French toast
176566
224918381
2008-07-11T00:15:34Z
Blanchardb
5311630
Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/74.73.82.49|74.73.82.49]] to last version by DVD R W (using [[WP:HG|Huggle]])
{{dablink|For the band, see [[French Toast (band)]]}}
[[Image:frenchtoast.jpg|thumb|310px|right|French toast serving]]
'''French toast''' (often known as '''eggy bread''' in most of the [[UK]] - the exception being Scotland and Northern Ireland, ''pain perdu'' in [[French language|French]], ''pain doré'' in French-speaking parts of Canada) is a popular [[breakfast]] food in [[North America]] and [[Europe]]. It is also popular for [[breakfast]] and [[afternoon tea]] in Chinese world centred in [[Hong Kong]].
French toast is made with [[bread]] and [[Egg (food)|eggs]]; some common additions are [[milk]], [[water]], or [[orange juice]] to thin the eggs, [[sugar]], and [[spice]]s such as [[allspice]], [[nutmeg]] and [[cinnamon]]. [[Vanilla]] may also be added to the egg mixture. In restaurants throughout [[Canada]] and the [[United States]], the bread is usually thick white bread made especially for use in French toast; when made at home, regular sliced bread is often used.<!-- Many people prefer to use breads that contain dried [[fruit]] as the bread base for French toast. Coincidentally most Asians prefer their French toast with peanut butter. [ed: seems like pure opinion; removed until reliable source cited] -->
Although often served as a sweetly spiced dish in the [[United States]], others prefer a savory version, seasoned with [[edible salt|salt]] and [[black pepper|pepper]] instead, or even topped with a melted slice of [[cheese]].
==Preparation==
{{Unreferencedsection|date=February 2008}}
The eggs are beaten (and mixed with other liquids, as described above) and poured into a wide, shallow bowl. Individual slices of bread are then dipped into the egg mixture and flipped, so both sides are evenly coated. If desired, the bread may be left to soak briefly to absorb more of the mixture; however, too much soaking will make the bread fall apart, which is why some cooks prefer to use bread that is closer to the end of its shelf-life. The slices of egg-coated bread are then placed on a frying pan or [[griddle]] prepared with a coat of butter, and cooked until both sides are browned and the egg has cooked through.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/database/eggybread_74672.shtml BBC - Food - Recipes - Eggy bread<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> A substitute such as [[Egg Beaters]] can be used in place of whole eggs. Additionally, a liberal sprinkling of premixed [[cinnamon sugar]] may be applied prior to frying. Some people use [[nutmeg]] or [[cardamom]] as well.
The cooked slices are usually served with [[jam]], [[butter]], [[peanut butter]], and [[maple syrup]], though they can also be served with [[fruit syrup]], apple sauce, [[whipped cream]], [[chocolate]], [[sugar]], [[powdered sugar]], or various [[nut (fruit)|nuts]] such as [[pecan]]s.
[[Image:HKStyleFrenchtoast.jpg|thumb|right|310px|Hong Kong style French toasts served in [[Cha chaan teng]]s. The toppings include [[syrup]] and a slab of butter.]]
===Variations===
Stuffed French toast is two pieces of French toast that are stuffed with [[banana]]s, [[strawberry|strawberries]], or other fruit. It is usually topped with butter, maple syrup, and [[powdered sugar]].<ref>[http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_31542,00.html Recipes : Stuffed French Toast : Food Network<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
In the [[United Kingdom]] it is often savory and known as either 'eggy bread' or 'Gypsy bread'. Another name is 'French fried bread' but this not to be confused with '[[fried bread]]', which is white bread fried in butter or fat left over from frying bacon or sausages. One variation has [[marmite]] spread on the bread before dipping. A more popular version is served with baked beans on top. Another variation that has a 19th century origin is to add a teaspoon of red chili powder (instead of pepper), or a mixture of cumin and garlic known as "mexicana", and salt to the eggs before dipping bread in it. The term ''French toast'' has other common meanings in the United Kingdom including: baked bread slices, and bread which was buttered before toasting. Eggybread does not use fruity ingredients, instead it is just fried after being dipped into an eggy mixture of eggs and milk. It is often served with sauces, marmite or even just added with salt.
'Fried bread'
In [[Italy]] a variation is served known as ''mozzarella in carrozza'' (literally "mozzarella in carriage"). In this version a slice of fresh [[mozzarella]] is sandwiched between two slices of bread and the whole dipped in egg and fried. It can be seasoned with salt, but is not sweet like French toast and is not eaten for breakfast.
In [[Portugal]], it is called ''fatias douradas'' or ''rabanadas'' and is typically made during [[Christmas]], out of slices of bread leftovers (when it's too hard to be eaten normally) soaked in milk to soften it, dipped in beaten egg, deep-fried in olive oil and then dipped in sugar and cinnamon or a syrup made with water, sugar, cinnamon sticks and lemon skin. It's usually eaten cold as a dessert or a snack.
In [[Spain]], it is called ''torrijas'' and is typically made during [[Lent]], out of thick slices of bread soaked in milk or wine, dipped in egg, fried and then drenched in spiced honey.
Many [[New York]] [[diner]]s make French toast using thick slices of [[challah]] bread.
In the Western and Southwestern United States, some restaurants will prepare it with [[Sourdough]] bread.
In some parts of [[Australia]], it is usually served savory, topped with [[ketchup|tomato sauce]] or barbecue sauce. In other areas it is still considered to be a sweet dish, as in the [[United States]].
In [[New Zealand]], French toast is a breakfast or brunch dish, made using pan frying individual sliced bread or [[baguette]] slices dipped in the egg mixture identical to American preparations. It is served with [[banana]] and fried [[bacon]], and topped with [[maple syrup]]. Even though bacon is added, it is still considered a sweet rather than savory dish. Another popular variation in New Zealand uses a mixture of eggs yolks (left over from [[Pavlova (food)|Pavlova]] cooking), milk and grated cheese to make a savory breakfast food.
In [[Hong Kong]], French toast, called 西多士 ([[Cantonese language|Cantonese]] {{IPA2|sɐ́i tɔ́ sǐ}}; [[Jyutping]]: sai1 do1 si2; [[Mandarin language|Mandarin]] [[Pinyin]]: xīduōshì; literally "western toast", but actually an abbreviation of "法蘭西多士", "French toast"), is available all day round but is particularly popular for [[breakfast]] and [[afternoon tea]] in [[Hong Kong-style western cuisine|Hong Kong-style western restaurants]] and ''[[cha chaan teng]]s''. It is made by deep frying stacked sliced bread dipped in beaten egg or soy, and served with a slab of butter and topped with [[golden syrup]], or sometimes [[honey]]. Two slices are normally used and a sweet filling is usually added, either [[peanut butter]], [[Kaya (jam)|kaya]], or more rarely [[jam]]. In other non-Cantonese speaking parts of [[Greater China]], it is usually called 吐司 ([[Pinyin]]: tǔsī; literally “toast”).
In [[Brazil]] it is quite often used to celebrate a birth, as well as at [[Christmas]] and [[New Year]] celebrations. French Toast can also be served at pre-Carnivale parties in tradition with Brazilian folklore.
In [[Germany]], the ''Arme Ritter'' (literally ''poor knights'') are made from bread leftovers as a fast and simple meal. There are several local alternatives in serving: with a mix of sugar and cinnamon, filled with plum-jam or with vanilla sauce. Sometimes it is made with wine instead of milk, and therefore called ''Betrunkene Jungfrau'', drunken virgin.
==Pain perdu==
In [[France]], [[Belgium]], [[New Orleans]], and the [[Democratic Republic of the Congo|Congo]] a similar but distinctive food is called pain perdu, or “lost bread,” since it is a way to reclaim stale, “lost,” bread: hard bread is softened by dipping in a mixture of milk and eggs, then fried. The bread is sliced on a bias and dipped into a mixture of egg, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. The slices are pan-fried in butter and traditionally served dusted with powdered sugar and with jam on the side. Alternatively it may be served with [[syrup]].
New Orleans pain perdu is a local variation of French toast made from left over New Orleans-style French bread, which resembles the French [[baguette]], but has a crunchier exterior and a lighter interior.
==History and geographical spread==
French toast originated as a way to use day-old or stale bread (some breads, French bread especially, become stale after one day).<ref>[[b:Cookbook:French Toast|Cookbook:French Toast]].</ref><ref>''Dictionaire Général pour la maîtrise de la langue française la culrute classique et contemporaine'', p. 1138, Larousse (1993).</ref> Whereas a stale, crunchy bread might seem unappetizing, soaking the bread in eggs and frying it solved that problem. The precise origins of the recipe are unknown, although a version appears in the 1st century AD Roman cookbook, [[Apicius]] (''"Aliter dulcia: siligineos rasos frangis, et buccellas maiores facies. in lacte infundis, frigis [et] in oleo, mel superfundis et inferes."'' - "Another sweet: Break grated Sigilines (a kind of wheat bread), and make larger bites. Soak in milk, fry in oil, douse in honey and serve."). This was also known as Pan Dulcis. Similar dishes have existed in many countries and under many names, known in [[Medieval]] [[Europe]] as:
*[[Austria]]: ''Pavese'' (a medieval type of shield whose shape resembles a slice of bread)
*[[France]]: ''pain perdu'' (literally, "lost bread")
*[[Germany]]: ''armer Ritter'' (literally, "poor knight")
*[[Portugal]]: ''rabanadas'' or ''fatias douradas'' (literally, "gilded slices of bread")
*[[England]]: ''suppe dorate'' ([[Italian language|Italian]] for "gilded sippets")
*[[Yugoslavia]] and some successor republics: ''прженице'' - ''prženice''
*[[Croatia]]: ''pohani kruh''
*[[Lebanon]]: ''pain perdu''
*[[Catalonia]]: ''torrades o croquetes de Santa Teresa'' (literally, "toasts or croquettes of Saint Theresa")
Modern versions occur in many countries under other names:
*[[Belgium]]: ''verloren brood'', ''wentelteefjes'', ''gewonnen brood'', or ''gebakken boterhammen'' (literally "lost bread", "won bread", or "baked sandwiches" as it was traditionally made from stale bread) in [[Flanders]], ''pain perdu'' (literally, "lost bread") in Wallonia
*[[Brazil]]: ''rabanada'' or "fatia parida"(in the northeast region of Brazil)
*[[Bulgaria]]: ''пържени филии'' - ''părzheni filii'' ("fried slices [of bread]")
*[[Canada]] (in francophone regions): ''pain doré'' (literally, "golden bread")
*[[Denmark]]/[[Norway]]: ''arme riddere'' (literally, "poor knights")
*[[Greece]]: αβγόφετα (''avgófeta'', literally "egg-slice")
*[[Finland]] ''köyhät ritarit'' ("poor knights") when eaten plain or with butter, ''rikkaat ritarit'' ("rich knights") when rolled in powdered sugar, sprinkled with it until fully covered or alternatively covered with whipped cream to provide the white base, and an eye of red colored jam added in the center.
*[[Estonia]]: ''piilud'' ("ducklings")
*[[Hungary]]: ''bundás kenyér'' (literally, "coated bread")
*[[South India]]/[[Sri Lanka]]: ''Bombay toast''
*[[Israel]]: ''פרנץ' טוסט''
*[[Malaysia]]: ''Roti telur''
*[[Mexico]]: ''pan francés''
*[[Netherlands]]: ''wentelteefjes'' (etymology unclear, ''wentelen'' = "to turn over", ''teefje'' = "female dog"). Used in some parts of Flanders, Belgium as well.
*[[Pakistan]]: '' meetha toas''
*[[Romania]]: ''frigãnele''
*[[Russia]]: ''гренки'' - ''grěnki''
*[[Spain]]: ''torrija''
*[[Sweden]]: ''fattiga riddare'' (literally, "poor knights")
*[[Switzerland]]: ''Fotzelschnitten'' ("rascals' slices")
*[[Turkey]]: ''yumurtalı ekmek'' (literally, "bread with eggs"), or ''ekmek balığı'' (literally, "breadfish" / "fish of bread")
*[[United Kingdom]]: '[[Poor Knights of Windsor|poor knights of Windsor]]', 'Gypsy Toast' and in parts of Cumbria, 'Pandora'.
*[[U.S.A.]]: Overwhelmingly ''French toast'', though it may on rare occasion be called ''German toast'', ''Spanish toast'', ''nun's toast'', ''egg toast'', or ''French fried pudding''.<ref>{{cite book
| last = Hearn
| first = Lafcadio
| authorlink = Lafcadio Hearn
| edition = Second Edition
| title = La Cuisine Creole
| url = http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/cookbooks/html/books/book_38.cfm
| accessdate = 2007-04-20
| date = c1885
| publisher = F.F. Hansell & Bro.
| location = New Orleans
| pages = 205
| chapter = Page 205
| chapterurl = http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/cookbooks/coldfusion/display.cfm?ID=creo&PageNum=213
| quote = Beat four eggs to a quart of milk, sweeten and flavor to taste, cut slices of baker's bread and steep them until thoroughly saturated, then fry in hot butter and serve.
}}</ref>
== Etymology ==
Some people claim that this dish was called "German toast" in the U.S. before [[World War I]] and was changed to "French toast" because of [[anti-German sentiment]]. Indeed, a popular cookbook from 1918 does refer to it by the name "German toast." However, the term "French toast" can be found in print in the U.S. as early as 1871. The ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'' cites usages of "French toast" in English as early as 1660 (toasted bread with [[wine]], orange juice, and sugar), and cites an egg-based recipe of the same name from 1882. It has also been called "American toast" in the U.S., where there is a story that it was invented in [[1724 in science|1724]] by a man named Joseph French in a roadside [[tavern]] near [[Albany, New York|Albany]], [[New York]].{{Dubious|Rogov's "Joseph French" story|date=March 2008}}
Also notably, French toast in France and Belgium (and the [[Democratic Republic of the Congo|DRC]]) is called ''pain perdu'' (“lost bread”) since it is a way to reclaim stale, “lost,” bread: hard bread is softened by dipping in a mixture of milk and eggs, then fried.
According to research provided by the [[International House of Pancakes]], French toast is not necessarily French in origin; it is likely that the recipe dates back to [[medieval]] times and may have been a logical “invention” by different peoples, akin to battering and frying any food. A similar dish, ''suppe dorate'', was popular in England during the [[Middle Ages]], although the English might have learned it from the French [[Normans]], who had a dish called ''tostees dorees''. However, according to IHOP, the first written mention of the dish comes from the court of [[Henry V of England|Henry V]] of England (1413–1422).
==References==
{{cookbook}}
{{reflist}}
{{refbegin}}
* Odilie Redon ''et al.'', ''The Medieval Kitchen: Recipes from France and Italy'' (Univ. Chicago Press, Chicago, 1998).
* John F. Mariani, ''The Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink'' (Lebhar-Friedman, New York, 1999).
* Craig Claiborne, ''Craig Claiborne's The New York Times Food Encyclopedia'' (Times Books, New York, 1985).
* Fannie Farmer, ''The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book'' (Little, Brown and Co., Boston, 1918) [http://www.bartleby.com/87/]
{{refend}}
==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* [http://allrecipes.com/Recipes/Breakfast-and-Brunch/French-Toast/Top.aspx French Toast Recipes]
*[http://www.gumbopages.com/food/breakfast/pain-perdu.html Pain perdu - New Orleans-style French toast]
[[Category:New Orleans cuisine]]
[[Category:Louisiana cuisine]]
[[Category:Breakfast foods]]
[[Category:Breads]]
[[Category:Egg dishes]]
[[Category:Custard desserts]]
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[[de:Armer Ritter]]
[[es:Torrija]]
[[fr:Pain perdu]]
[[he:פרנץ' טוסט]]
[[hu:Bundáskenyér]]
[[nl:Wentelteefje]]
[[ja:フレンチトースト]]
[[no:Arme riddere (mat)]]
[[pt:Rabanada]]
[[fi:Köyhät ritarit]]
[[sv:Fattiga riddare]]
[[zh-yue:西多士]]
[[zh:西多士]]