French Toast
A crowd-pleasing vegetarian built around thick-sliced bread and maple syrup — roughly 65 minutes start to finish, and rated medium to make. Below: the ingredients split into pantry staples and a quick shopping list, a built-in serving scaler, and the method in 7 steps.
You'll mainly reach for frying pan / skillet and pan. At medium difficulty across 7 steps, it's manageable with a little attention. As written, it's meat-free.
What you'll need
Shopping list (2)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
Diet: vegetarian — no meat or fish, based on every ingredient listed below.
Contains: Gluten Dairy Egg
Allergen labels are informational and may not cover cross-contact; verify every package and consult a qualified professional for medical dietary needs. Diet labels are derived from the ingredient list on this page — how we verify diet and allergen labels.
Food-safety and allergen information is general, not medical advice. Follow current guidance from your local food-safety authority, verify product labels, and seek qualified advice for allergies or health conditions.
How to make it
- In a wide, shallow bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon and a pinch of salt until the mixture is smooth and the yolks are fully broken up.
- Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat and add about 1 tablespoon of the butter, swirling to coat the surface as it melts.
- Working with one or two slices at a time, dip each piece of bread into the egg mixture for 3 to 5 seconds per side, letting it soak just enough to absorb the custard without falling apart.
- Lay the soaked bread onto the hot buttered skillet and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until the underside is golden brown and set.
- Flip each slice and cook the second side for another 2 to 3 minutes, until golden and cooked through with no wet custard remaining in the center.
- Add more butter to the pan as needed between batches and adjust the heat down if the bread is browning too quickly before the egg sets.
- Serve the French toast hot, dusted with extra cinnamon if you like and drizzled generously with maple syrup.
You'll use: Frying pan / skillet · Pan · Whisk
Ingredient substitutions
- Eggs
- ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce (baking) · 1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water per egg
- Milk
- any unsweetened plant milk · ½ cup evaporated milk + ½ cup water
- Butter
- olive oil (¾ the amount) · coconut oil · margarine
Tips & common questions
How long does French Toast take to make?
About 65 minutes from start to finish — an estimate based on the 7 steps and 10 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
What can I use instead of eggs?
Try ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce (baking). See the substitutions section above for more swaps.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes — use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
Is French Toast vegetarian?
Its ingredients contain no meat, fish or shellfish, so it is suitable for vegetarians. Check any cheese for animal rennet if that matters to you.
Related recipes
Adapted recipe — rewritten in our own wording from an open-licensed community cookbook, not yet independently kitchen-tested by Consomee. How we source, test & correct recipes.
French Toast is adapted by Consomee from the Wikibooks Cookbook, rewritten in our own wording and used under CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo: French toast 001.jpg (CC0) via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure — how we source recipes.