Sourdough Baked French Toast With Homemade Brown Butter Syrup
This make-ahead breakfast has everything: texture, flavor, warmth, and a touch of acidity. Plus it's perfect for the FOJ. 🇺🇸
Last week my husband announced to me via text, “I want to taste your French toast at the 4th of July party so I signed you up”.
I typically am one of the first to sign up to bring food to a church or community event, because I feel like it’s the one thing I can do, but this just made me laugh.
What I didn’t notice until a few days later was the clearly written “recipe on the back of this clipboard” instructions that were front and center on the picture he took of of the signup (and sent to me).
At this point, I was already knee-deep into developing my own recipe. Oops.
I’ve had many fantastic baked French toasts in my lifetime, but it was fun to dream up my ideal version with no strings attached. Here were my rough ideas:
sourdough bread
brown butter
homemade syrup
soft on the inside, crisp on the outside
berries—fresh summer berries (are you seeing a trend?)
After a few versions and lots of cross-comparison, I’m super happy with the end result:
An easy to make, custard-like, smooth on the inside, slightly crisp on the outside French toast bake, with a homemade brown butter syrup that tastes like a cousin to caramel but takes just minutes to put together.
P.S. This recipe is wildly appropriate for the 4th of July thanks to the red (raspberries), white (powdered sugar), and blue (blueberries & blackberries). Make this the night before and effortlessly bake the next morning before a day of festivities.
If you’re new to The Foodletter, WELCOME. I’m so thrilled that you’re here. :) This is my beginning-of-the-month free recipe. If you like what you see, consider becoming a paid subscriber for only $5/month. I promise it’ll be more worthwhile than a bath bomb ($4.95 at Walmart), a 6-pack of almond butter bars ($5.39 at Target), or an overpriced Happy Meal from McDonald’s ($6.69 in my neck of the woods).
SOURDOUGH BAKED FRENCH TOAST
1 ½ lbs. day-old sourdough or rustic bread (1 or 1 ½ large loaves)*
8 large eggs
3 ½ cups half & half
½ cup sugar
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon salt
2 cups fresh berries, such as raspberries, blackberries, or blueberries
powdered sugar, for garnish
HOMEMADE BROWN BUTTER SYRUP
½ cup half & half**
½ Tablespoon lemon juice**
½ cup butter (1 stick)
¾ cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
SOURDOUGH BAKED FRENCH TOAST
Grease a 9” x 13” pan with cooking spray or butter and set aside. Cut the sourdough into cubes (roughly 1 ½” x 1 ½”) and place in the prepared pan.
In a blender (or in a large bowl using an immersion blender), combine the eggs, half & half, sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt until smooth. Pour over the sourdough bread cubes, cover with foil, and refrigerate overnight or for a minimum of 4 hours.
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake French toast for 30 minutes covered with foil, and for an additional 15-20 minutes uncovered. The French toast is done when it’s aromatic, the center is set (and no longer jiggly), and the top is golden brown and slightly puffed. Allow to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving with fresh berries, powdered sugar, and the homemade brown butter syrup.
HOMEMADE BROWN BUTTER SYRUP
In a small bowl or glass, whisk together the half & half and lemon juice and let sit for 5-10 minutes on the counter, until slightly thickened or curdled in appearance.
Warm a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat and add butter. Once the butter has completely melted, allow it to brown, stirring frequently and gently scraping the bottom of the pan with a spatula. The butter will foam and sizzle as brown specks appear on the bottom of the pan. When the aroma of the pan is nutty and the bottom of the pan is a toasty-brown color, remove from heat.
Whisk in the sugar and half & half mixture and bring to a soft boil over medium-high heat. Cook for one minute, whisking regularly, and remove from heat. Whisk in baking soda and vanilla and serve with baked French toast.
*If you only have fresh, same-day sourdough bread, never fear! Simply cut the bread into cubes per recipe instructions and slightly dry them out by baking at 350°F for 10 minutes. You can use the same pan you’re baking the French toast in, just be sure to allow the bread and pan to completely cool before adding the egg mixture.
**We’re using half & half to create a makeshift buttermilk for the syrup portion of our recipe, but you may swap both the half & half and lemon juice with 1/2 cup of buttermilk and skip the first step if you prefer.
MORE PERFECT-FOR-4TH-OF-JULY RECIPES
Olive Oil Texas Sheet Cake (W/4th of July Sprinkles, obviously)
Questions? Comments? Drop them below and I’ll respond asap.
POV you see me stuffing my face with this sourdough french toast at your 4th of July party