French toast with whipped honey butter

3 weeks ago 4

Julia Busuttil Nishimura

Serve the French toast with the whipped butter, fresh raspberries and figs, pistachios, plus an extra drizzle of honey.William Meppem

I initially fell in love with French toast in Japan, of all places, where very thick slices of crustless shokupan (Japanese milk bread) are soaked overnight, then fried until light-golden. Often served with a square of butter, some whipped cream and fresh fruit, it felt nostalgic and the contrast of the crisp exterior with the custardy centre was a revelation.

At home, this makes for a very impressive breakfast, especially on Valentine’s Day. Here, I’ve used brioche, although shokupan or challah would work equally well. The eggy bread is topped with a whipped honey butter, pistachios, raspberries and figs, although any fruit of your choice would be lovely.

Ingredients

For the French toast

5 eggs
300ml full-cream milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
40g caster sugar
6 x 4cm-thick slices of brioche
80g unsalted butter
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

FOR THE WHIPPED HONEY BUTTER

100g unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tbsp honey
flaky sea salt

To serve

figs, halved
raspberries
unsalted, shelled pistachios, roughly chopped
extra honey (optional)

Method

Soak the French toast

Step 1
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla and caster sugar.
Step 2
Arrange the bread slices in a deep tray where they fit snugly, then pour the egg mixture over the top. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 12 hours, flipping halfway.

Make the whipped honey butter

Step 1
Place the 100g butter in the bowl and whisk until slightly aerated. You can do this easily with a hand whisk, but an electric mixer or a stand mixer can also be used.
Step 2
Add the honey and continue to whisk until light and aerated.
Step 3
Fold in a good pinch of salt and set aside.

to assemble

Step 1
Heat one third of the 80g butter and one third of the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. When the butter is foaming, place two of the slices in the pan and cook for about 3 minutes on each side, until golden. Keep warm and repeat with the remaining butter, oil and soaked bread.
Step 2
Serve the French toast with the whipped honey butter, figs, raspberries, chopped pistachios and extra honey, if desired.

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