Thick-sliced brioche dipped in a sweet egg custard creates the most tender, buttery, luxurious French toast ever! Serve this Brioche French Toast with fresh berries and warm maple syrup for an easy but elegant breakfast.
I did this Brioche French Toast recipe for Christmas brunch last year and I’ve had it tucked away ever since, ready to share with you for Mother’s Day.
It’s such a great choice for even the most novice of cooks to pull together in a snap for a special breakfast in bed but would also be a wonderful choice for a more formal Mother’s Day brunch menu.
The Best Bread for French Toast
Brioche is a French pastry bread that uses more eggs and butter than most other yeast breads. The result is pillowy, buttery and slightly sweet. It’s frequently baked as a round loaf but has been rapidly gaining popularity and now you’ll find it readily available in the form of everything from hamburger buns to sliced bread.
Trader Joe’s carries a really nice loaf of thick-sliced brioche for a great price. I’ve also seen it at Costco and even my local Safeway. Look for a sliced loaf to make this recipe truly a breeze to prepare.
One note – be sure to remove the little strip of paper from the bottom of the slices before dipping in the egg custard as directed in the recipe. It might seem obvious but when you’re moving quickly first thing in the morning, it can be easy to miss!
For the simple egg custard I recommend using whole milk. There’s more body in whole milk than reduced fat milk which makes for a richer custard that will adhere to the bread and yield a better result.
To further enhance the buttery-sweet brioche, I like to add a touch of sugar and vanilla extract to the egg mixture.
For one recipe of French toast it’s easy to cook it in batches in a large skillet on the stove but when I’m cooking for a large group I like to double this recipe, using two loaves of brioche, and cook it on my counter top electric griddle. To make it easier to coat several pieces of bread at once, whisk the egg custard together in a 13- x 9-inch baking dish
I cooked up some yummy chicken breakfast sausage (also a Trader Joe’s item) and served it with warm pure maple syrup and fresh berries.
I think I can speak for most mom’s out there that this would be a very delicious way to start Mother’s Day.
Looking for more breakfast or brunch inspiration? Check out my entire collection of breakfast recipes including my Muffin Tin Hash Brown and Scrambled Egg Cups, Easy Crustless Quiche Bake and Oven Roasted Breakfast Potatoes.
Brioche French Toast
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- ¾ cup whole milk
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons butter, divided
- 10 slices brioche
- ½ cup pure maple syrup, warmed
- fresh berries, for serving
Instructions
- Whisk the eggs in a low shallow dish – a pie plate works well – or if you’d like to coat several pieces of bread at once, use a 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Add the milk, sugar and vanilla extract and whisk again until well combined.
- Add 1 tablespoon butter to a 12-inch to 14-inch skillet and place over MEDIUM heat. Meanwhile, place one slice of brioche into the egg mixture and turn to coat both sides. When butter has melted and begins to foam, add the coated brioche. Dip and transfer as many pieces of brioche that will comfortably fit in the pan without touching. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown and then flip the bread and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes on the other side.
- Transfer the French toast to a platter and keep warm. If you don’t have a warming tray, place the French toast on a baking sheet and transfer to a 200 degree oven until ready to serve.
- Wipe down the skillet with a paper towel and repeat the process with remaining butter, bread, and egg mixture.
- Serve immediately with warmed maple syrup and fresh berries.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.
I used this recipe as basis for my French toast. I did add a dash of salt and cinnamon. I used heavy cream. Cooked on an indoor grill. Huge hit with my family. Warmed maple syrup. powder sugar and butter on top
Sounds so good! Thanks, Angie. 🙂
The recipe calls for 3 tablespoons of butter, but in the directions, only 1 tablespoon is used. Was this a typo?
I cooked this in batches. You would use 1 tablespoon for each batch. Hope this helps!
I made this for Thanksgiving breakfast and it was out of this world! The taste was exquisite! I am making it for dessert tomorrow night. Thank You!
To What temp do you set the griddle?
Medium or between 350 to 375, depending on your griddle.
With a little bit of cinnamon, this recipe is perfect!!!
Are you supposed to toast the bread beforehand?
Nope!
Delicous! I’ve tried the recipe as is & it was awesome. …then I made the “fall edition”, used Trader Joe’s pumpkin brioche bread & added their pumpkin spice to the mixture, it took it to a whole new level! Next time I’ll saute some diced & pumpkin spiced apples to top it….I know it will be the BOMB! Thanks so much!
Great ideas! Thanks so much. 🙂
I made this recipe today and WOW! So GOOD! I will always use Brioche bread for French Toast from now on. I did add a pinch of cinnamon but other than that followed the recipe exactly. What a treat!
Funny how such a simple thing can make such a big difference, isn’t it? Thanks Sue! 🙂
This was fabulous. I made it with Challah bread since it’s what I had on hand. Since I didn’t have time to dry out my bread, I roasted it in the oven. I will definitely be making this again.
This recipe is amazing! I have always used Texas Toast when making my French Toast, but never again! The Brioche gives it a richer flavor. I did not have whole milk, so I used 1/2 cup of 2% milk and 1/4 half and half. I even had a little egg mixture left over after I used up my loaf of Brioche, so I re-coated some of the bread after cooking both sides, and cooked them again. This made them even better! Thank you for this recipe!
I used the cinnamon sugar brioche from Kroger and it may just really special! This is a wonderful recipe that I can’t wait to use again and again!
Add 1/2 cup of flour to your egg mixture and whisk it after you dip each slice to make sure it stays mixed in. You will thank me. :0). Makes the French toast incredible!
This was definitely a game changer!! Thanks for the tip. Sooo good.
Thank you! This is a game changer. ❤️