February (Crystal)

A Toast to the French

1 c. vanilla almond milk
2 eggs
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
French bread, old (or whatever bread you have!)
Some oil or butter for the pan

1. Beat the eggs in a casserole dish or another flat, deep dish.

2. Splash about a cup of vanilla almond milk in there. You can add more milk to stretch the batter, but it’s good to maintain an egg to milk ratio that produces a rather egg-y batter.

3. Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg into the batter until the whole mixture is tinted slightly brown. Continue adding spices to taste as they get soaked up.

4. Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat, oiling it with a little canola oil or butter.

5. Lay a piece of bread into the batter, letting it soak until it is saturated with batter.

6. Cook the toast until both sides are a golden brown and the middle feels slightly stiff to prevent mushy center syndrome.

7. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with maple syrup or honey. Sliced bananas and strawberries with blueberries provide a delicious garnish

Gastrography

I never understood the attraction to all things French, the trope of the suave French accent and the sensuous French lifestyle, until I visited Paris. French kissing. Fancy cigarettes. Cinemas. Markets full of produce and people. Wine. Cheese that scares nearby tourists and burns your tongue, changing everything you thought you knew about life. Now, I understand. French stuff is sexy.

I don’t really know how inherently French this style of toast is—I think I heard once that French toast was the cheap breakfast for French folks who bought old stale bread—but I have sneakily incorporated this breakfast into those luxurious mornings when I happen to have someone around to share breakfast. Call it my nod to French exuberance. I can’t imagine cooking French toast for one; it has always been a shared endeavor. Before I lived away from home, my brother and I would cook French toast on those summer vacation mornings after swim team practice, when we could putter around the kitchen and eat breakfast at one in the afternoon if that’s what we wanted to do.

I’ve never offered to cook French toast and been turned down, nor have I ever turned down this dish when offered. It’s sweet; it’s simple; it’s shareable. And it’s the perfect excuse to incorporate a little of that French sexiness into your morning.