How, you ask, do you make the best French toast ever? Just swap out white bread and use Trader Joe’s Chocolate Babka instead! Trader Joe’s Babka French Toast- an all too easy way to take a breakfast classic and make it a weekend-decadent. A few favorite ways to top it off: powdered sugar, salted butter and maple syrup, or cream cheese and jam. 

Do you ever have issues when trying to eat French toast at a restaurant? You know… when you order and it comes soggy, or bland, or just plain old gross? I refuse to order French toast when I’m out for breakfast or brunch. I’ve had such bad experiences in the past. Most of the time, the bread is soaked for too long or the custard is super eggy. This Trader Joe’s Babka French Toast will right all those past mistakes.

What is Brooklyn Babka?

Chocolate Babka is a sweet, swirly, cake loaf rooted in Eastern European Jewish traditions. Trader Joe’s Chocolate Babka is made for them by a small, kosher bakery in Brooklyn that literally grew out of a grandmother’s kitchen. That is why we had to choose this babka to cook with! The chocolate swirl is all melty when heated through and makes for the creamiest bites!

Can you freeze a babka?

Absolutely! Don’t be afraid to stock up on the baked babka loafs. They freeze beautifully so don’t hesitate to wrap them up in an air-tight sealed container, bag, or plastic seal. The bread can be frozen for up to a month! We live 3 hours from the closest Trader Joe’s, so when we make it to a store, we stock up since we know we can freeze it and not sacrifice taste! In the event you tackle the task of making your own Babka, the dough can freeze exactly the same way 🙂

What can you put on babka french toast besides syrup?

Here are 5 awesome options if you are out of syrup or up for trying something new:
-Frozen berries, heated with a little sugar to make a sauce.
-Powdered sugar
-Honey
-Apple sauce or yogurt
–Jam

Ingredients for Trader Joe’s Babka French Toast

• 1 Loaf Trader Joe’s Babka Bread
• 2 Egg Whites
• 1 Egg, whole
• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 1 TBS Cinnamon
• 1 TSP Vanilla Extract
• 1 Cup of Milk

How to make Trader Joe’s Babka French Toast:

Find a shallow dish to place your egg mixture in. You want it to be shallow enough to easily dip your bread slices.

First, mix the eggs, milk, cinnamon, sugar, and vanilla together until well-combined

Next, slice your babka into slices. I find I get about 8-10 slices per loaf of babka bread. The pieces tend to be about a 1/2 inch in thickness.

Dip your babka bread into the wet mixture, one side at a time. Be sure to not soak too long – just enough to get a wet coating on the exterior of the bread.

Immediately transfer the bread to your griddle, which should be heated at 350 degrees F.

Cook for approximately 4 minutes on each side. You will know they are ready by the crispy texture and slight-browning on the exterior of the french toast.

Last, transfer the cooked babka to a plate and garnish with your toppings of choice! We find powdered sugar, syrup, and strawberries to be the perfect compliment to this delicious dish.

Now, as you start to cut into the babka, you’ll already notice it’s tricky to keep the slices in tact, so do this carefully.  Same goes for soaking in the egg bath, and flipping on the griddle, etc.  Use a spatula that is large enough to hold an entire slice to help avoid breakage.
If you’re not having any luck and your slices fall apart on you, just embrace it; pile up the pieces, layer on the toppings and serve as a ‘deconstructed’ (literally) french toast.  Look at you, so artsy 🙂