Name: Make-Ahead French Toast
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons unsalted butter; 2 cups half-and-half; 2 large eggs; 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar; 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour; 2 tablespoons vanilla extract; 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 8 slices hearty white sandwich bread (see note)

Why This Recipe Works

We broiled the bread for our Make-Ahead French Toast recipe until golden brown instead of merely drying it in the oven. Normally we cool the oven-dried bread before soaking it in the custard; otherwise the bread would soak up too much custard and turn to mush. However, for this make-ahead version, we soaked the bread while it was still warm. This combats the dehydrating effects of the freezer, and it made French toast that was creamy on the inside and crisp on the outside.

To bolster the flavor of the custard, which was being dulled by freezing, we doubled the vanilla and cinnamon in the custard and used brown sugar rather than white.

Before You Begin

Firm, high-quality white sandwich bread, such as Arnold Country White or Pepperidge Farm Hearty White, works best here.

Instructions

make custard

Heat butter in large saucepan over medium-low heat until golden brown and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Off heat, whisk in half-and-half, eggs, sugar, flour, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt; transfer to 13- by 9-inch baking dish.

prepare bread

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat broiler. Set wire rack inside rimmed baking sheet. Arrange bread on rack and broil until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Decrease oven temperature to 350 degrees. Soak half of toast slices in custard mixture until just saturated, about 30 seconds per side. Return soaked bread to rack and repeat with remaining toast. Bake until center of bread registers 160 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 8 minutes.

freeze

Let toast cool on rack 10 minutes and then freeze until firm, about 30 minutes. Transfer slices to zipper-lock freezer bag and freeze for up to 1 month. When ready to eat, toast in toaster on medium power until heated through. Serve.