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I love easy healthy recipes for breakfast that taste indulgent.

There is nothing better in the morning than being able to sit down and savour a hot cup of coffee and a decadent breakfast with a generous helping of fresh fruit on the side.

This vanilla bean french toast recipe comes together quickly, but tastes like a gourmet breakfast that took double the time. You’ll be glad you paused and whipped this up.

Because this is a simple recipe, the quality of the ingredients is so important to the final product. Good-quality eggs, thick (fresh) cream, and a great loaf of bread. This is a great way to use up slightly stale (2-3 days old) artisan or homemade bread, egg yolks leftover from other baking projects, etc. As long as it still tastes fresh, it will work!

(I mention artisan breads because commercial breads are made with a lot of preservatives, so once they are stale they have lost any flavour they started out with and have been exposed to way too much bacteria for you to want to feed them to your family. In contrast, fresh bread loses softness before it loses taste.)

I love using real vanilla beans in my recipes, but vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste will still impart a great flavour in a pinch — just don’t use imitation vanilla.

We use our ceramic frying pan for recipes like this, as they require no added butter or oil to make them completely nonstick! I love that I can completely control the texture and taste of any food I make in safe, nonstick pans. Make sure to use a silicone or wooden spatula with your ceramic pan to prevent scratching it’s surface.

How to Make French Toast

Vanilla Bean French Toast

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Ingredients

• 8 slices bread, thick cut
• 3 eggs
• 2 Tablespoons heavy cream
• 1/2 vanilla pod, scraped (or 2 tsp vanilla extract - or both!)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

1. Heat your frying pan or skillet over medium heat. If using something other than a nonstick pan, add a teaspoon of butter to the pan.
2. Whip the eggs, whipping cream, vanilla, and cinnamon together. Try to incorporate as much air into the eggs as possible - just like when you're making scrambled eggs. You want the egg mixture to be light and fluffy, not heavy or clumpy.
3. Dip the thick-cut slices of bread into the egg mixture, completely covering both sides. Shake off any excess to prevent an "eggy patch" on your french toast before adding the dipped bread into the pan.
4. Cook 3-5 minutes per side, until the egg is no longer wet, and the french toast has taken on a crispy, golden exterior.
5. Serve with maple syrup, honey, icing sugar, jam - whatever your heart desires!

This vanilla bean french toast recipe pairs well with almost any side. This time, I sprinkled a bit of icing sugar over top, added a dollop of fresh homemade whipped cream, and several slices of strawberries – an easy practical life task that children can help with if you have a strawberry slicer on hand.

What’s your favourite indulgent breakfast recipe, or easy healthy recipe for breakfast?

Make sure to pin this one for later!