Apple Cinnamon French Toast

Apple Cinnamon French Toast is the perfect way to start a fall family pajama day! This mouth-watering cinnamon french toast will start a new fall tradition in your house. 

 

Why You’ll Love This Apple Cinnamon French Toast

A fall breakfast that’s easy to make and delicious to eat- what’s not to love!

• Full of fall flavor – With an apple compote that is full of cinnamon and a batter with nutmeg, this french toast is full of the flavors you love in fall.
• Great for holidays – Looking for a delicious holiday breakfast without a lot of work? This french toast is it.
• Quick to make – Ready in less than an hour, you can have this breakfast on the table in no time.

Ingredients

I’d be willing to bet you already have some of these apple cinnamon french toast ingredients on hand.

• Apples – You want to make sure they are peeled, cored and diced. I like to use large red apples, but you could use any that you’d like.
• Light brown sugar – I like the more mild molasses flavor in light brown sugar, but you can use regular or dark too.
• Lemon juice – Always use fresh lemon juice whenever possible. This helps to prevent the apples from browning.
• Vanilla – A good quality vanilla extract is used for flavor and can be supplemented or swapped for almond extract.
• Cinnamon stick – Simmering a cinnamon stick in the apple compote really makes for a warm, fall flavor.
• Loaf French bread – You can really use any type of bread you’d like. I also love to use brioche.
• Eggs – Quintessential to making French toast, whole eggs with the yolks tend to hold together and make for the best flavor. I do not suggest using egg whites only.
• Milk – We use this for both the egg dredge and the powdered sugar glaze we put on top of the french toast.
• Spices – To add a little spice, warmth and flavor to this french toast, I like to add a little nutmeg and cinnamon to the egg mixture.
• Powdered sugar – This is the base of our glaze. It ensures it is both perfectly smooth and sweet.
• Walnuts – These are optional, but I love adding chopped walnuts to the top of my french toast for some crunch.

Variations

There are plenty of ways to make this Apple Cinnamon French Toast your own. Here are a few suggestions.

• Spices – If you want to spice things up a little more, add a 1/8 teaspoon of clove or mace for an extra warming flavor.
• Canned apple pie filling – Short on time? You can always buy canned apple pie filling instead of making homemade apple compote. It works just as well.
• Other fruits – And on that note, if apples aren’t your thing, you can always grab cherry pie filling or even blueberry pie filling.

How to Make Apple Cinnamon French Toast

With just one extra step of making a compote, this fall french toast couldn’t be easier to make.

1. Start by making the compote. In a large, heavy saucepan, combine apple chunks, brown sugar, water, lemon juice, vanilla and cinnamon stick. Heat over medium-high heat. Stir with a wooden spoon until apples are well coated and sugar has melted. Keep warm. 
2. Preheat both oven and griddle. Preheat oven to help keep french toast warm. Also preheat griddle. 
3. Make french toast custard. While preheating, beat eggs, milk, nutmeg and cinnamon in a shallow baking dish or pie plate.
4. Dip and cook. Spray griddle with cooking spray. Working in batches, dredge sliced French bread in egg batter and place onto the griddle. Allow to cook on each side until light brown. Flip and cook on opposite side. Remove to baking sheet and place in oven to keep warm.
5. Make glaze. Lastly, mix powdered sugar with milk. Mixture should be a glaze consistency and easily drizzle.
6. Add toppings and serve. Top french toast with apple compote, powdered sugar drizzle and chopped walnuts. 

Storage and Freezing

How to Store Apple Cinnamon French Toast

Store leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Reheat in a skillet or the oven. Unfortunately, bread and especially French toast, will never get back that initially crusty exterior with the fluffy interior.

Can I Freeze French Toast?

Once the French toast has cooled, place it on a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Then place the tray in the freezer.

Wait 2-3 hours for the sticks to freeze, then gather it and store them in an air tight container or large zip lock bag.

You can also reheat these in a microwave for about 1 minute, however this method will leave them a bit soft.

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