What's For Breakfast: Buttermilk French Toast with a Caramelized Banana Citrus Rum Sauce

Some people impulse-buy packs of gum or candy bars at the grocery store checkout; apparently I am easily wooed by carbs. On Friday, while picking up a few items at our local natural foods store, I couldn't help but add to my shopping basket a loaf of freshly-baked challah bread from the bakery counter (conveniently located next to the check out). I knew in an instant how I would be using the tasty loaf of egg bread -- it would have a starring role in a French toast recipe on Sunday morning. 

I have featured French toast recipes on the blog several times before -- such as this one for sourdough French toast or this one which features brandy and a lemon zest, or this yummy recipe from Alton Brown. I wanted to do something different this time around, and after a quick look in my fridge, I decided it would need to use buttermilk. Apparently using buttermilk isn't an incredibly novel thing to do, as a quick Google search yielded pages of links. I opted to work off this recipe from Sprouted Kitchen for the French toast and I used a Williams-Sonoma recipe for the banana citrus rum sauce. 

And, oh, man, was this French toast good! The caramelized bananas, simmered in a sauce made from brown sugar, freshly-squeezed orange juice, and a teeny bit of rum, completely negated the need for maple syrup. (Although, hey, adding a little (or a lot, no judgement here) of maple syrup on top certainly wouldn't hurt.) In fact, just as we were finishing up our breakfast, one of D's colleagues pulled up with two just-bottled jugs of maple syrup in tow (from trees just tapped this past week) -- its slightly caramelized taste was a delicious addition to a second helping of French toast (good thing I made extra!).

Buttermilk French Toast with a Caramelized Banana Citrus Rum Sauce 

(printer-friendly version)

make 2-3 servings

For the French toast:

2 eggs

3/4 cup low-fat organic buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons raw honey

pinch of ground cinnamon

pinch of sea salt

1 teaspoon orange zest

4-6 slices challah or brioche bread (leave the slices out overnight or lightly toast in a 350 degree oven for 3-5 minutes before using)

1. Preheat a griddle to medium high heat. Spray the griddle with cooking spray right before grilling the slices of bread.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet and set aside.

3. In a shallow bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, honey, cinnamon, salt, and orange zest.

4. Place the slices of bread, two at a time, into the custard mixture. Let the bread sit in the custard for about 1 minute per side. Allow any excess custard to drip off before placing the slices in the hot skillet.

5. Bake for two minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Place the cooked toasts on the prepped baking sheet.

6. Repeat the above steps until all the bread slices have been grilled.

7. Bake the French toast in the oven for 10 minutes.

For the caramelized banana citrus rum sauce:

3 bananas, sliced diagonally

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1/2 cup freshly-squeezed orange juice

2 tablespoons rum

1. While the French toast is baking in the oven, prep the banana citrus rum sauce.

2. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

3. Add the banana slices and cook each side until browned, 1-2 minutes per side.

4. Sprinkle the bananas with brown sugar and stir until melted.

5. Carefully pour in the orange juice and rum.

6. Simmer until the sauce has reduced slightly, 1-2 minutes.

7. Serve the banana sauce immediately over the just-baked French toast.