Coma-Toast
Sunday, March 14, 2010 at 11:08AM Angels sang in my kitchen last night.
As apples simmered in a skillet bubbling with butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and cinnamon, the heavens opened and celestial choirs roared.
Oh holy smell. LALALA! Such heavenly scents.
I'd been waiting a week to make what I called Regina's Apple Cinnamon French Toast -- in honor of the high school friend who shared the recipe. Now that I've gorged on the divine, however, I shall henceforth refer to it as Coma-Toast.
Two hours after eating one slice, JUST ONE, I'm still reeling from sugar shock.
The recipe won't disappoint. The meal is delicious and the first I ever served that I could imagine getting at a favorite neighborhood restaurant. But, fair warning, it is rich. Capital 'R' rich!
Was it the butter? The rivers of corn syrup or buckets of sugar? All of it, of course.
This won't replace the simple french toast I serve on Sundays. It's just too decadent and I wouldn't survive the weekly sugar smackdown. But I can see serving it for guests or on special occasions like birthdays or Christmas morning.
So, without further adieu, Coma-Toast:
5 Tbsps. butter
2 large baking apples, peeled, cored and sliced
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar (oops, just noticed, I used light)
2 Tbsps. dark corn syrup
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
8 1-inch thick slices large French bread (4" wide or smaller enough to fill pan) ***
3 large eggs
1 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
*** Note: I used Bunn bread from our neighborhood Farmer's Market.
It was about 4 and a half inches wide. I was only able to get four slices to fit in each 9 X 13 pan. Because my kids are VORACIOUS eaters, I doubled the recipe. We each ate one slice. Some of us, only barely, and I shared the remainder with neighbors.
1) The day before serving, prepare the apples and french toast. In large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add apple slices and cook, stirring occasionally until tender.
2) Add brown sugar, corn syrup and cinnamon to apples. Cook, stirring until brown sugar dissolves. Pour apple mixture into 9 X 13 pan and spread evenly.
Arrange bread slices in one layer on top of the apple mixture.
3) In a bowl, beat eggs, milk and vanilla extract until well mixed. Pour over bread. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
4) The next day, heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove plastic and bake 30-35 minutes or until mixture is firm and bread is golden. Cool in pan 5 minutes. Invert serving tray over toast and carefully turn both over to unmold (actually, what I did, was insert a spatula beneath each piece and flip it over on to a plate in single servings).
Serve. And hope for a review like this one, from Kent: "I thought it was awesome!"
Or this one from Desmond: "Thank you my lovely, lovely Mama."
Reader Comments (1)
Mmmm...this does sound heavenly! I know what you mean about it being rich - I have a similar recipe for creme brulee french toast that will just make me giddy from the sugar. It's a nice treat every once in a while. I think I'll try this for the kids sometime soon!
PS - that Desmond is so sweet:)