Pain Perdu Recipe Help?

Welcome to my world on Wed, 24th Feb 2010 3:50 am 



PAIN PERDU (“LOST BREAD”):
New Orleans-style French Toast xxxxxxxxxxxxx
* 8 slices stale French bread (cut on bias, about 1-1/4 inches thick)
* 1 cup half-and-half or whole milk
* 4 large eggs, well-beaten
* 1/4 cup sugar or simple syrup
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* A few gratings of fresh nutmeg, to taste
* 4 tablespoons butter
* 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 2 teaspoons powdered sugar, mixed with 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
In a large bowl combine the half-and-half or milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla and nutmeg and mix thoroughly. Soak the slices of stale French bread in the custard mixture until they’re thorougly soaked.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a heavy skillet and add the oil. When the butter and oil mixture is very hot, fry the soaked bread slices one or two at a time on each side, until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and hold in a warm oven until all the slices are cooked.
To serve, Sprinkle with cinnamon and powdered sugar mixture just before serving. Serve with Louisiana cane syrup, a strongly-flavored honey or any good syrup of your choice (real maple or fruit syrups are lovely too, but avoid that artificially-flavored pancake syrup).Serves 4.
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Notes;Don’t use sourdough. Let the butter and oil get sizzling hot in the skillet before adding the soaked slices. Keep the fried slices warm in a 200 degree F oven while you finish cooking the rest.

dune_lau on Wed, 24th Feb 2010 10:47 am 



“Pain Perdu” means “lost bread,” and this recipe was a scrumptious solution for what to do with those stale loaves of bread that were about to be “lost.” This recipe is just one of the countless French-influenced dishes of New Orleans, and one of the most delicious. Here’s what you need:
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
pinch of salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
6 thick slices of day old French bread (staler bread is fine as long as you can slice it)
3 tbsp butter
1 tbsp vegetable oil
powdered sugar (optional)

Alice M on Wed, 24th Feb 2010 5:16 pm 



Get a good egg bread, unsliced (Challa is perfect, King’s Hawaiian is OK, but a little sweet for my taste) and slice it about 1 inch thick. Use a paring knife to slit each slice down most of one side to make a pocket with about 3/4 in wall on each of the other 3 sides.
Into each pocket put a generous tablespoon of orange marmalade, Take a block of cream cheese and cut it into about 1/2 in thick slices (crosswise — they will be about 1 in x 2 in x 1/2 in) and slip 2 or 3 slices into each pocket, They should be side by side across the pocket and mostly fill it but not come all the way to the edge. Trim them if you need to. If they stick out they will make a mess when you fry the bread.
In a shallow bowl beat 4 eggs lightly with a fork or whisk, until even in color. Add in 1/3 cup whole milk, 1 tsp vanilla and a pinch of salt. You can add 1/4 tsp mace or nutmeg if you like. Beat until smooth. This batter will make 3 or 4 slices depending on the size and texture of the bread.
Preheat a griddle or large fry pan with enough butter to just coat the bottom Heat just until the butter stops bubbling.
Dip each slice of stuffed bread into the egg mixture, letting it sit for about 5 seconds on each side, then transfer with a spatula to the griddle. Fry on each side until golden brown, adding more butter as needed to keep the pan well greased.
Serve on a warmed plate, dusting lightly with powdered sugar. Some people like to offer additional warmed marmalade for topping or dipping. Others add a squeeze of lemon or orange juice over the top.
Bacon or ham on the side, lots of good strong coffee or tea. Start out with citrus juice or mimosas for a lovely breakfast or Sunday brunch.

Sugar Pie on Wed, 24th Feb 2010 7:33 pm 



Pain Perdue is French for “Lost Bread.” It’s bread that went stale, that was otherwise “lost”, but it was made into French Toast instead. The key is to use stale french bread. Fresh, soft bread makes a gooey mess.
I have no real cut-and-dried recipe. Just crack 2-3 eggs in a shallow dish, and add about a 1/3 cup of milk per egg. Add a tsp or so of vanilla and whisk well. Soak stale french bread in egg mixture and fry in a buttered skillet or griddle (nonstick is wonderful!) until golden brown on both sides. Serve w/ syrup or powdered sugar. Sometimes we didn’t have either in the house and we’d use reg. granulated sugar!

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