Brûléed French Toast with Apple Compote

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Do you have a Sunday routine? Something that helps you reset and get ready for the week?  My husband and I try to make time Sunday mornings to either go out for breakfast or make a nice breakfast at home.  If we’re at home, we read the Sunday paper and make the meal plan for the week.

A few months ago we went to one of our favorite brunch places and I ordered the Brûléed French Toast.  It was tasty and I realized it wouldn’t be too difficult to make at home.  Then (as is often the case) I forgot about it.  Well for my birthday, my parents gave me a gift card to Sur La Table and I knew right away what I was going to get with it- a kitchen torch!  Once I got that baby home, I started thinking of all the things I could use it on.  Obviously, I tried some marshmallows first (yum!).  Then I remembered this French toast.  I made it the next Sunday and it was fabulous!  I should mention that I will be describing how to make this recipe either using a kitchen torch, or under the broiler so don’t worry if you don’t have a little flamethrower.  They are a lot of fun, though!  They cost $15 and up so if you’re at all interested it’s a fun tool to buy for your kitchen (this is the one we have, it has a stand and adjustable flame, both features I’ve found very useful).

Since syrup isn’t necessary here, I decided to make something else to top this French toast.  I wanted something that wouldn’t jeopardize the crunch of the caramelized sugar, so I went with a warm apple compote.

Let’s get to it!

You’ll start with the apple compote.  Melt the butter in a small sauté pan over medium heat.

Then add your apples, sugar, cinnamon and salt and stir to combine.  This is going to cook for 12-15 minutes, or until the apples are soft and a thick syrup has formed. If the sauce starts to thicken too quickly, turn the heat to low and add a few tablespoons of water.  Stir occasionally as it cooks.

Now onto the French toast.  Add your eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon to a shallow dish, like a pie dish.  Whisk with a fork until the eggs are completely broken up and combined with the milk.

Now dip each slice of bread into the egg mixture, flipping to coat both sides.  I like my French toast soaked through and through, so I let it sit about 30 seconds on each side.  If you don’t like yours too soaked, just do a quick dredge through the egg mixture.

Set your dipped pieces of bread aside on a plate and toss the rest of the egg mixture.  If you’ll be using the broiler instead of a kitchen torch, preheat it at this point and put a rack on the 2nd to top slot. Now melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium heat. Put in 2-4 slices of bread in the pan and cook for about 4 minutes, or until golden brown.

Then flip and cook on the other side another 3 minutes or until both sides are golden and the center is cooked. Cook the remaining slices the same way.

Put your compote in a little bowl for serving and now it’s time for the best part- the brûléeing!  If you’re using the broiler on your oven, sprinkle each piece of French toast with 1 teaspoon of sugar and put them all on a cookie sheet.  Then place them under the broiler.  Do not, I repeat, do NOT go anywhere!  Now is not the time to make the coffee, grab the paper, etc.  Stay close to the oven and keep watch.  The sugar should caramelize in about 3 minutes, but broilers vary, so keep an eye on it.  When the sugar starts to bubble and turns brown, take the slices out of the oven immediately.  You may have to take individual slices out at time depending on how evenly your oven cooks, just a couple of extra seconds could burn the sugar and ruin it.  Once the sugar stops bubbling it will caramelize and turn hard.  Put the slices on plates and serve.

If you’re using a kitchen torch, put slices on each person’s plate and sprinkle each slice with a teaspoon of sugar.  Turn the flame on and slowly run it over the sugar until each section sizzles and turns brown. This should only take 10-20 seconds, depending on your torch.  I recommend doing it on the lowest flame setting so you have a little more control- as I said before, that sugar can go from zero to black in an instant!

When you take your spoon or fork over the sugar it will make a satisfying cracking noise, which leads to a great crunch in your mouth.  It’s so good!  I can’t wait try this in the summer with fresh berries also.

Enjoy!

If you have a kitchen torch, I’d love to hear what you use yours for!