Twin Cities baker Anne Andrus of Honey and Rye has the perfect solution for your day-old bread: This family-friendly, big-batch French toast. The idea came from having extra loaves of bread at the restaurant. “The French toast allowed us to use up our sourdough or challah,” she says. “The combination lends well to the recipe: You get some chew from sourdough, it keeps the body, while the challah absorbs liquid and breaks apart a little, making it soft and tender. You can use any type of bread, including baguette or pain de mie (enriched white bread) or brioche. The recipe has a good shelf life. If you don’t eat it all, toss it in the fridge and warm it back up.”
And if you want a different flavor profile? No problem. “It’s essentially a bread pudding,” says Andrus. “You can play with anything. Cinnamon, nutmeg, honey. Chocolate and banana. Sour cherry and white chocolate. It can be highly seasonal and an easy way to clean out your pantry. If we’re making a peach and blueberry pie at the bakery, then peaches and blueberries could go in the French toast. As for savory, try kale, sausage, Swiss cheese, red pepper flakes, cheddar or bacon.”
Dining and Cooking