Pain Perdu Je T'aime

Total Time: 30 mins
Preparation Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6


• 10 eggs


• 3/4 cup raw sugar (unbleached)


• 1/3 teaspoon ground cinnamon


• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg


• 1 cup heavy cream


• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract


• 1/4 teaspoon salt


• 1 loaf two day old challah


• butter, for frying and garnish


• oil, for frying


• 1 cup pecan halves, toasted


• powdered sugar, for garnish


• pure maple syrup, warmed


• fresh seasonal fruit, for garnish (strawberries, nectarines, peaches, etc.)

Recipe

• 1 lightly toast the pecan halves in a cast iron skillet and set aside to cool. once cooled, coarsely chop.


• 2 using a serrated bread knife, slice up the challah bread lengthwise, then cut the pieces crosswise into 3/4" slices. the bread should be slightly dried but not stale.


• 3 in a large bowl combine the eggs, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, heavy cream, vanilla extract and salt. blend with a hand held immersion blender until smooth. (you could also blend the egg mixture in a stand up blender.).


• 4 heat up an equal amount of oil and butter (about 2 tablespoons total) in a large heavy pan or non-stick pan on medium heat.


• 5 once the butter just starts to sizzle, begin dipping the slices of bread quickly in the egg mixture. do not allow the slices to soak!


• 6 add the bread to the pan, but do not crowd. cook on each side about 1 1/2-2 minutes or until golden brown. add more oil/butter if necessary to faciliate browning. *note: because of the high sugar content in this recipe, watch the pan carefully so that the french toast does not burn!


• 7 once cooked, place the french toast on a warming tray and repeat the process until all the bread is cooked.


• 8 transfer the french toast to a large serving platter, garnish with the pecan halves and sprinkle with powdered sugar. dot with butter. serve with slices of fresh seasonal fruit if you wish.


• 9 serve the warmed maple syrup on the side.


• 10 if you wish, you can serve two types of maple syrup: regular maple syrup and maple syrup with rum stirred in (about 1 tablespoon for each cup of syrup).


• 11 yield is estimated.