This Eggnog French Toast is the perfect festive holiday breakfast or brunch treat – and it’s super easy to make with just a few simple ingredients. Try it, and it might just become a Christmas morning tradition in your house too!
Eggnog is one of my absolute favorite things about the holiday season. It’s so thick, creamy, decadent, and delicious!
I can drink ridiculous amounts of the stuff, but I always make sure to save some to put in my Christmas morning French toast. It’s a tradition that I look forward to each and every year!
And who doesn’t love French Toast?
Bread soaked in eggs and milk and then fried to golden brown perfection, slathered in butter, and drizzled with warm maple syrup (okay, pretty much drowned in maple syrup in my case), and maybe even dusted with a little powdered sugar…it’s breakfast-y and dessert-y and oh-so amazingly delicious!
Eggnog, the official drink of Christmas, is made with milk, cream, eggs, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. You can drink it virgin (my favorite way!), or you can make it not-so-virgin by adding some rum or bourbon or the spirit of your choice.
If you love eggnog, then it makes total sense to replace the milk in your French toast with eggnog to make it something really special!
And whether you make your own eggnog or buy it at the store (like me), either will work wonderfully in your French toast. The flavor is out of this world!
LET’S TALK ABOUT THE BREAD!
The bread is the star of the show when it comes to French toast. You’ve gotta have good bread for good French toast.
Sure, you can make French toast with regular sliced bread, Texas toast (better), or thick-cut pieces of French or Italian bread (even better).
BUT using a more dense, rich, sweet, and egg-y bread like challah or brioche will take your French toast to the next level. Not only is the flavor so much better, but these sturdier breads can soak up the egg mixture with less chance of falling apart.
So, especially for a special occasion like Christmas breakfast or brunch, I highly recommend using challah or brioche. To me, they’re the best breads for French Toast!
INGREDIENTS YOU NEED:
- Eggs
- Eggnog
- Nutmeg
- Salt
- Bread (challah or brioche)
- Cooking spray
- Butter
- Maple syrup
Here’s a quick look at how to make Eggnog French Toast:
Tips & Tidbits:
- I slice my bread between ½ and ¾ inch thick. I find this to be the perfect size so that it doesn’t take too long for the bread to soak up the egg mixture and that it doesn’t fall apart once it does.
- Give the bread time to soak up all that eggnog-y goodness! How much time is needed will depend on how thick and dense your bread is. With a thicker cut of challah or brioche bread, you can’t just quickly dip and cook because your bread will likely be disappointingly dry in the center.
- I use an electric griddle to cook my French toast, but a large frying pan over medium heat will work too.
- When working in batches, keep your cooked slices of French toast warm by placing them on a wire rack on a baking sheet in a 200°F oven while you finish cooking the rest.
- Have someone that’s not into eggnog? Just use milk or half and half instead of the eggnog, omit the nutmeg, and add a teaspoon of vanilla for a delicious traditional version of French toast.
I look so forward to this French toast every Christmas morning that I sometimes have a hard time deciding whether to open gifts first or eat breakfast first (there’s no kids in the house, so I do actually have a choice!). To be totally honest, the French toast is usually the winner!
I hope you try this recipe for Eggnog French Toast and love it as much as I do. Thanks for visiting today!
MERRY CHRISTMAS, everyone! I hope your day is filled with family, friends, joy and happiness…and lots of delicious food!
Eggnog French Toast
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup eggnog
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
- pinch salt
- cooking spray
- 8 slices challah or brioche bread, ½ to ¾ inch thick
- butter, for serving
- maple syrup, warmed, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat electric griddle to 350°F.
- In a large baking dish, whisk together the eggs, eggnog, nutmeg, and salt until well combined.
- Add as many slices of bread to the egg mixture as you will be able to cook with your first batch (I can usually fit 4 slices on my griddle at a time). Gently press the bread down into the egg mixture with your hand, and then let the bread soak, flipping once or twice, until it is saturated but not falling apart. Note: Soaking time will vary depending on the bread you are using. If you are using a thinner, lighter bread, you will not need to soak the bread as long as a thicker, denser bread. When I use homemade challah, it could take 2 to 3 minutes per side.
- Lightly spray the hot griddle with cooking spray.
- Gently remove each piece of bread from the egg mixture, allowing any excess to drip off, and place on the hot griddle. Cook until the bottom is golden brown, about 3 minutes.
- Flip the bread and cook until golden brown on the other side, about another 3 minutes.
- Repeat procedure with remaining bread slices and egg mixture. To keep your cooked French toast warm while you finish cooking the rest, place the cooked pieces on a wire rack set on a baking sheet in a 200°F oven.
- Serve with butter and warm maple syrup.
Notes
- I prefer to use challah or brioche bread for French toast for it’s sturdy, more dense texture and richer, sweeter, egg-y flavor, but you can use a hearty sliced white bread, Texas toast, or thick-sliced French or Italian bread. Bread that is thinly sliced or that is very soft is not recommended, as it may fall apart.
- If you do not have an electric griddle, you can use a frying pan over medium heat.
- Estimated calories are for 2 slices of French toast per serving and do not include butter or maple syrup.
This post was updated on 12/16/20 (no major changes were made to the recipe).
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