How does a carb lover (like me) celebrate St. Patrick’s Day? By baking a loaf of Irish soda bread studded with raisins and turning it into French toast to gild the lily. You can make it a complete meal by serving it with fresh fruit and a mug of Irish coffee – and no one will miss the corned beef and cabbage.
Irish soda bread has a bad rap for being dry and crumbly. And it certainly can be. Traditional soda bread is often stale and flavorless, made up of just four ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt and buttermilk. But many modern recipes include butter and eggs to help create a crumb that’s rich, moist and cakey. Currants, citrus peel or caraway seeds can also be added to make it slightly sweet or savory.
But when preparing French toast, you must use a sturdy bread that will hold up to a little handling. Irish soda bread is an ideal candidate as long as it’s a more dense than delicate pastry. You can buy a loaf, but it’s just as easy to make your own. I followed an Irish soda bread recipe with butter but no eggs, and threw in a handful of golden raisins and some lemon zest, to achieve the right flavor and consistency.
Serve this French toast with a heavy dusting of powdered sugar or glug of maple syrup and fresh fruit – and the luck of the Irish will be with you!
- ½ loaf Irish soda bread (homemade or store bought)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- powdered sugar, maple syrup, fresh fruit (for topping)
- Slice bread into ¾"-thick pieces. Set aside.
- Crack the eggs into a shallow dish large enough to hold 2 bread slices. Add milk, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg and whisk until well combined.
- Warm a fry pan or griddle over medium heat and lightly grease with butter.
- Place 2 slices of bread in the egg mixture and let sit for 1 minute. Flip bread and let sit for another minute. Transfer bread slices to hot pan or griddle. Cook for about 3 minutes or until golden brown. Flip and continue cooking for an additional 2-3 minutes until the underside is fully cooked.
- Repeat with remaining bread slices. Serve with powdered sugar, maple syrup and fruit, if desired.
