Strawberries and Cream Stuffed French Toast

This stuffed French toast recipe reminds me of something you would get from a luxurious bed and breakfast or swanky hotel with a fabulous brunch. Not that I’ve been to either in the last decade, but still. It reminds me of things that could be. Someday. In the far, far future.

In the meantime, I’ll save a few bucks and make it myself. My kids love stuffed French toast. Even my oldest son who hates regular, every day French toast (the kind I throw together in 3 minutes in our rush to get to school), devours this stuff (no pun intended). It really is delicious. And if you want to know something slightly embarrassing, in a past life, I was afraid to make stuffed French toast because the whole dipping two slices of bread while crammed full of cream and fruit kind of freaked me out a little. Thankfully I got over my fears and once I put my big girl apron on, I realized how silly I had been.

My family is forever grateful I wised up and powered through my anxieties. We make variations of this all the time: subbing in different fruits, taking out the fruit altogether and mixing in mini chocolate chips, using jam in place of fruit or chocolate. You name it, we’ve tried it. Well, ok, don’t get crazy with the naming thing. We haven’t tried Brussels sprouts stuffed French toast and probably never will thankyouverymuch.

Whether for Valentine’s Day or just a fun weekend breakfast, this stuffed French toast is calling out your name. It wants you. And if you are honest with yourself, you’ll admit that you totally want it, too. I do! (It will be a veritable miracle of anyone in my family a) reads this and b) takes the hint.)

One Year Ago: Nutella and Strawberry Stuffed French Toast {Heart Shaped}
Two Years Ago: Healthy Banana Oat Snack Bars
Three Years Ago: The Best Vanilla Pudding

Yield: Serves 6

Strawberries and Cream Stuffed French Toast

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Ingredients:

Filling:

• 8 ounces light cream cheese
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar

Fruit:

• 16 ounces fresh strawberries, hulled, washed and sliced

French Toast:

• 12-14 slices hearty sandwich bread
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Dash of ground cinnamon
• Powdered sugar for sprinkling

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese, vanilla, lemon juice and brown sugar until the mixture is light and creamy.
2. Spread the mixture evenly among each slice of bread. Layer strawberry slices on top of the cream cheese mixture on half of the bread slices. Top with the remaining pieces of bread that have been spread with the cream cheese mixture. You should have 6-7 french toast sandwiches total.
3. In a shallow dish or pie plate, whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla and cinnamon for the French toast. Preheat a nonstick griddle (or a skillet on the stove) over medium heat. Lightly butter the griddle or skillet (or spray with cooking spray or use a bit of coconut oil) if needed. I don’t usually grease my griddle but every griddle/skillet will differ.
4. Carefully dip each stuffed French toast (working in batches if needed, depending on the size of your griddle/skillet) in the egg mixture on both sides and place on the hot griddle. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, adjusting the heat as needed to get perfectly golden French toast.
5. Serve warm with a dusting of powdered sugar.

Notes:

I use our go-to homemade whole wheat bread but you could use any bread you like as long as it is fairly hearty (not super thin and soft). My friend, Lien, who gave me the recipe which I adapted slightly, adds a couple tablespoons chopped almonds to the cream cheese filling which would be delicious (but not welcomed by my children). Also, any kind of milk can be used (dairy, coconut, almond). This stuffed French toast is really adaptable – change out the fruits, use chocolate chips in place of the fruit, jam instead of fruit or chocolate – the options are endless really. If you don’t use all 16 ounces of strawberries for the filling, you can top the French toast with the extras or just eat them while cooking up the French toast.

All images and text ©Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

Recipe Source: adapted from a recipe, Lien sent me a long time ago