If you’re anything like us, you HATE letting any food go to waste. This quick and easy recipe for Leftover French Bread French Toast transforms sad, dry bakery rejects into a platter of sweet, custardy, golden brown breakfast magic in no time flat. Pain Perdu FTW! 🪄✨🥖
Table of contents
Why We Love This Pain Perdu Recipe
Not sure if y’all know this about us, but when we’re not dreaming about, making, or writing about food, we run an accounting firm. So, you can probably guess that it really ruffles our feathers when good food (a.k.a. money) goes to waste. No matter how you add it up, it’s bad for your budget!! 🧮 👿
That’s why we love the whole concept of repurposing old foods into surprisingly delicious new dishes. Enter: pain perdu. This French term literally translates to “forgotten bread,” and it’s what they call french toast.
If you’ve ever had the pleasure of eating a wedge of freshly baked baguette or any other French bread, you know how magical it is. And you are likely also aware that the magic is fleeting. (There’s a reason day-old loaves are so cheap, y’all.)
But, if you’ve had French toast with French bread, you should also know there’s life left in that loaf yet! It might sound crazy, but stale bread french toast is actually the *proper* way to make it. Pain perdu is the OG French toast, and “forgotten” is in the name!
Aside from being the literal best thing since sliced bread, this French bread breakfast is also:
- Rich & Custardy – A blend of tangy buttermilk and eggs seasoned with cinnamon and sugar revives the dry bread and turns it into a decadent-tasting (but decently healthy) breakfast.
- Super Economical – Let’s face it — there aren’t a ton of leftover bread recipes. You’re using what would either go to waste or be destined for breadcrumbs or bread pudding and turning it into a whole new meal. BRILLIANT.
- Kid-Friendly – If you have picky little ones in the house, we can pretty much promise they’ll devour this yummy breakfast without complaint.
Ingredients & Substitutions
As promised, you only need a few simple ingredients to make this delightful french toast on french bread. Here’s what to grab:
- Buttermilk – While we tend to keep a jug of this on hand for all kinds of baking and cooking adventures, we know not everyone shares our enthusiasm. Feel free to make your own by adding a tablespoon of lemon juice or white or sweet vinegar in a liquid measuring cup and top it up with enough dairy milk or unsweetened plain soy milk to reach a cup. Stir, let sit for 5 minutes to thicken, then use!
- Eggs – For achieving the perfect custardy texture. Feel free to use liquid eggs (or the vegan liquid egg substitute of your choice).
- Sugar – We use plain white sugar here, but you could also use brown sugar if you like.
- Cinnamon – We think cinnamon is a necessary ingredient in any french toast recipe. Feel free to swap in other warming spices like pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice if you like!
- Salt – A touch of seasoning helps sweet things taste even sweeter. 😋
- Stale French Bread – Cut into roughly ½ inch slices for thick bread french toast. If your loaf is still fresh, you can easily dry it out by popping the slices in the oven on a low heat (around 200F) for about 10-15 minutes.
- Unsalted Butter – For a bit of richness when you pan fry the pain perdu. Feel free to swap in vegan butter or use salted butter if needed; just cut back on the added salt if you do.
How To Make This French Toast With French Bread Recipe
This leftover french bread french toast comes together in a snap. Here’s how:
Step 1: Slice stale French bread into 1/2 inch thick slices
Step 2: Whisk together eggs, buttermilk, sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl.
Step 3: Soak bread slices, turning occasionally, until bread has absorbed liquid but is not falling apart.
Step 4: Melt 1 tablespoon butter on a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Transfer 1/2 of the bread slices with a spatula or tongs to the skillet and cook, turning once, until golden brown, about 3 minutes total adding 1 tablespoon butter between batches.
Step 5: Top with powdered sugar and maple syrup and enjoy!
Optional Variations
As much as we love this french toast recipe with french bread, there are plenty of ways for you to make it your own. Here are just a few ideas to get you started:
- Dairy-Free French Toast – Swap in soy milk to make your buttermilk and use vegan butter.
- Gluten-Free French Toast – Use your favorite thick-sliced gluten-free bread.
- Different Bread – Pain perdu is a flexible dish that can be made with any number of forgotten loaves. Try swapping in different varieties of bread like leftover hamburger or hot dog buns, tangy sourdough, or Texas toast.
Expert Tips
- Feel free to double the recipe for a whole loaf!
FAQs
French bread is commonly referred to as “French bread” because it originated in France and has become closely associated with French culinary traditions and culture. The term “French bread” is used to describe a variety of bread styles that are typical of French baking techniques and are widely recognized and enjoyed both within France and internationally.
Freezing French bread is possible and can be a convenient way to preserve it for later use, but there are some important considerations to keep in mind to maintain its quality:
Preparation for Freezing:
If you have a whole loaf of French bread, it’s best to slice it before freezing. This allows for easier portioning and thawing later on.
Wrap Properly:
Use plastic wrap, aluminum foil, or freezer-safe bags to wrap the bread tightly. Ensure that the entire loaf or slices are well-sealed to prevent freezer burn and to maintain freshness.
Flash Freezing (Optional):
For individual slices, you can flash freeze them on a baking sheet before transferring them to a freezer bag. This prevents the slices from sticking together and allows you to take out only the amount you need.
We like using crusty, thick bread for French toast, which is why those leftover loaves of French bread are so perfect. That said, taste is subjective. You can try making pain perdu with any style of dry bread including soft and squishy Texas toast, Japanese milk bread, tangy sourdough, raisin-studded cinnamon bread, or any stale bread you happen to have lying around.
More Breakfast Recipes
- Easy Lemon Blueberry Loaf Cake
- Mini Baked Fruity Pebbles Donuts Recipe
- Warm and Spiced: Vegan Pumpkin Waffles
If y’all tried this sumptuous recipe for Leftover French Bread French Toast (a.k.a. Pain Perdu), holler and let us know how it turned out for you by giving us a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating and commenting below. You can also always feel free to tag us (@creamcheeseandlemonsqueeze) in your social media posts so we can cheer you on.
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XO, Anna & Ashley
Leftover French Bread French Toast (Pain Perdu)
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 2 eggs
- 1.5 tbs sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- pinch of salt
- 1/2 loaf of stale french bread
- 2 tbs unsalted butter
Instructions
- Slice stale french bread into 1/2 inch thick slices
- Whisk together eggs, buttermilk, sugar, cinnamon and salt in a bowl.
- Soak bread slices, turning occasionally, until bread has absorbed liquid but is not falling apart.
- Melt 1 tablespoon butter on a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Transfer 1/2 of the bread slices with a spatula or tongs to the skillet and cook, turning once, until golden brown, about 3 minutes total adding 1 tables
- Top with powdered sugar and maple syrup and enjoy!
Notes
- Dairy-Free French Toast – Swap in soy milk to make your buttermilk and use vegan butter.
- Gluten-Free French Toast – Use your favorite thick-sliced gluten-free bread.
- Different Bread – Pain perdu is a flexible dish that can be made with any number of forgotten loaves. Try swapping in different varieties of bread like leftover hamburger or hot dog buns, tangy sourdough, or Texas toast.