EASY AND DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE CHIP BABKA FRENCH TOAST
This is most likely the easiest recipe I’ve ever published! Yet it sounds like, and the result looks like, the most exotic one. The hardest part is actually just slicing the babka itself!
The first few pieces of Babka French Toast that I ever made. Notice how flat and crispy they are. Photo by Karen Salkin, as is the one at the top of this recipe.
The impetus for this recipe was that I recently bought way too much babka for Rosh Hashanah. So I tried to figure out something different to do with it, other than just eat it plain. And, being the laziest person on earth, I wanted it to be easy. And then it hit me—Babka French Toast! I know that’s not conventional, but when have I ever been? But I was convinced it would work. And it totally did! (With a bit of experimenting, I have to admit.)
I wanted to give you the recipe today because Yom Kippur, the highest Jewish holiday, begins tonight; it’s when many of my people fast for about twenty-five hours. So this is good to keep in mind for Sunday’s brunch, when it will taste especially delicious.
Of course, babka has been most readily available during these Jewish holidays, but you can always find it somewhere, especially in bakeries. (No worries if you’re not a fan of chocolate—babka also comes in cinnamon, apple, cinnamon raisin, and sweet cheese varieties at certain places. Or you can bake one yourself, although I’ll never be coming up with a recipe for one of those!)
This is four different sizes of the Babka French Toast pieces just about done frying, all crispy and delicious! Photo by Karen Salkin.
Making Babka French Toast takes a bit longer than usual French toast, because of the hard-to-slice-properly nature of the confection, and keeping it on the fire longer than usual so that it gets nice and crispy. (Trust me—you don’t want “fluffy” with this one—you definitely want flat and crispy!)
But it’s worth the bit of extra time. Mr. X has only loved one of my creations more—my English trifle. But he’s eaten this recipe five or six times recently, declaring it “absolutely delicious” each time. (And by the way, Mr. X, who’s not of my ethnic persuasion—but has often played a Jewish guy on TV, so that fools people—doesn’t even like babka! But he went nuts over this brunch dish!)
This makes 8 slices of delish French Toast. And, as usual with my recipes, you do have a few choices on the ingredients. Let’s get to it.
I used Kosher salt because that’s always best for baking, which this is akin to.
CHOCOLATE CHIP BABKA FRENCH TOAST
INGREDIENTS:
The 1 staple:
8 not-too-thick slices of the babka loaf [Note: It has a tendency to crumble, so don’t make it too thin, either.]
All the ingredients. Photo by Karen Salkin.
Choices:
1/2 cup any kind of milk (I used almond milk a few times and soy milk a couple of others, just because those are the varieties I had on hand at the time)
eggs: either 2 large ones or 1/3 cup of liquid egg whites, (which is what I used)
1/4 tsp. any kind of salt, except for a savory variety, such as seasoned. (But Kosher salt is usually best for anything akin to baking.) Just don’t overdo it!
frying pan lube (I always use canola oil spray, but you can use a different oil spray or 2-3 tablespoons of unsalted butter per every 2 slices, if you prefer)
METHOD:
The basic babka soaking in the liquid mixture. Photo by Karen Salkin.
Combine the eggs, milk, and salt in a flat enough dish to soak 2 slices in, but with sides to keep the liquid in it
And then, just soak the slices, 1 or 2 at a time. Do both sides, but not for long. Use a spoon to the get the mixture into all the little crevices that babka features.
Put a big frying pan on medium heat, and either spray the oil or melt the butter.
Then just fry the soaked babka as you would any French toast! But make sure to keep squishing them down, on both sides, as you go along, to make sure the liquid is burned out of the slices, (otherwise they’ll be very soggy in the middle,) and they get as crispy as possible. They’re so much more delish that way!
The babka starting to fry. Photo by Karen Salkin.
Unless you have a gigantic pan, fry only 2 normal size slices at a time, or 4 smaller ones. (Don’t use a griddle if you’re using butter because it will drip off the sides, of course.)
PRESENTATION:
You can always top it with powdered sugar to make it look a bit prettier or professional, but really—as Mr. X says to me when I don’t know whether or not to add more make-up to my look—no need to gild the lily.
I eat mine with whipped cream, while Mr. X likes his either plain or with just a bit of maple syrup. We added raspberries on top one day, and that made the Babka French Toast even more fun. (The finished product is in the pic at the top of this recipe. Photo by Karen Salkin.)
And that’s it! Easy-peezy.
If you’re of my ethnic persuasion, I wish you an easy fast tonight and tomorrow. (And then this delicious brunch the next morning!)
