Creme Brulee French Toast... Recipe
My French friend sent me this recipe...DeRue..okay, so only her name is French, but she does know a coma-inducing dish when she eats it! And this one rang the Dang Meter loud and clear...I made this for breakfast T-day morn, and I personally only had a bite - okay two bites - because any more and the turkey would have been left in the sink while I slept off the sugar!
This is really a special occasion recipe - I wouldn't serve it to kids and then shove them out the door to get on the school bus...the sugar rush might propel them through Spelling but by Math time they'd be crashing! Speaking of math, my bank made an error in my favor last week...they notified me that I am richer by $1.44!!! Now, if I invest this windfall wisely I should be able to retire comfortably in about 500 years!
The recipe calls for making this the night before - however, I failed to READ the recipe before I began...so my French Toast didn't get made the night before - which allows time for the egg mixture to be fully soaked up by the bread. But guess what, allowing it to sit for just ONE hour worked beautifully!! The carmel on the bottom of the pan was thick and creamy and the bread was toasted on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside...this one's a keeper!
Creme Brulee French Toast - Adpated From DeRue Walker
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
- 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
- 5 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups half-&-half
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon Grand Marnier (or if you don't want to use Grand Marnier you can use another teaspoon of vanilla)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 6 slices of French bread, sliced 1-inch thick
Butter a 9x13-inch glass baking dish and set aside. In a small sauce pan melt butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup over medium heat, stirring until smooth. Pour evenly into prepared baking dish. Arrange bread slices in baking dish on top of caramel.
In a medium bowl whisk eggs, half & half, vanilla and Grand Marnier, if using, and salt. Immediately pour over bread. Cover with plastic wrap and put in refrigerator for an hour or up to overnight.
When ready to bake, remove plastic wrap and bring bread to room temperature, about 30 minutes or so. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake uncovered until golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Serves 4 to 6.