It caught me completely by surprise. I was eating out at a Denny's with high school friends, and we decided to order breakfast for dinner. I ordered French Toast, and when my plate arrived at the table, I was disappointed to discover the Denny's French Toast was just a couple of pieces of bread coated with a cooked egg mixture. How sad. My siblings have similar stories. They were somewhere away from home, maybe at a friend's house the morning after a sleepover, and the French Toast served for breakfast was not what they had expected. I think we all figured out a way to handle the moment gracefully, without appearing to be ungrateful for what we were offered, but we agree it was a bit of a shock to discover the sad state of what passed for the normal version of French Toast back in those days.
We can blame this disappointing moment on our Mom. It really was all her fault for cooking us the delicious breakfast she called French Toast and not preparing us for the sad, real-world version of mere egg-soaked bread. Or perhaps the blame actually begins with her mother, my Grandma Sarah, who introduced the delicious French Toast to her children.
If you did not grow up in my family and we tell you about Our French Toast, you may not immediately understand why it would be appetizing. Here's the easiest way to explain it: it's a Grilled Cheese Sandwich cooked like French Toast and served with Maple Syrup.
Kids especially get grossed out by the idea of eating cheese with maple syrup. That is, until they try it.
If you would like to try it, following is my recipe for "Cheesy French Toast."
Share Your Story
If you do give it a try, please post a comment to let me know what you think. If you are in my family and grew up always eating French Toast made with cheddar cheese until one cruel day, please share your story of The Day You Found Out The Truth About French Toast.
Cheesy French Toast
Serves 4
What you need:
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
8 slices good-quality white bread (homemade or Grandma Sycamore's)
thick slices of sharp cheddar cheese (not American or Velveta)
butter (not margarine)
maple syrup
What to do:
- In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with a whisk until smooth. Add the milk, vanilla, and cinnamon (if using) and beat well. Pour the egg mixture into a deep-dish pie pan or a wide, shallow bowl. Set aside.
- Layer thick slices of sharp cheddar cheese on a slice of bread and top with another slice of bread, as you would for a grilled cheese sandwich. Repeat until you have 4 sandwiches.
- Preheat a non-stick griddle to medium heat. Add a small bit of butter where you plan to place each piece of french toast to cook. When the butter melts, spread it into a thin layer.
- One at a time, place each sandwich in the egg mixture, letting the egg soak into the bread for a few seconds. Turn the sandwich over (being careful so the cheese doesn't fall out) and soak the other side.
- Place each sandwich on top of the melted butter on the griddle. Cook the first side until golden, flip it over (carefully again so the cheese won't fall out), and cook until the other side is golden and the cheese is melted.
How to eat it:
Serve with butter and maple syrup.
(My husband prefers real maple syrup, but imitation maple syrup is fine and kids tend to prefer it.)
Variations:
- If you want to be really happy, add sliced strawberries and whipped cream on top of the maple syrup. (Yes, strawberries with cheese. Try it, you'll like it. :)
- Instead of white bread, try it with a specialty bread such as cinnamon raisin or cranberry walnut. Whole wheat bread is good too, but it is more filling so you'll likely eat only half a serving.
5 comments:
My Dad made it for us, usually on nights Mom worked, or random Sundays when he was home. Except he made his with Swiss Cheese. My mother made us regular french toast, so it wasn't a shock to encounter french toast in the outside world. But it did make Dad's version a delicious and exotic treat.
It is funny. This week I made regular french toast and remembered the other version and wondered if my family would eat it or if I had dreamed of eating french toast with cheese in the middle. Thanks for doing the blog it.
I first found out at school lunch during seventh grade. I had a home lunch, but it was so shocking that my friends were all calling the weird bread sticks that just looked like toast with cinnamon on them french toast. I'd assumed that it was called french toast because of the combination of syrup and cheese, and the french do weird stuff with their cooking. Tasty stuff, but weird stuff. It was the weirdest school lunch I think I've ever seen. It still unbalances me a bit when I see "regular" french toast.
I first discovered the world's version of french toast when I was in high school. I had gone to Village Inn with some friends. Some of my friends ordered french toast and I was shocked to find out that there wasn't cheese in the middle. In fact I said to my friends, "Where's the cheese?" They looked at me like I was nuts. I then had to explain what "real" french toast was to them. They thought it sounded strange.
People usually think the french toast sounds strange when I first tell them about it, but once they try it they all say that it is quite tasty.
Thanks to you all who have posted so far. I've received comments from cousins and a niece who I didn't even know ate the Cheesy French Toast at their houses. Yay!
Meredith, I have never made it with Swiss Cheese. I'll have to give it a try.
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