Pumpkin French Toast

Name: Pumpkin French Toast
Prep time: 4 min
Cook time: 6 min
Total time: 10 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 4 large eggs; 3/4 cup milk; 1/2 cup pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie filling); 2 teaspoons brown sugar; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice *; 10 slices of one-day-old French bread (about 1 - 1.25"/2.5-3 cm thick); butter to grease griddle or pan; cinnamon sugar butter; maple syrup; roasted hazelnuts; a dusting of confectioner's sugar

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Here it is: the perfect fall breakfast. Thick, fluffy slices of delicious pumpkin French toast; pleasantly spiced, and tender in the middle with a crisp, golden crust. A slather of cinnamon sugar butter, a drizzle of maple syrup, some roasted hazelnuts, and a sprinkle of sugar bring this dish to perfection.

A plate of pumpkin French toast topped with cinnamon sugar butter, maple syrup, roasted hazelnuts, and a dusting of sugar.

You will love this recipe. It's disproportionately delicious for how quick and easy it is to make. And so festive for autumn! I can't imagine a better breakfast to serve on Thanksgiving. And your home will smell amazing while you're cooking it.

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Ingredients
Substitutes
Variations
Instructions
Serving:
Equipment
Storage
FAQ
📖 Recipe

Ingredients

One day old French bread - Day old bread has dried out a bit and so it can soak up the egg wash without becoming soggy.
Pumpkin purée - You can use canned or make your own. If using canned make sure that you are buying 100% pumpkin purée, not pumpkin pie filling.
Large eggs
Milk
Brown sugar
Vanilla extract
Ground cinnamon
Pumpkin pie spice - I make my own pumpkin pie spice by mixing together a blend of 2 tablespoons cinnamon, ½ tablespoon allspice, 2 teaspoons ginger, and 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg. You can make extra to store for all of your later baking needs.
Butter - For greasing.
Serve with: Cinnamon sugar butter, toasted hazelnuts, maple syrup, a dusting of powder sugar.

See the recipe card below for quantities.

Substitutes

French bread - This bread is light and airy, and soaks up the egg bath very well. However, you can swap French bread for another kind. For a richer and sweeter flavour, I recommend using brioche or challah breads. Pre-sliced bread is usually sliced too thin; I like to slice it myself.

Note for Japanese readers: This recipe was made with Western-style pumpkin, not kabocha squash. However, you could use kabocha as a substitute.

Variations

Serve with a dollop of whipped cream or a drizzle of caramel sauce.
Serve topped with slices of banana.
Make sure to also try my coconut french toast, a variation of French toast that is deliciously infused with so much coconut. It is a wonderful recreation of the one served at the Atlantis, Bahamas resort.

Instructions

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, lightly whisk the eggs.

A whisk stir a bowl of pumpkin egg bath.

Add in the milk, pumpkin purée, brown sugar, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk again until everything is well mixed.

A baking dish filled with pumpkin egg bath.

Pour this pumpkin egg bath into a baking dish with sides deep enough that it won't spill out. You don't want it to be too big or the egg bath will be too shallow. Set your griddle to medium heat, or heat a large, non-stick skillet over medium heat. Grease with a little bit of butter.

The first side of the bread soaking in the pumpkin egg bath.

Set a slice of bread or two into the pumpkin egg bath, leaving it in for about 10 seconds so that it can soak some up.

The second side of the bread soaking in the pumpkin egg bath.

Flip the bread over, and repeat the 10 second soak.

Pumpkin French toast cooking on a griddle.

Transfer the soaked bread to the griddle or pan. Cook for about 3 minutes.

The second side of pumpkin French toast cooking on a griddle.

Flip the pumpkin French toast over, and cook for another 3 minutes. Re-grease with a bit of butter, and repeat the dipping and cooking process with the remaining slices of bread.

Tip: Keep the already cooked toast warm while you cook in batches. As they are finished cooking, place them on a baking sheet in an oven set to 200°F/90°C. All of the slices will still be nice and warm when you are finished cooking and ready to serve.

Serving:

When I created this pumpkin French toast recipe, I also made this delightfully fluffy cinnamon sugar butter to pair with it. It is super easy to make with just 4 simple ingredients, and can be whipped up in 5 minutes. Check out that post for the full recipe.

I also wanted to add a nice, nutty crunch to this dish. So I toasted some lovely hazelnuts to serve with it. See my post on how to roast and peel hazelnuts for easy instructions on how to do it yourself.

I served the pumpkin French toast drizzled with a bit of maple syrup and slathered with cinnamon sugar butter. Then I added a few toasted hazelnuts and used a sifter to sift some powdered sugar on top.

Don't be afraid to get a bit messy with the powdered sugar. It has a pretty effect on the plate as it doesn't immediately melt there.

Equipment

To make this recipe you will find the following useful:

Griddle or large, non-stick skillet
Medium-sized mixing bowl
Whisk
Baking dish (or other flat container with deep sides for the egg bath)
Spatula
Sifter

Griddler

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sifter

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Storage

Leftover pumpkin French toast can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Within 2 hours of cooking it, wrap the leftover slices individually in plastic wrap or place in zip-top bags.

Reheat in a skillet greased with a little bit of butter over medium heat. Heat for a few minutes until warmed through, flipping over once. Then turn the heat to high to quickly crisp up the outside.

A fork lifting a bite of pumpkin French toast.

FAQ

Why is day old bread used for French toast?

French toast was actually invented as a way of saving 'lost bread', bread that has gone slightly stale. The day old bread has dried out a bit and so it can soak up the egg wash without becoming soggy.

What if I only have fresh bread?

In a pinch, you can dry out fresh bread a bit by toasting it lightly, making it more suitable to use for French toast. Use a toaster on a light setting or the oven at 300°F/150°C for about 10 minutes.

📖 Recipe