Sourdough French Toast Recipe
This sourdough french toast recipe turns thick slices of sourdough bread into a golden, tender breakfast with crisp edges and a deliciously rich, slightly tangy flavor. I’ve been making homemade French toast for more than 25 years, and after learning to bake sourdough bread about 15 years ago, I discovered that my artisan sourdough bread recipe makes especially good French toast because it holds up beautifully when soaked in the egg and milk mixture. Serve it alongside homemade butter with our guide on how to make raw milk butter, homemade buttermilk syrup, fresh fruit, or eggs. It’s perfect for an easy weekday breakfast or a special weekend brunch.
Quick Look: The Best Sourdough French Toast
- ⏱️ Prep Time: 5 minutes
- 🍳 Cook Time: 10 minutes
- 🕒 Total Time: 15 minutes
- 👥 Servings: 8
- 📊 Calories: ~148 kcal per serving (based on nutrition panel)
- 🔥 Cook Method: Stove top on a cast iron pan.
- 👩🍳 Flavor Profile: Lightly tangy with a soft, fluffy interior and a golden, slightly crisp exterior.
- ⭐ Difficulty: Easy, making it great for making weekly.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Perfect for seasonal toppings: Add fresh berries in summer, apples or peaches in fall, or homemade buttermilk syrup and warm spices for a cozy breakfast any time of year.
- Quick breakfast: You can have this sourdough French toast ready in about 15 minutes, making it easy enough for busy mornings.
- Perfect for leftover sourdough: This is a delicious way to use up bread that is no longer fresh enough to eat on its own.
- Simple ingredients: All you need are basic ingredients like sourdough bread, eggs, milk or cream, cinnamon, vanilla, and a little sweetener.
- Stays tender without falling apart: Sourdough bread holds up well when soaked in the egg and milk mixture, giving you tender French toast with beautifully golden edges.
- Easy to customize: Use milk, cream, half-and-half, or buttermilk, and sweeten it with sugar, honey, or maple syrup.
- Works with different sourdough breads: Use homemade artisan sourdough, softest sourdough sandwich bread recipe, or even a flavored loaf such as my cinnamon raisin sourdough bread recipe or my cranberry walnut sourdough bread recipe.
Ingredients:
- Vanilla - I use my homemade vanilla extract recipe. (You can also make this with maple flavoring instead of vanilla)
For a full list of ingredients needed to make this recipe, see the recipe card below.
This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure here.
How To Make This Sourdough French Toast Recipe
Step 1: Prepare ingredients. Gather the sourdough bread, eggs, milk or cream, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla.
Step 2: Slice the bread. Cut the sourdough bread into thick slices.
Step 3: Make the egg mixture. Whisk together the eggs, milk or cream, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla.
Step 4: Dip the bread. Briefly soak each slice in the egg mixture on both sides. Crusty sourdough may need a little extra soaking time.
Step 5: Cook the French toast. Place the soaked bread in a hot cast iron skillet and cook for 2–3 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through.
Step 6: Serve and enjoy. Serve warm with homemade butter, buttermilk syrup, maple syrup, or jam. Leftover French toast can be frozen for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
Tips For This Sourdough French Toast Recipe
- Use slightly stale sourdough: It soaks up the egg mixture without becoming too soggy.
- Adjust soaking time: Soft sourdough only needs a quick dip, while crusty artisan bread may need a little longer.
- Don’t over-soak: Too much liquid can make the bread fall apart in the skillet.
- Use medium heat: This gives the French toast time to cook through without burning the outside.
- Make a batch ahead: Cooked French toast freezes well for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
- Change up the toppings: Try homemade butter, buttermilk syrup, maple syrup, jam, or fresh fruit.
Sourdough French Toast Recipe FAQs
Yes! Sourdough bread works especially well for French toast because it is sturdy enough to soak up the egg mixture without falling apart. Slightly stale sourdough is ideal, while crusty artisan sourdough may need a little extra soaking time.
The trick is to use slightly stale, thick-cut bread and soak it just long enough to absorb the egg mixture without becoming soggy. Cooking it over medium heat also helps the center cook through while giving the outside a beautiful golden brown crust.
The most common mistake is over-soaking the bread. If the bread absorbs too much of the egg mixture, it can become soggy and difficult to cook through. Give each slice a brief soak on both sides, adding a little more time for thick, crusty sourdough.
Slightly stale sourdough is a great choice because it absorbs the egg mixture well while maintaining its structure. This is also a delicious way to use up sourdough bread that is a few days old.
French toast can become soggy when the bread is too fresh, is soaked for too long, or is cooked over heat that is too low. Use slightly stale bread, avoid over-soaking, and cook over medium heat until both sides are golden brown and the center is cooked through.
Sourdough French toast is delicious with homemade butter, buttermilk syrup, maple syrup, jam, or fresh fruit. You can also serve it with eggs or sausage for a more filling breakfast.
More Delicious Breakfast Recipes Like This
If you try this recipe and love it, please come back and give it 5 stars! Tag me on Instagram @wagonwheelhomestead21. I can’t wait to see what all you make!
Sourdough French Toast Recipe
Equipment
- cast iron skillet
- Mixing bowls
- measuring cups and spoons
- whisk
- Spatula
- Sharp Knife for slicing sourdough bread
Ingredients
- 1 loaf sourdough bread cut into 6-18 slices
- 6 eggs
- 1 c. milk
- ½ c. cream
- ¼ c. sugar honey or maple syrup
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- ½ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. cinnamon
Instructions
- Pre-heat cast iron pan on medium heat.
- Slice sourdough bread into thick slices
- To a mixing bowl add cream or milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. Mix well using a whisk.
- Soak each piece of sourdough bread in egg/milk mixture briefly on each side and place in hot skillet. If using crusy sourdough bread, you might have to soak it a little bit longer.
- Cook for 2-3 minutes and flip to the other side using a spatula.
- After 2-3 more minutes check to see that the second side is golden brown and fully cooked.
- Remove to a plate or platter and serve with homemade butter, buttermilk syrup, maple syrup or jam.
Notes
- Slightly stale sourdough bread works best and is less likely to become soggy.
- Don’t over-soak the bread. Crusty sourdough may need a little longer than soft bread.
- Cook over medium heat so the outside gets golden brown while the center cooks through.
- Serve with homemade butter, buttermilk syrup, maple syrup, jam, or fresh fruit.
- Leftover French toast can be frozen for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
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Mmmm
this is delicious!
this is my new favorite french toast recipe, definitely will be making again!
I found the link to your buttermilk syrup recipe. Thank you so much!
Oh good, you're welcome!
I would like to know how you make your own vanilla extract.
Yes! It's on my list to add to the blog here soon, but I'll tell you how I do it. It's very simple. So, I just order these vanilla beans, https://amzn.to/45WBW7M and then put about 10 of them in a quart jar and cover them with vodka. Put a lid on them and let them sit in your pantry for 3-4 months. Longer is better. You can shake the jar whenever you think of it, this speeds the process along a little bit. After I use a jar of vanilla, I usually put more vodka on the beans, so I use the beans twice. Let me know if you have any questions 😉