For many years I was not a breakfast person and most definitely not a ‘French Toast’ breakfast person. In recent years I have come to adore this ‘most important meal of the day’. The reasons for this is that as I have gotten older (dare I say it……40’s) I have become more conscious of my health, started exercising more (which makes me super hungry) and eating a lot better. No longer do I have the pleasure of eating what ever I like, when I like and donning the swim suit with confidence. Not to mention the muffin top that was more Texan in appearance than just the stock standard type and let’s face it……I love life and I want to stick around to enjoy every little bit of it (even if with a slight yellow tinge to my complexion due to overindulgence of my other greatest love, wine). For me, this recipe ticks every box. Healthy, not too sweet but a real show stopper on the plate. Full of goodness, it will make your guests swoon with delight and did I mention that it is really easy to make?
Prep time: 15 Minutes Cooking time: 20 Minutes $$ Medium Budget
Serves 4
20gm of butter, for frying
8 x 1.5cm thick slices of good quality sourdough
2 eggs
1/4 cup of milk
1 punnet of blueberries
1 punnet of raspberries
1 punnet of strawberries, hulled and halved
1/2 cup of water
2 tsp of caster sugar
4 tbs of Greek yoghurt
1/2 cup of toasted slivered almonds
Good quality honey for drizzling
Mint leaves for garnish
Preheat the oven to 180°C.
Place half the blueberries, raspberries and all of the strawberries in a saucepan with the water and sugar. Stir until the sugar has dissolved and allow to simmer for approximately 10-15 minutes or until the berries start to break down and the sauce thickens slightly. It will thicken more on standing. Just before serving, add the rest of the blueberries and stir through the mixture to warm but reserve the raspberries for garnish. The raspberries break down really quickly in the compote and look smashing on top.
In a shallow bowl, whisk the the eggs and milk together. Heat a large heavy based fry pan and add the butter. Dip the bread slices in the egg mixture and press down on either side so that the bread really soaks the mixture up and fry on either side for 4-5 minutes or until golden. You may need to do this in batches so place the first batch on a rack and put it in the oven to keep warm.
To serve, place the toast in an overlapping fashion in the centre of the plate. Divide the berry compote over the toast and place a tablespoon of yoghurt on top. Scatter over the toasted almonds and drizzle over the honey (use as much or as little as you like, depending on how sweet you like it) and top with fresh raspberries and mint leaves. Delish!