Best French Toast

Get ready for the best French toast you’ll ever make! This recipe has it all—a rich, creamy custard and the perfect texture. It’s a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, and my family absolutely loves it!

Watch the Video

Easy French Toast Video

This classic French toast recipe has been a weekend tradition in our family for years. While we’ve tried many French toast recipes, we’ve always come back to this one – it’s that delicious!

My go-to French toast toppings are the classics – maple syrup, butter, and fresh fruit. But for something extra special, I add whipped cream or whipped coconut cream – it’s SO good if you haven’t tried it!

What Ingredients are in French Toast?

This French toast recipe is a weekend breakfast staple in our house – it’s simply the best!

Thick slices of bread soak up a creamy custard made with eggsmilkcream, and a touch of vanilla, then get cooked in butter until golden brown and irresistible.

Here’s a tip about milk and cream: While you can make French toast with just one or the other, I’ve found the best results come from using a mix of both. It creates a perfect balance—rich and flavorful without being overly heavy. Of course, if you only have one on hand, your French toast will still be delicious! Also, dairy-free alternatives are shared in the recipe below.

Best French toast slices, golden brown and ready to eat.

The Best Bread for French Toast

The secret to really good French toast is using thick and stale bread! Day-old bread soaks up the custard beautifully and gets the perfect texture, while fresh bread breaks down in the custard and becomes soggy.

My Favorite Breads to Use:

  • Brioche (rich, buttery flavor)
  • French Bread (classic and sturdy)
  • Rustic Italian-style loaf (hearty and flavorful)
  • Challah (slightly sweet and eggy)

How to Make the Best French Toast

Prepare the custard: Whisk your eggs with the milk, cream, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Now grab a wide baking dish, line up your thick-sliced bread, and pour over the custard.

Making the best French Toast custard

Soak up the custard: Move the bread around a few times to soak up all the custard. I soak my bread in the custard for a few minutes. Older bread usually soaks the custard up quicker than fresh bread (another reason to use older bread).

Soaking Bread in French Toast custard

Cook it: When the bread soaks up all the custard, place the thoroughly soaked bread into a pan with bubbling melted butter and cook until golden brown on both sides.

Cooking French Toast in a pan with butter

I’ve included tips for making French toast for a crowd below. Check out our Make Ahead Baked French Toast for a more hands-off recipe!

Making French Toast for a Crowd

If you’re making French toast for a crowd, use this little trick we picked up from making waffles. Heat your oven to 200°F. Then, slide the cooked French toast into the oven to keep warm.

They should be fine for quite some time without drying out. This method is a great way to reheat leftovers, as well.

Keeping French Toast warm in the oven for serving

Make Ahead and Freezing Tips

Prepare the Day Before: Prepare the custard and store it in an airtight container in the fridge. Slice the bread and store it on the counter in an airtight container.

Freezing French Toast: Cook the French toast according to our recipe below, let it cool completely on a wire rack, and then arrange it in single slices on a baking sheet. Freeze until hard, then transfer to a freezer bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to make French toast without vanilla. I love how vanilla extract adds that classic flavor to French toast – it blends so well with the eggs, cream, and bread. You can make French toast without vanilla, but you’ll lose that familiar taste. If you skip the vanilla, a tablespoon of maple syrup or honey in the custard will add a delicious sweetness.

Can I make French toast without milk? Absolutely. Swap out regular milk (and the cream in our recipe) for a 1:1 ratio of your favorite plant-based milk, such as almond, cashew, oat, soy, or coconut milk.

How do you make French toast without eggs? For eggless French toast, try these vegan alternatives: aquafaba (liquid from chickpeas), flax eggs, or store-bought egg replacers. These ingredients help bind the batter, add richness, and create a delicious, custard-like texture for your French toast.

More Weekend Breakfast Recipes

Thick slices of French toast dusted with powdered sugar on a plate

Best French Toast

  • PREP
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This is our family’s all-time favorite French toast recipe! It’s easy to make, and the vanilla cream custard is absolutely delicious.

Here’s a tip: Use day-old bread (or slightly stale) for the best results. It’s sturdier and won’t crumble or fall apart in the custard or while cooking. French, Italian, brioche, or challah bread are all fantastic choices!

Makes 4 servings

Watch Us Make the Recipe

You Will Need

4 large eggs

1/2 cup (120ml) milk

1/4 cup (60ml) heavy cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

8 slices day-old bread, 3/4-inch-thick

3 tablespoons butter, plus more for serving

Optional toppings: Powdered sugar, maple syrup, berries, whipped cream, cinnamon sugar (recipe below)

Directions

    1Heat oven to 200°F (93°C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Slide the baking sheet into the oven. It is best to make French toast in batches. The warm oven helps keep cooked batches warm while the rest finish cooking.

    2Whisk eggs, milk, cream, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt together until well blended.

    3Line bread slices up in a large baking dish (it is okay if they overlap). Pour egg mixture over bread slices, then flip and move them around the egg mixture. Move the bread around the egg mixture until the bread has soaked it all up.

    4Melt a tablespoon of butter in a heavy, large pan or griddle over medium-low heat. Working in batches, transfer a few slices of the soaked bread to the pan and cook until golden brown and cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes on each side.

    5Transfer cooked French toast to a warm oven while you cook the remaining bread slices. Add additional butter as needed for each batch.

Adam and Joanne's Tips

  • Dairy-free French Toast: Use creamy non-dairy milk like cashew, soy, coconut, oat, or almond milk.
  • Eggless French Toast: Use aquafaba (liquid from chickpeas), flax eggs, or store-bought egg replacers.
  • Cinnamon Sugar: Whisk  1/4 cup granulated sugar with one teaspoon of ground cinnamon. Sprinkle over French toast.
  • Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA database to calculate approximate values.
Nutrition Per Serving Serving Size 2 slices / Calories 482 / Protein 16 g / Carbohydrate 52 g / Dietary Fiber 2 g / Total Sugars 5 g / Total Fat 23 g / Saturated Fat 12 g / Cholesterol 236 mg
AUTHOR:  Adam and Joanne Gallagher
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39 comments… Leave a Review
  • Gene May 4, 2021, 3:24 pm

    This French toast recipe is the best and I’ve tried many. It’s so simple and not fussy and I even used cheap sandwich bread and it came out perfect.

    Reply
    • Joanne September 13, 2023, 5:49 pm

      This makes us so happy, Gene. Thanks for coming back and sharing.

      Reply
  • Kathy May 29, 2020, 11:20 am

    By Day-old bread, do you mean get the bread fresh, slice it and leave it out, or so you mean get fresh bread, slide it, and leave it in the bag? Or don’t slice it until you’re ready for the recipe?

    Reply
    • Joanne September 16, 2021, 1:58 pm

      Hi Kathy, any of these options work. We just mean that the bread absorbs the custard best when it is not really fresh.

      Reply
  • Brian April 16, 2019, 7:38 pm

    For a mindblowing alteration to this recipe, try it using slices of day old chocolate babka. Pure heaven, although probably a slight boost to the calorie count. ?

    Reply
    • Joanne September 13, 2023, 5:50 pm

      Brian, We love your idea (although, I’m not sure I would be able to save enough chocolate babka for the next day).

      Reply
  • Licoricelady February 23, 2019, 8:45 am

    Thanks for an easy and delicious recipe for French toast, similar to the much-beloved French toast my husband’s mom used to make. This one is better because it’s made with thicker Italian bread. Hubby put blueberry preserves and a bit of pure Canadian maple syrup on his; I put cinnamon sugar and powdered sugar on mine.

    Reply
    • Joanne September 13, 2023, 5:50 pm

      Such great ideas for toppings! We are thrilled you enjoyed the recipe.

      Reply
  • Sophia May 27, 2018, 9:32 am

    Thank you so much for this quick and delicious recipe! This was perfect for a family brunch, and the trick with the oven helped everyone’s french toast remain warm! The only change I made was to add cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg to the custard mixture. Thanks again!!!

    Reply
    • Joanne September 13, 2023, 5:52 pm

      Love your idea to add cinnamon and nutmeg. Such lovely warming flavors. I’m so happy our oven trick helped keep everyone’s French toast warm!

      Reply
  • S November 13, 2017, 10:26 pm

    What is the serving size?

    Reply
    • Joanne November 14, 2017, 6:06 pm

      Hi there, We assumed 2 slices of French toast.

      Reply
  • Sedviga October 28, 2017, 8:32 pm

    add 1/8 tsp of cinnamon to the custard

    Reply
    • Joanne September 13, 2023, 5:51 pm

      Cinnamon would be delicious in this custard.

      Reply
  • wilmer schaff July 15, 2017, 8:12 pm

    I would love to try this recipe but for some reason I can’t get it to print.

    Reply
    • Adam July 16, 2017, 10:27 am

      That is strange that you can’t print. If you contact us with the email address on our about us page we can help you figure out what is going on. We can also email you a PDF of the print friendly page.

      Reply
  • Judy November 27, 2016, 12:00 pm

    As always, terrific recipe!

    Reply
    • Joanne September 13, 2023, 5:51 pm

      Well thank you, Judy! So happy you enjoyed it.

      Reply

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