This is gonna be your new weekend obsession. This healthier French Toast is made with whole wheat bread, and topped with caramelized bananas and a homemade blueberry jam.
Well, HELLO GORGEOUS.
French Toast was my favorite breakfast growing up. Something about warm cinnamon flavors and pools of maple syrup that brings me back to the good ‘ole days. Today I’m bringing it back with this healthier AND fancier version of my childhood favorite.
The silky smooth caramelized bananas and homemade berry jam takes this French Toast to a whole other level. Caramelizing bananas have become my new obsession. Just heat up a tablespoon of coconut oil in a pan and add your sliced bananas, cooking them until they are golden brown and oozing with deliciousness. These bananas can go on pretty much anything, oatmeal, pancakes, desserts, and of course this incredible French Toast.
What makes it healthy.
- Whole Grain Bread
Swapping white bread for whole grain bread gives you more fiber, protein, and B vitamins, making it a healthier choice. Whole grain bread, unlike white bread, contains all three components of the grain kernel: the bran, germ, and endosperm. In most white breads and wheat breads, the bran and germ have been removed and this is where the most fiber and protein can be found.
When looking for whole grain bread, make sure you read the label. The marketing strategies used to make bread appear “healthier” are often deceiving and don’t say anything about the quality or science behind the ingredients. It’s common to see phrases like “wheat bread,” “multigrain,” and”whole wheat,” which may not mean that they are made with whole grains.
Check on the ingredient list to see if the first ingredient listed is 100% whole grain.
- Naturally Sweetened Berry Jam
Most jams you buy at the grocery store are high in added sugar and contain very little fruit. For example, 1 tablespoon of Smucker’s rasberry jam has 12 grams of sugar, 9 of which come from added sugars and not the fruit itself. This option has very little fiber and is likely to cause a spike of blood sugar followed by a crash shortly after 🙁
When you start swapping out these processed and high sugar jams with homemade alternatives that take just 10 minutes to make, you’ll start getting used to a lightly sweetened jam and enjoy tasting the flavors of the fruit.
My homemade jam starts with 1 cup of frozen or fresh mixed berries, 1 tbsp of corn starch, 2 teaspoons of lemon juice and 1/2 tablespoon of maple syrup. It takes just 10 minutes to heat on the stove and thicken before you can slather it on a warm piece of toast or on this French Toast.
- The batter
To make this batter healthier we swap the cream or whole milk that many recipes call for and use unsweetened vanilla almond milk instead. This recipe serves 3 people and uses 4 free range eggs. We add 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of coconut sugar, and 1 teaspoon of both vanilla and cinnamon to give it a caramel-like flavor.
Putting it all together.
Dunk your bread in this batter for 15 seconds and pan fry in a skillet with 1 tbsp of coconut oil until golden brown on both sides!
Top it off with your caramelized bananas, berry compote, and a light drizzle of maple syrup!
I hope this becomes your new weekend favorite too!
If you want more delicious and simple recipes, check out some of my latest posts!
- Apple Cinnamon Scones
- Apricot and Walnut English Scones
- Banana Oatmeal Everything Cookies
- Beet Hummus with Whipped Goat Cheese Swirl
- Butternut Squash Carrot Soup with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
French Toast with Caramelized Bananas and Berry Compote
Ingredients
French Toast
- 6 slices whole grain bread
- 4 large free range eggs
- 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- 1 1/2 tbsp coconut sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tbsp coconut oil
Berry Compote
- 1 cup frozen or fresh mixed berries
- 1 tbsp corn starch
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tbsp maple syrup
Caramelized Bananas
- 1 large banana
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
Instructions
- Heat 1 tbsp of coconut oil in a large skillet on medium heat.
- Slice the banana into thick pieces and add them to the skillet, pan frying them on both sides until golden brown. Set aside.
- In a bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, coconut sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla until smooth. Heat the skillet on medium heat and add 1/2 tbsp of coconut oil. Dip your 6 slices of bread into the batter for 15 seconds covering both sides and add them to the pan once the oil starts to shimmer. Cook them on both sides until golden brown.
- Serve the French Toast warm with caramelized bananas, berry jam, and a light drizzle of maple syrup!
Berry Compote
- Heat a saucepan on medium heat. Add your frozen berries and cook until they begin to thaw. Take a fork or masher and mash the berries in the saucepan until it is mostly smooth, with just a few chunks for texture.
- After 3-4 minutes, add the cornstarch and lemon juice and bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and continue stirring until it begins to thicken. Add in the maple syrup and adjust the amount for more or less sweetening. Once the mixture has thickened slightly, turn off the heat and set aside.
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