Vegan French Toast
October 22, 2020
French toast is another one of my Sunday morning brunch favorites. It's pancakes' quicker and easier cousin. But both are equally delicious! It's also a traditional Christmas morning breakfast in the United States.
When I set out to make this vegan French toast recipe, it was important to me to get both the flavor and the texture right. That means I needed a little bit of a savory egg-like flavor, a touch of cinnamon, a firm toasted exterior, and a soft, chewy center. The nutritional yeast in this recipe helps to create the savory flavor, while a flax egg and aquafaba create the perfect texture. (Aquafaba is the liquid from a can of garbanzo beans.)
Another key to this recipe is selecting the right bread. I recommend using a soft loaf such as French bread, Italian bread, vegan brioche bread, or vegan challah. (Brioche or challah would be my first choice, but it can be hard to find vegan versions of those!) If you can, use stale bread that's a day or two old (But it's delicious with fresh bread, too). One-inch-thick slices are ideal for traditional French toast, so I always buy the bread unsliced and slice it myself at home. If you buy pre-sliced bread, it may fall apart when you soak it.
Serve your French toast with fresh fruit, maple syrup, cashew cheese, vegan Nutella, or anything else your heart desires. It's the weekend, so rules don't apply. (Even if it's not the actual weekend, I believe "weekend" is just a state of mind, and you can't tell me otherwise!)
This recipe will make enough custard for 4-6 slices of bread (depending on how large the bread slices are).
Vegan French Toast
Yield3 servings
Prep Time25 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time45 minutes
Ingredients
- 4-6 slices of bread, cut about 3/4- to 1-inch thick
- 1 cup plain, unsweetened almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)
- 3 tbsp. aquafaba (liquid from a can of chickpeas)
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp. nutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. ground flaxseed
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp. salt
- vegan butter for cooking
- light oil spray for cooking (such as coconut oil)
- maple syrup for serving
Instructions
Pre-heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle on a stove over medium heat.
Prepare your custard mixture in a medium bowl: mix almond milk, aquafaba, vanilla, nutritional yeast, flour, cinnamon, ground flax, and salt. Set aside for 5 minutes to thicken.
![custard mixed in a bowl]()
Pour some of the custard (milk mixture) onto a small-medium plate with raised edges, then place a slice of bread in the custard to soak. Make sure your plate is large enough to allow the bread to lay flat in the custard. You can use a larger plate or multiple plates to soak multiple pieces of bread simultaneously. Soak for 3-8 minutes (depending on how absorbant your bread is), then flip the bread and soak for another 3-8 minutes, adding more custard to the plate if necessary.
![turning slices of bread in the custard on two plates]()
Add a combination of vegan butter and oil to the pre-heated pan, and turn the pan to coat. Place your pre-soaked bread on the pan and cook until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes per side.
![French toast cooking on a griddle, one piece already flipped and the second in the process of being flipped.]()
Serve French toast with your choice of fresh berries, powdered sugar, and maple syrup.
![Dusting powdered sugar over a stack of French toast]()
Notes & Hints
This recipe should make enough custard to soak 4-6 slices of bread. Your mileage will vary depending on how big the slices are.
To sprinkle powdered sugar evenly over your French toast, put a spoonful of sugar in a mesh metal sieve. Hold the sieve over your French toast and tap it lightly, moving it around to sprinkle sugar where you'd like it.
French toast is best served fresh, but if you have leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat on a baking sheet in the oven at 350°F for 10-12 minutes.
Nutrition Data
Serving Size: 1/3 of recipe; Calories: 435; Fat: 6 g.; Saturated Fat: 2 g.; Cholesterol: 0 mg.; Sodium: 964 mg.; Carbohydrates: 82 g.; Fiber: 23 g.; Sugar: 4 g.; Protein: 16 g.; Vitamin A: 30 mcg. RAE; Vitamin B12: 3 mcg.; Vitamin C: 0 mg.; Vitamin D: 2 mcg.; Calcium: 21 mg.; Iron: 0 mg.; Potassium: 45 mg.; Zinc: 0 mg.Note: This data should be used only as an estimate. Please see the nutrition section of my terms and conditions for more information on how this data is calculated.
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