Brunch-Worthy Caramel Pecan French Toast Recipe

Brunch recipes tend to cross many boundaries, offering a variety of dishes spanning nutritious, decadent, sweet, and savory. Often a little more complex than breakfast (after all, there's more time to prepare), it's no surprise brunch is so enjoyable. Foodie recipe developer Julianne De Witt shares this brunch-worthy caramel pecan French toast recipe that might convince you to start serving brunch on a daily basis. As she notes, "The French term for French toast is pain perdu, which means 'lost bread' as this dish is a way to repurpose bread that has gone stale." However, she also provides a trick to recreate a similar dry consistency, so use what you have.

Much like standard French toast, this dish consists of bread soaked in a custardy mixture, then fried until golden and toasted. "It's often served with sweet toppings like syrup, powdered sugar, or whipped cream, but I'm kicking it up a notch by serving it with a quick caramel pecan sauce," De Witt describes. If you have leftovers, both the French toast and the caramel sauce keep in the fridge; reheat the toast within a couple of days (use an air-fryer or frying pan for crispy result) and the sauce within a couple of weeks (in the microwave or a saucepan).

For this recipe, you'll need thick slices of brioche bread, though challah or French bread can be used as a substitute. De Witt specifies, "Dry bread is ideal for French toast because it soaks up more of the egg and milk mixture, also known as the custard, without becoming soggy." However, if your bread is fairly fresh she notes, "I bake the bread for 10 minutes at a low temperature so that it dries out but doesn't get toasted. Alternatively, the bread can also be left out uncovered overnight to dry out." Next, get butter, brown sugar, whole milk, salt, chopped toasted pecans, eggs, heavy cream, cinnamon, and vegetable oil.

Preheat the oven to 275 F.

Place the bread slices on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake the bread for 5 minutes, then flip and bake for another 5 minutes.

Melt ¼ cup of butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Add the milk and brown sugar, whisking to combine the ingredients.

Lightly boil for 3 minutes or until the sauce coats the back of a spoon.

Add the salt and pecans and cook for 1 minute more. Remove the sauce from the heat and set aside.

Crack the eggs into a medium-sized bowl along with the cream and cinnamon.

Whisk the batter thoroughly.

Using tongs, dip the bread liberally, one piece at a time, into the batter. Place coated bread slices back on the baking sheet.

Melt the oil and remaining tablespoon of butter in a frying pan.

Working in batches as necessary, cook the French toast over medium heat on one side until browned, 2 to 3 minutes.

Flip the French toast slices and fry until browned on the opposite side, another 2 to 3 minutes.

Portion the French toast out onto plates and serve with the caramel pecan sauce.

In theory, any type of bread can be transformed into French toast, however, some options fare better than others. "I like to use brioche for French toast because it does a great job of soaking up the egg batter and it crisps up perfectly when toasting, while remaining soft and fluffy in the center," De Witt comments. If you're unfamiliar with the specifics of this type of bread, De Witt describes, "Brioche is a soft, sweet French bread made with eggs, butter, milk, and flour." There's also some sugar in the recipe, which gives it a subtle sweetness that naturally pairs with the flavors of French toast.

"Brioche has a distinctive golden color and tender crumb because of the high butter content. It's kneaded several times until smooth and to help develop the gluten," De Witt further explains. This gives it a pleasant consistency that is both light and rich at once. You can purchase it as a loaf, bun, or find it as the foundation of cinnamon rolls and other bakery treats. Considering its natural place amid sweet baked goods, it's no surprise it works so well with this caramel pecan French toast recipe.

If you've ever had bad French toast, chances are you want to steer clear of anything that's too soggy, eggy, or overcooked. De Witt offers some tips to avoid this outcome, describing the result everyone should be striving for: "The texture should be soft and custardy inside with a crisp and lightly browned exterior." To achieve this, De Witt recommends, "Using bread that is slightly stale or dried out in the oven allows the custard to penetrate the bread without making it soggy." Then, make sure the bread soaks up the custard fully so that the French toast isn't too dry.

Once you're ready to cook it, it's best to double down on the fat. "Use a combination of butter and vegetable oil to cook the French toast — this addition of the oil will increase the smoke point so that the butter doesn't burn," De Witt explains. Finally, cook the toast on medium heat so the eggy part cooks through before the surface starts to burn.