challah french toast – smitten kitchen

Make the berry sauce: Place berries, sugar, salt, and 3 tablespoons of the water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until berries defrost and become saucy, about 8 to 10 minutes. In a small dish, combine cornstarch and remaining 2 teaspoons of water then add to berry sauce, simmering another minute until slightly thickened. Off heat, squeeze in lemon juice to taste. Pour into a bowl for serving and set aside.

Make the whipped cottage cheese: In a food processor or high-speed blender, combine cottage cheese, sugar, and vanilla and blend until totally smooth and fluffy. This is a barely sweet topping; add more sugar to your taste. Spoon into a serving bowl and set aside.

Make the french toast: In a wide bowl or baking dish (for easier dipping), whisk eggs with vanilla until smooth, then pour in milk, whisking the whole time.

Place a large skillet over medium-low heat and let it warm for two minutes. A droplet of water flicked into the pan will bounce around when it’s properly heated. Add a tablespoon of butter and swirl it around. Dip first few slices of challah (as many as will fit in your skillet) in the egg-milk mixture, letting it soak for a moment, then flip it and soak it further. Add to pan and cook until browned underneath, 2 to 3 minutes. If it’s browning too slowly, increase the heat to medium. Flip each piece and cook until browned on the second side. Transfer to a serving plate and repeat with remaining slices, adding more butter to the skillet as needed.

To serve: Dust finished challah french toast with powdered sugar. Place two slices on a plate, dollop with whipped cottage cheese, and spoon over some berry sauce. Eat immediately.

Do ahead: Berry sauce is good warm or at room temperature and keeps in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Whipped cottage cheese keeps in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. French toast can be kept warm until needed on a baking sheet in a 200°F oven. Leftover french toast keeps for 3 days in the fridge.

Notes:

• No challah? Use brioche bread.
• I do not add sugar to the egg-milk mixture because challah is already sweet, and my kids will also be drowning it in maple syrup, but you can adjust it for more sweetness if you wish.
• No worries if your challah is larger, as homemade ones often are; you should have enough egg/milk mixture and toppings to cover it. However, if needed, whisk in another egg + 1/2 cup milk.
• Fresh challah needs only a quick dip before frying but older/firmer challah can benefit from a longer soak. For the latter, go ahead and nestle in as many slices as you can in the egg-milk mixture and flip them once while the pan heats and leave it there while the first ones cook.