Fabulous Blender French Toast (Allergy Friendly)

The following is a guest post by Tess Masters, The Blender Girl – actor, presenter, lifestyle personality, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies book and app, The Perfect Blend, and The Detox Dynamo Cleanse. She and her easy healthy recipes have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Real Simple, Prevention, Clean Eating, the Today Show, and other media outlets. She is the global spokesperson for KitchenAid blenders and lives in Los Angeles. 

This contest is now closed. In a few days the winners will be emailed directly.

For a fabulous family breakfast, brunch, dessert, or (dare I say it?) snack, you can’t beat this phenomenal French toast. My family and I have been battering up with this baby for years, and it is a huge hit with everyone we serve it to. People even say they prefer this healthier incantation of the classic comfort food to its original counterpart! I’ve received thousands of elated emails and messages on social media about this righteous recipe since I included it in my latest book The Perfect Blend, so I had to share it with you.

So simple, so delicious, so creamy, so crispy you may never blend your batter using dairy milk and eggs again. Yep! This terrific treasure is dairy free, egg free, and also gluten free, and it utilizes whole ingredients.

Now, before you grimace at the thought of using cardboard-like gluten-free sandwich bread (we all know how awful that can be), the brilliant batter in this recipe makes even the worst gluten-free bread full and fluffy! I use whole-grain gluten-free bread, but you could use regular whole-wheat bread as well. Just know that this recipe (ingredient ratios and cook times) has been calibrated for gluten-free bread. So, you may need more coconut oil when frying and will need to adjust the temperature of your stove top as well as the cook time.

But, resist the urge to use less coconut oil than what I’ve prescribed, otherwise, your bread won’t crisp up. I don’t know about you, but I love my French toast crispy on the outside and moist and chewy on the inside.

This French toast is a fun, family-friendly recipe. I make it with my niece and nephew, and they love soaking the bread and preparing their toppings so they can get their serving juuust right. The caramelized bananas I’ve included in this recipe are always a hit, but this fried bread will get cozy with any fruit that takes your fancy. Try serving it with stewed or poached apples, pears, peaches, rhubarb, or some fresh berries.

If you want to make this recipe nut-free, use rice, soy, or hemp milk in the batter, and top it with coconut flakes instead of nuts. Bon appetit!

Blend More Than Smoothies

I use my blender to make all kinds of delicious recipes. I think it’s the greatest culinary tool we’ve been given since fire and spoons! So, I want to encourage you to use your blender beyond smoothies, soups, and cocktails. Your blender can make healthy fast food possible. Blending makes life easier, levels the playing field in the kitchen, and allows anybody to whip up nutrient-dense, tasty foods with limited skills and time.

While my books and website do contain a full repertoire of drinks, smoothies, and soups, you’ll find more than food to sip, glug, or scoop up with a spoon. My recipes are blender centered but by no means blender only. I favor blender-inspired dishes—appetizers, snacks, salads, desserts, and easy main dishes you can attack with your trusty knife and fork.

Giveaway: Blender Worth $630 + Cookbooks

To help get you excited about using your blender more, I’m giving away a KitchenAid® Pro Line® Series blender worth $629.99 and copies of all of my cookbooks! (Enter at the bottom of this post.)

This is why I love this blender more than anything else on the market:

• The most powerful blender to pulverize ingredients for silky smooth consistencies.
• 3 Adapti-Blend™ pre-programmed settings for smoothies, soups, and juices.
• Insulated jar that keeps the contents cool when you’re blending smoothies and juices.
• BPA-free container with soft-touch handle grip and asymmetric stainless steel blade.
• Speed dial that goes to 11 to take things beyond regular speeds to completely pulverize ingredients more quickly.
• Pulse switch for an extra boost of power at any speed.

This is the best blender I have ever used. And I own them all!

I can’t wait to see who wins. Good luck! 

French Toast

Course: Breakfast

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 4 people

Author: Tess Masters

Reprinted with permission from The Perfect Blend, copyright 2016 Tess Masters. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.

Photography copyright 2016 by Anson Smart

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Ingredients

French Toast

• 1 cup almond milk unsweetened
• 1 medium banana ripe
• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds white or black
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon ground
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 8 slices bread gluten-free
• 1/4 cup coconut oil melted

Caramelized Bananas

• 2 medium bananas thickly sliced on the diagonal
• 1/4 cup coconut sugar (or regular sugar)
• 1 - 2 tablespoons coconut oil melted
• Pure maple syrup for serving

Toppings

• 2 tablespoons pecans or walnuts, crushed
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened coconut flakes

Instructions

1. Set the oven to its lowest temperature or the “warm” setting.

2. To make the French toast, pour the milk, banana, maple syrup, vanilla, chia seeds, cinnamon, and salt into your blender and blast on high for about 30 seconds until well combined.

3. Pour the mixture into a large shallow baking dish and let rest for about 5 minutes to thicken slightly. In batches, place slices of the bread in the baking dish and let soak on one side for 8 to 10 seconds. Flip the slices and let soak for another 8 to 10 seconds, until evenly moistened.
4. In a medium skillet (that fits two slices of bread) or on a large griddle (that holds all of the slices) over medium heat, warm 1 to 2 tablespoons of coconut oil per two slices of bread. (Resist the urge to use less coconut oil or the bread won’t get crispy.) Add the bread and fry for 4 to 6 minutes on each side, until golden brown and crispy on the edges; you may need to add more coconut oil after you flip the bread. If cooking in batches, transfer the French toast to a lined baking sheet and place in the oven to keep warm and repeat to fry the remaining bread, adding more coconut oil to cook each batch.
5. While the last pieces of toast are cooking, make the caramelized bananas. Combine the banana slices and the coconut sugar in a zip-lock bag, seal, and shake to coat evenly.
6. In a skillet over medium-high heat, warm the coconut oil, add the coated bananas, and fry for about 2 minutes on each side until nicely caramelized.
7. Serve two slices of French toast on each plate, topped with one-quarter of the caramelized bananas, one-quarter of the crushed nut boosters, and one-quarter of the coconut booster. Pass maple syrup at the table.

Recipe Notes

We recommend organic ingredients when feasible.

Giveaway Details*

One winner will receive:

• One (1) KitchenAid® Pro Line® Series blender valued at $629.99 (Color subject to availability)
• One copy of each of the three cookbooks in The Blender Girl series: The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend.

If you’d like to enter the contest, please read and follow these rules:

1. This giveaway is open to residents of the USA and Canada who are 18 years or older.
2. You have one chance to enter the contest by leaving a comment below sharing what you’d most like to use the blender for.
3. The contest will end at 11:59 PM EST on August 11th, 2017.
4.  The winner will be selected at random and emailed directly (so make sure your address is entered correctly in your comments below!). The winner will have 3 days to respond before they are disqualified and a new winner is chosen.

The Contest Is Now Closed

*Limit one (1) entry per person, email address, and household for the duration of the giveaway period. Chances of winning depend on the number of entries. Entries will be chosen at random. Giveaway ends on August 11th, 2017 at 11:59 PM EST. Winner will be contacted on or around August 12th via email. The winner will have 3 days to respond before they are disqualified and a new winner is chosen. We may share your first name, last initial, and comment publicly but will not share any other information with anyone except to facilitate shipment of your prizes, which will be shipped directly from the respective vendor. 100 Days of Real Food will not use your email address for anything other than contacting you about this giveaway, however, if you sign up for our partner’s newsletter, you will be agreeing to their terms regarding their use of your email address. Giveaway open to US and Canadian residents only, aged 18 or over. We are not liable for errors stemming from lost/delayed e-mail, posting or typographical errors, technical failures, etc. Void where prohibited by law. This giveaway is being held by Leake, LLC doing business as 100 Days of Real Food. We may be reached at info{at}100daysofrealfood{dot}com.