Savory French Toast with Tomato Butter and Fried Eggs
By Jessica RudolphPublished on January 24, 2026
Time
45 minutes
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Before You Begin
Be sure to use vegetable oil spray here; it contains lecithin, which ensures that the oil stays well distributed, preventing the toast from sticking. Serve with a salad of bitter greens for a heartier meal.
Instructions
- Adjust 1 oven rack to lowest position and second rack 5 to 6 inches from broiler element. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Generously spray 18 by 13-inch rimmed baking sheet with vegetable oil spray. Microwave 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 minced garlic clove, ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, and ¼ teaspoon table salt, covered, until sizzling and slightly darkened, about 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds; set aside.
- Whisk 1 cup milk, 3 large eggs, 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, ½ teaspoon pepper, and ½ teaspoon salt together in large bowl. Pour egg mixture into prepared sheet. Arrange 8 slices hearty white sandwich bread in single layer in egg mixture, leaving small gaps between slices. Working quickly, flip slices in same order you placed them in sheet. Let sit until slices absorb remaining custard, about 1 minute. Bake on lower rack until bottoms of slices are golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon softened butter in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Crack remaining 4 eggs into skillet and sprinkle with remaining ¼ teaspoon salt. Cover and cook until whites are just set, 2 to 3 minutes. Mash remaining 4 tablespoons softened butter into tomato paste mixture.
- Transfer sheet with bread to upper rack and heat broiler. (Leave sheet in oven while broiler heats.) Broil until tops of slices are golden brown, watching carefully and rotating sheet if necessary to prevent burning, 1 to 4 minutes. Using thin metal spatula, carefully flip each slice and top with tomato butter. Plate toast and eggs and sprinkle with ½ cup crumbled goat cheese and 2 tablespoons minced chives. Serve.
Time
45 minutesYield
Serves 4Ingredients
Ingredients
Ingredients
Why This Recipe Works
This savory twist on French toast is a delicious way to switch up breakfast for dinner, and it’s elegant enough to serve for brunch. For a streamlined batch of French toast, we bake it in the oven. First we stir together a Dijon mustard–tinged custard, pour it into a rimmed baking sheet generously coated with vegetable oil spray, and then place the bread in the custard for a quick soak. There’s just enough custard for the bread to perfectly absorb without the slices getting soggy. We bake the slices on the lowest oven rack to brown their bottoms and then turn on the broiler to brown and crisp their tops. Thanks to the vegetable oil spray, which contains lecithin that allows it to stay put in the pan even after the custard is poured in, the French toast releases cleanly from the baking sheet. We make an umami-packed compound butter to go with the toast by microwaving tomato paste, olive oil, garlic, and pepper flakes until the tomato paste darkens and takes on a caramel flavor and then mashing in softened butter with a fork.
Before You Begin
Be sure to use vegetable oil spray here; it contains lecithin, which ensures that the oil stays well distributed, preventing the toast from sticking. Serve with a salad of bitter greens for a heartier meal.
Instructions
- Adjust 1 oven rack to lowest position and second rack 5 to 6 inches from broiler element. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Generously spray 18 by 13-inch rimmed baking sheet with vegetable oil spray. Microwave 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 minced garlic clove, ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, and ¼ teaspoon table salt, covered, until sizzling and slightly darkened, about 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds; set aside.
- Whisk 1 cup milk, 3 large eggs, 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, ½ teaspoon pepper, and ½ teaspoon salt together in large bowl. Pour egg mixture into prepared sheet. Arrange 8 slices hearty white sandwich bread in single layer in egg mixture, leaving small gaps between slices. Working quickly, flip slices in same order you placed them in sheet. Let sit until slices absorb remaining custard, about 1 minute. Bake on lower rack until bottoms of slices are golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon softened butter in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Crack remaining 4 eggs into skillet and sprinkle with remaining ¼ teaspoon salt. Cover and cook until whites are just set, 2 to 3 minutes. Mash remaining 4 tablespoons softened butter into tomato paste mixture.
- Transfer sheet with bread to upper rack and heat broiler. (Leave sheet in oven while broiler heats.) Broil until tops of slices are golden brown, watching carefully and rotating sheet if necessary to prevent burning, 1 to 4 minutes. Using thin metal spatula, carefully flip each slice and top with tomato butter. Plate toast and eggs and sprinkle with ½ cup crumbled goat cheese and 2 tablespoons minced chives. Serve.
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