If you ever want me to like you, just make me a light, fluffy stack of pancakes. I’ll blush, I’ll smile a lot, I might propose–it’ll be weird and cute. Promise.
Just when I thought pancakes couldn’t get any better, I stumbled upon this recipe by Tasty Kitchen member frecklesandsunshine. The title: When French Toast Met Pancakes…and Fell In Love totally made me giddy with butterflies in my stomach. I was in love way before the batch was whipped up.
What makes this recipe so unusual (and delicious) is how the French toast is coated in a very thin pancake batter, creating an amazing crust around the bread. The results are pure heaven!
Let’s dive in, shall we?
You’ll need some ingredients. There’s eggs, cinnamon, vanilla, milk, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, some vegetable oil, all-purpose flour and a good hearty bread.
I used brioche because I wanted something that would be able to take the heavy batter. It worked beautifully.
In a large bowl, add the eggs and beat ‘em until they’re light and fluffy.
Next, we’re just going to add all of the ingredients (minus the bread) one at a time. First, the milk …
The baking powder …
The vegetable oil …
Vanilla extract (having fun yet?) …
Brown sugar …
All-purpose flour …
And lastly, the cinnamon. Secret alert: I added a little more vanilla and cinnamon. I couldn’t help myself.
I sliced up the brioche and then cut the slices in half.
Now for the fun part. Let’s dunk!
Gently submerge the slices in the batter and lift, allowing the excess batter to run off.
Transfer to a buttered skillet and cook on both sides until golden brown.
For some added deliciousness, top with a pat of butter, dust on some powdered sugar and add a few pieces of fruit.
And then … take a bite. See the dreamy crust? That’s what looove looks like!
Big thanks to Stacey for submitting this glorious recipe. You can check out Stacey’s blog Freckles and Sunshine for more delicious recipes (and crafts!).
Printable Recipe
Print Options
Description
In downtown Champaign, there is a greasy spoon diner known as Sam’s Cafe. At Sam’s, they make the most delectable French toast I have ever eaten. What makes this French toast special is that rather than dipping it in the typical egg batter, it seems like Sam dips the bread into a thinned out pancake batter. French Toast meets Pancake and they fall in love. Heaven!
We attempted to hack our own version. Here’s the result.
Ingredients
- 4 whole Large Eggs
- 1 cup All-purpose Flour
- 1 cup Milk
- 1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
- 1-½ teaspoon Baking Powder
- ¼ teaspoons Salt
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla (optional)
- ½ teaspoons Cinnamon (optional)
- 12 slices Bread (you'll Want Something Thick And Hearty To Stand Up To The Heavier Batter)
Preparation Instructions
Beat eggs until fluffy. Beat in remaining ingredients (except bread). Heat a griddle over medium high heat until a drop of water skitters across the pan. Dip one slice of bread at a time in the batter until it is completely covered. Place on the griddle and cook until brown on one side. Then, flip and brown the other side. You will know the bread is ready to flip in the same way you know pancakes are ready: the edges look dry and bubbles have formed in the batter along the crust. Slather with butter and drizzle on some maple syrup. These also freeze well for breakfast later in the week.
_______________________________________
Adrianna and Caroline are the lovely ladies behind the scrumptious blog A Cozy Kitchen. It’s filled with all kinds of mouthwatering recipes and gorgeous photography. Whether you’re in the mood for something vegetarian or meaty, fancy or pure comfort, light or decadent, there’s sure to be something there for everyone.
61 Comments
Comments are closed for this recipe.
Martha A. Cheves on 12.12.2011
When I was a kid we had “French” toast but without the sugar nor syrup. We ate it with salt and pepper. It has taken me many years to give this sweet version a try and I must say I didn’t know what I was missing.
Martha @ Stir, Laugh, Repeat
Adele Forbes on 11.25.2011
Those look so amazing….breakfast at our house in the morning. Thank you so very much for sharing.
bridgett on 10.30.2011
How much ingrediants do you add? that should of been on there to not cause me an frusteration…… >:/
Maria Popish on 10.29.2011
Dear Lord Jesus,
Thank you for the creation of this recipe!
Amen
Matt on 9.18.2011
Love this! will give my wife the link (she loves cooking new things and I get to eat them).
Rocco on 9.9.2011
I cook in a lottery slot machine facility. We do about 700 for brunch and we would take baguettes and cut them into 2 inch bias slices then dip them in a pancake batter and deep fry them then coat in icing sugar. The patrons ate it up. We called it East Coast French Toast.
Emily on 9.7.2011
Think I just found out what to make for dinner! Might try adding some chocolate chips for garnish rather than raspberries just because I’m in a chocolate mood.. LOL.
Thanks for sharing!!
Kimberly L. on 9.7.2011
The children’s French toast sticks are prepared much the same way at a certain famous pancake chain. They dip Texas toast into pancake batter, deep fry them, slice them into sticks, stack them like Lincoln logs, and sprinkle them with powdered sugar.
Joni on 9.4.2011
Ok, so now I’m officially hungry. This looks sooo delicious. I am going to try it soon. Yum yum!!!
Danish on 9.4.2011
Very nice illustration indeed. There is a suggestion of using honey on the cooked stuff instead of powdered sugar. I think it would create a citrus feeling.
Well done.
recipe lover on 9.3.2011
very nice and yummy thanks for sharing do visit my blog for more fresh tasty recipes
Jon on 9.3.2011
Love them.
Other names:
Norway: Arme riddere
French: Pain perdu
German: Arme Ritter
Swedish: Fattiga riddare
English: French Toast
vasanthchef on 9.2.2011
This is a good way to ruin French toast.
Wendy on 9.2.2011
This will be fantastic! Even more awesome topped with Nutella.
connie on 9.2.2011
wow!! mouth watering! have some!…:)
rabia on 9.2.2011
This is a great recipe
Bethan on 9.1.2011
Where did you buy the Brioche?
Louisa [Living Lou] on 8.31.2011
These remind me of the scene in I Am Sam where Sam wants to order French Pancakes but the restaurant he’s at doesn’t have them. Back on topic, these look so good, such an original idea too, I would never have thought of trying this!
juansito on 8.31.2011
son torrejas!!!
Melissa on 8.31.2011
I made this and it was absolutely delicious! I don’t think I’ll ever make regular french toast again. Thanks for sharing!
Aaron on 8.31.2011
This is a great recipe. I tried it this morning and have pictures to prove it!
Jonha on 8.31.2011
Gosh! This definitely makes me hungry!
Kat on 8.31.2011
……..I LOVE YOU. Thank you so much for sharing!!
april on 8.30.2011
this is just sooo divine…yummy!
Mauren on 8.30.2011
french toast plus pancake, all my love. gorgeous photos!
Pang on 8.30.2011
I’ll try to do it, it looks easy, and the food is very delicious.
Dan on 8.30.2011
Sounds delicious! I will definitely have to give this a try some morning.
Fred on 8.28.2011
I’ve been doing this in the restaurants I’ve cooked in for about twenty years now.
It’s actually pretty common.
Shinelle on 8.28.2011
Also, I only had one egg, so I made less batter, and made the rest with store bought pancake mix. Still yummy!
Shinelle on 8.28.2011
MMMM, just read this, made them immediately (its breakfast time). Delicious! What a wonderful idea.
Jean on 8.27.2011
I agree with Carrie, it is similar to the French Toast at the Silver Beach in Destin FL, and I miss it sooooo much. I d0 think they deep fried thier French Toast, I can’t wait to try this. YUUUUUMMMMM
CharlieS3 on 8.26.2011
Somewhere on the net I encountered the idea of preparing french toast in a waffle iron. Making this french toast + pancake/waffle batter in a waffle iron might be worth considering.
Vedette on 8.26.2011
Now this would be something fun to do with my kids on the weekend. Thank you for this.
Lindsey @ Why Just Eat on 8.25.2011
I can’t wait to make this for my daughter before school tomorrow!!
Sarah (Tyler's) on 8.25.2011
Enjoy their love-child: cook it in the waffler!
asian recipes on 8.25.2011
this looks brilliant!!! Definitely on my ‘must try’ list.. I loved the pictures. This is a great way to share a recipe.
Patrick on 8.24.2011
No no no! This is a good way to ruin French toast.
Shelly on 8.23.2011
We just had breakfast for dinner at the request of the 7 year old. Wish I had seen this earlier.
Kelli H on 8.23.2011
Im loving this recipe and the picture is just teasing me. Cant wait to make these!!!! Yummy
Jodi on 8.23.2011
This is the only way I eat french toast!!! I have been making it this way for years!!! YUMMY!!!!
Nicole Coy on 8.23.2011
I love this stuff, I really have to try this recipe! My mother in law has always made this, especially while camping and she just uses instant pancake batter then and its always absolutely amazing! Thanks for this yummy recipe! Trying it tomorrow morning!!!
Christina in MN on 8.23.2011
At boarding school we would call these “polish pancakes”
I can’t wait to try this recipe.
Chris @ TheKeenanCookBook on 8.23.2011
I want these for breakfast right now!
Jayne on 8.22.2011
Just too much for my tender heart. I want!
Ann on 8.22.2011
These look absolutely incredible! I love that it has a pancake style dip! Wonderful!
Rivki Locker on 8.22.2011
Brilliant recipe, LOVELY photos. Thanks for sharing!
denise8689 on 8.22.2011
My husband loves french toast, but mine is ALWAYS soggy. So, I gave up and he only gets it when he orders it at restaurants now. I can’t wait to try this! Hopefully no more soggy french toast and a happy husband.
Traci D. Haley on 8.22.2011
In my neck of the woods, that’s known as German Toast! Not sure why, though… we make it with Texas toast and, I’ll confess, I usually use pancake mix and just add cinnamon
Allyn on 8.22.2011
I made french toast with homemade bread last night, and SO wish I had seen this before! I mean, mine was really good (thanks to coconut milk in the mix for my dairy allergic hubs), but I love the idea of this awesome crust.
Now I need to make more bread…
Jenny on 8.22.2011
My dad used to make these for us. He called them Mexican Pancakes and coated all sides w/ cinnamon sugar as soon as they came out of the skillet. Yummy!!!