It’s Back to School time once again and the smell of #2 pencils is in the air. I love this time of year, full of new beginnings and excitement. Along with all the excitement is a parent pumping themselves up for another year of quick breakfasts, lunch box ideas and after school snacks.
I know this scenario very well, I am always on the lookout for breakfast ideas that are quick because apparently time moves quicker before 8am when you are trying to get kids to get dressed, get their stuff and eat something. Why can no one find their shoes??
Hopefully I can help with at least one of the morning tasks with these easy, quick and delicious French Toast Sticks made with a custard-like coating. Not only are they delicious, but you can make a big batch, freeze them and then heat them up in just a couple minutes in the morning.
This simple recipe requires only a few ingredients – most of which you probably already have in the house!
Any type of bread will do. White, wheat, sourdough, french, whatever you got on hand will work. You will want to cut the bread using a serrated knife into strips that are ½ to ¾ inch wide.
Heavy Cream is a major player in what makes the French Toast Sticks so good. Heavy cream mixed with the eggs makes a custard-like mixture to coat the french toast sticks making them a bit creamy and sweet. Incredible flavor. I will always choose Hiland Dairy for my heavy cream because the quality is outstanding. It includes no artificial growth hormones and is rigorously tested for antibiotics, so you know you’re getting the best quality dairy. (P.S. If you’re buying Hiland Dairy products, make sure to check out their coupons!)
Choose a large egg size for the cream and egg mixture. The eggs mixed with the Hiland Dairy heavy cream create a rich, creamy custard coating for the french toast sticks.
Gotta have a bit of sugar to make these French Toast Sticks a little sweet with the richness of the egg and heavy cream mixture. Not too sweet, just a bit.
Ground Cinnamon gives these french toast sticks a little warm sweetness along with the richness of the custard coating. Just a bit goes a long way.
Just a bit of Pure Vanilla extract gives the heavy cream mixture a slight sweetness and subtle warm vanilla flavor.
I like to use Kosher salt for most of my cooking, but any salt will do! Grab whatever you have in the pantry and add it to your french toast stick mixture to bring the sweetness out.
Cut your slices of bread into ½ to ¾ inch strips. Using a serrated knife will make this much easier. I love this one from Rada. Next you will butter a baking sheet. I like to take a stick of butter and run it all over the baking sheet making sure to get every part of the surface.
In a large bowl, whisk the Hiland Dairy Heavy Cream, eggs, sugar, cinnamon and salt all together until combined.
Take each strip and dunk it into the egg and heavy cream mixture making sure to get it generously coated. Place the strip of bread onto the baking sheet. Repeat for all the bread. You can either use two baking sheets to cook at one time or bake in batches.
Bake the French Toast Sticks at 375 for 7 minutes then flip each stick and bake another 7 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack. Either serve and eat while warm or follow the next step for freezing.
If you decide to freeze the French Toast Sticks for future busy mornings then you’ll want to let them cool completely. Then place in a Ziploc bag and into the freezer. Easy. When you are ready to eat, you can heat them up in a few ways. In the oven at 350 for 5 minutes, in a toaster or in the microwave for 2 minutes. The microwave won’t make them as crispy but on a busy morning, you want quick, easy and delicious. These fit the bill.
There are so many ways to make this French Toast Stick recipe your own! Let your creativity (and your taste buds) run wild and try some of these fun twists.
Try out different types and flavors of bread like cinnamon raisin bread. Maybe chocolate chip, blueberry, sourdough, french bread, anything will work for this recipe!
I’m never one to turn down a little extra sweetness. I love the idea of adding other flavors to the heavy cream and egg mixture. Try a maple extract, nutmeg or add some chocolate chips.
I love a delicious but easy breakfast recipe. Plus, anything I can do to make school mornings a little easier and have my kid eat, success!
Here are a few of my favorites:
And if you’re interested in creating more deliciousness with Hiland Dairy products, be sure to check out Hiland Dairy’s recipes too (including some created by yours truly!).
Hiland Dairy Heavy Cream and eggs plus a bit of sweetness make a delicious custard-like coating for these French Toast Sticks. These freeze very well ahead of time so you can heat and go in the morning.
1 loaf bread
2–3 Tablespoons Hiland Dairy Butter
2 cups Hiland Dairy Heavy Cream
2 large eggs
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with the butter. You will either need to use two baking sheets or bake in two batches.
Cut the bread slices into ½ to ¾ inch strips. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the Hiland Dairy Heavy Cream, eggs, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and salt.
Take each bread strip and dunk it into the egg mixture, making sure to coat the entire strip generously. Continue until all the bread is coated. (or half the bread if baking in two batches)
Bake for 7 minutes and then flip each french toast stick over. Bake for another 7 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack.
Serve while warm with syrup or your favorite toppings!
To Freeze: Cool the french toast sticks completely. Place the sticks in a ziploc bag or freezer safe/airtight container and store in the freezer. To reheat- place in oven at 350 degrees for 5-7 minutes or in a toaster until warm. You can wrap them in a paper towel and microwave them for 2 minutes. (they will not be as crispy in the microwave, but it’s nice and quick.)
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