Challah French Toast
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
Soaked in a rich cinnamon-laced custard, this challah french toast is fit for a special occasion.
This challah French toast isn’t your everyday French toast—the kind you might throw together with stale sandwich bread, eggs, and whatever milk you have in the fridge. It’s something much more special. Made with challah and a rich custard flavored with honey, vanilla, and plenty of cinnamon, it cooks up slightly crisp on the outside and creamy on the inside, tasting almost like bread pudding. Looking for a family-style twist? Try my baked apple French toast or my boozy French toast casserole for an equally delicious variation.
“What an amazing upgrade to plain ole’ french toast but yet so simple! Keeper. Thanks!”
What You’ll Need To Make Challah French Toast
- Eggs: The base of the custard, giving the french toast its rich, creamy texture.
- Low-Fat Milk: Lightens the egg mixture while still contributing moisture and flavor.
- Heavy Cream: Adds extra richness to the custard, ensuring the toast is indulgent and creamy.
- Honey: Provides a hint of natural sweetness that balances the savory notes.
- Pure Vanilla Extract: Enhances the flavor with warm, sweet undertones.
- Cinnamon: Adds a cozy warmth and spice to the custard mixture.
- Salt: Intensifies the flavors of the custard and bread.
- Challah or Brioche: Challah and brioche are both rich, egg-based breads and perfect for french toast. Day-old bread is ideal because it absorbs the custard without becoming too soggy.
- Unsalted Butter: For frying the bread, giving it a golden, flavorful crust.
- Vegetable Oil: Ensures even cooking and prevents the butter from burning.
- Maple Syrup: The classic topping, providing a sweet finishing touch.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by combining the eggs, milk, cream, honey, vanilla, cinnamon and salt in a large baking dish. Whisk well.
Place a few slices of bread in the custard.
Heat 1-1/2 tablespoons butter and 1-1/2 tablespoons oil over medium heat in a large skillet; add the soaked challah.
Cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
Transfer the challah french toast to a wire rack and place in the oven to keep warm while cooking the remaining bread.
Serve hot with maple syrup and enjoy!
You May Also Like
Challah French Toast
Soaked in a rich cinnamon-laced custard, this challah french toast is fit for a special occasion.
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs
- ¾ cup low-fat milk
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- Heaping ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 loaf day old challah, brioche or other good bread sliced ¾-inch thick
- Unsalted butter
- Vegetable oil
- Maple syrup, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250°F. Set wire rack on baking sheet and set aside.
- In a large baking dish, whisk together the eggs, milk, cream, honey, vanilla, cinnamon and salt.
- Place a few slices of the challah in the custard and let soak, flipping occasionally, until saturated but not falling apart, 1 to 2 minutes depending on how moist you like your french toast.
- Heat 1½ tablespoons butter and 1½ tablespoons oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Cook the first batch of soaked bread until golden brown, 2-3 minutes per side. Transfer to the wire rack and place in the oven to keep warm while cooking the remaining bread. Wipe the skillet clean with paper towels. Soak and fry the remaining bread, using butter and oil as necessary, until it's all cooked. Serve hot with maple syrup.
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Serving size: 6
- Calories: 543
- Fat: 33 g
- Saturated fat: 14 g
- Carbohydrates: 45 g
- Sugar: 10 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 15 g
- Sodium: 481 mg
- Cholesterol: 282 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Hi Jenn, thanks so much for all of your wonderful recipes! I was wondering if I could convert this recipe into a baked FT casserole?
So glad you like the recipes! Yes, once baked, you can use this in a French toast casserole.
Jenn, I love French toast so can’t wait to try this. I do not drink low fat milk. Can I substitute more heavy cream or just use half in half instead? Please advise when you have a chance.
Thanks, Staci
Sure!
I have made this several times! So so delicious! My 9 year old daughter absolutely loves this! I serve this with raspberries and blueberries and dust it with sugar too!
What an amazing upgrade to plain ole’ french toast but yet so simple! Keeper. Thanks!
I’ve been searching for a good custard recipe for French toast. This is it!!! Perfect balance of creamy and sweetness. I used the following only because that’s all I had on hand this morning … maple syrup, half&half, and added fresh extra nutmeg into the custard. My challah slices sat out in the open overnight so they were perfectly dry. Pan fried in a mixture of ghee and avocado oil. Delicious!! Another winner Jen! Your recipes never disappoint. Thank you!!
Easy recipe. Rich and flavourful. I halved the recipe and I don’t soak it nearly as long as recommended – just enough to get it soaked through, then drained off the excess. I guess it’s a matter of personal taste. But so far, this is still the best recipe I’ve made. Key is getting the slices thick and uniform, and making sure the pan is hot enough but not too hot.
To be fair, I made this with the regular thick sliced bread I have used for French toast in the past (vilaggio brand), as I had already gone shopping before finding the recipe. Maybe that was part of the issue.
I was so excited to make this recipe. Unfortunately I was bit disappointed with the results. It was not the best French toast I’ve ever had, and I didn’t find the flavor justified all the rich ingredients when compared to other recipes. I also found the amount if oil and butter in the pan to be excessive. It wasn’t bad… it just wasn’t exceptionally better either.
This is a simple and great-tasting recipe that is easy to put together. My family has already made it on three separate occasions. As is, the recipe makes a wonderful brunch or even late night dinner if you are into that breakfast for dinner kind of thing, which we are. We tried it with vanilla extract and loved it. We also substituted the vanilla with lemon zest and lemon extract (and added blueberries) as well as orange zest and orange extract (and topped with toasted sliced almonds). They were all fabulous. And since challah stores well in the freezer, we can have it any day without much planning ahead. We served it with bacon or sausage and both were tasty. You will be happy to have finally found your go-to French toast recipe!