado on toast, but that’s a topic for another post) always makes me happy. These days, I like to top my peanut butter toast with a sprinkle of honey and occasionally, some bananas.
A more sophisticated version of my old favorite, baked French toast. Hearty whole grain bread topped with caramelized bananas that have been baked in a creamy custard. A drizzle of peanut butter and maple syrup was added to complete the dish. absolute comfort food It’s the ideal holiday breakfast or brunch menu item that will keep your guests interested until evening.
Also read: Toasted Oatmeal with Strawberry Chia Jam and Coconut Whipped Cream
I’ll go into more detail about the recipe’s specifics below if anyone wants to geek out with me. First of all, who actually has stale bread hanging around when they need it? Most French toast recipes call for stale bread. I followed the advice of America’s Test Kitchen and slightly dried up my pieces of fresh bread in the oven before baking them. This allows the bread to absorb the custard mixture better. This French toast doesn’t need to soak overnight before baking, I think, which is why. If you simply mix everything together and bake it, it’s pretty amazing, but it might be better that way.
The peanut butter dried out in the oven and lost its warm, gooey charm when I tried to put it on the bread before baking. Bypassing that problem is the sprinkle of maple syrup and peanut butter. Serve warm slices of cooked French toast with a jar of peanut butter and some maple syrup on the side if you’re not going for presentation points. Including a Nancy Drew book is optional.
For this recipe, I used my preferred Farm to Market whole grain sandwich bread from Kansas City. You can use any type of bread in this recipe, but I personally adore the hearty, whole grain bread’s nutty flavor. Furthermore, it is healthier and more filling. Visit GrainsforYourBrain.org to learn more about the health advantages of whole grains.
INGREDIENTS
- Quality whole grain sandwich bread, 8 to 10 pieces
- two bananas.
- Four big eggs
- 2 cups of any kind of milk (low fat milk or nut milk works)
- 1 cinnamon stick
- Vanilla extract, two tablespoon4 grains of salt
- 10 grams of butter
- 1 teaspoon of honey
- 2 teaspoons of raw turbinado sugar
- drizzled with peanut butter
- 1/2 cup of maple syrup
- 13 to 1 cup peanut butter
INSTRUCTIONS
- Set the oven’s temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the whole slices of bread on a sizable baking sheet, turn them over halfway through baking, and bake for 8 minutes. This somewhat dries up the bread, allowing it to absorb more egg mixture.
- Scramble the eggs in a mixing dish, then stir in the milk, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Use a microwave or a stovetop to melt the butter. Before adding it to the egg mixture, whisk the honey into the melted butter.
- Butter a 9 by 9-inch baking dish. Cut the final few slices of bread into quarters and the majority of the slices in half. As seen in the images above, arrange the divided slices in the baker in rows to create an approximately uniform layer of bread. With the smaller slices of bread, fill in the gaps.
- Bananas should be peeled and cut into 14-inch rounds. Place the banana slices randomly between the bread slices one at a time. Pour the egg mixture over the bread gradually. It’s okay to slightly crush the bread when you press down with your hands to fully submerge it in the egg mixture for a few seconds. Wash your hands before liberally sprinkling a few teaspoons of raw sugar over the French toast. Bake for about an hour to an hour and ten minutes, or until the top is golden and the custard has set in the middle.
- In a small pan over low heat, warm the maple syrup to make the peanut butter drizzle (you can also do this in the microwave). Add up to 1/3 cup of peanut butter, depending on your preferences (keep in mind that the French toast is pretty sweet already). Get rid of the heat. Before cutting the French toast into 6 large or 8 smaller servings, allow it to cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Add maple peanut butter sauce before serving.
NOTES
- Roughly adapted from Alton Brown, Bobby Deen and America’s Test Kitchen.
- You can prepare the French toast up to 24 hours in advance. Once you’ve drizzled the egg mixture over the bread, cover the baker and place it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake it. Or, bake the French toast as directed, let it cool, and store it in the refrigerator overnight. When you’re ready to serve, reheat it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 12 to 15 minutes, or until warmed through.