Description
This easy stuffed French toast is the perfect way to use leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving!
Ingredients
- 8 slices challah or brioche bread
- ½ cup cranberry sauce
- 4 ounces brie, sliced
- 3 eggs
- ⅓ cup milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 Tablespoons ghee (clarified butter)
- Maple syrup and powdered sugar, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Spread cranberry sauce over one side of each piece of bread. Divide brie evenly between half of the bread slices, then top with the remaining pieces of bread (cranberry side down) to form a sandwich.
- In a shallow bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, vanilla, and a pinch of salt.
- Press a sandwich into the egg mixture. Let it soak for about a minute, then flip and repeat on the other side.
- Heat a small spoonful of ghee in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.
- Use a fork to lift the sandwich out of the egg mixture; let any excess egg drip off. Transfer to the hot skillet and cook for 3-5 minutes per side, until bread is golden brown and eggs are cooked through. If your sandwiches are especially thick, you may want to tip each sandwich on its side for a few seconds to ensure the egg mixture along the crusts is also browned and cooked through. Note: Depending on the size of your skillet, you will likely have to work in batches here.
- Repeat this process - soaking each sandwich in the egg mixture and cooking until golden brown - until all French toast is cooked. Add more ghee between batches as needed.
- Serve immediately with maple syrup and powdered sugar.
Notes
This is a very forgiving recipe - feel free to eyeball the exact ingredient amounts here! If your cranberry sauce is especially tart, you may want to spread it over just half of each sandwich (as opposed to on both sides). Don't worry if your brie doesn't slice evenly - just eyeball it as best you can!
Use bread that is a few days old or slightly stale if you can - it will absorb the egg mixture more effectively, giving you a more custard-y french toast texture. If you can, use bread that's sliced on the thinner side - between 1/4" and 1/2" thick - since you'll have two pieces sandwiched together. (In our apple butter French toast recipe, we like to use a thicker, 1"-thick slice of bread.)
Additions and Substitutions. Use cream cheese or mascarpone instead of brie. Use slow cooker apple butter, jam, nutella, or fresh fruit in place of cranberry sauce. Add a pinch of cinnamon to the egg mixture if you like.
If you don't have ghee (clarified butter), use regular butter PLUS a few drops of a neutral oil (like grapeseed, canola, or vegetable oil) - the neutral oil will help prevent the milk solids in the butter from burning and turning bitter as the French toast cooks.
Can I save leftover French toast? We recommend eating this French toast as soon as it's cooked; it gets pretty soggy when it's kept in the fridge or freezer and the texture just isn't as good.
