Savoury French Toast with Mushrooms

Savoury French toast with mushrooms puts a fancy spin on eggs and toast but is an absolute breeze to make. Choose a wholegrain bread (I make it gluten free), add a sprinkle of parmesan, and load it up with herby mushrooms. It’s a healthier breakfast delight! Thank you to Australian Eggs for sponsoring this toasty treat.

If Wikipedia is to be believed – though I’m not really quite sure if it ever should be – French toast originated in the 4th or 5th century. It originally involved soaking fine, crust-free white bread in eggs and milk, frying and serving with honey. But that was then, and this is now. This is savoury French toast, and it’s totally different but also totally delicious. My French toast:

• uses wholegrain bread, crusts and all (who has time for cutting off the crusts? It’s a waste and besides, the bread looks so much nicer with the crusts on!);
•  gets a scrumptious savoury twist, involving a little parmesan cheese; and
• is served up with a load of herby tasty mushrooms, because I love everything with a side of veggies.

This easy recipe could work for brekky, lunch or dinner! It’s got that satisfying, eggy goodness, a hint of cheese, and juicy mushrooms to bring it all together.

An essential element of this savoury French toast, eggs add a nutritious kick. I’m sure you’ve heard eggs are a good source of protein, but they’re also rich in a number of key micronutrients. A serving of two eggs will provide you with a significant part of your recommended daily intake of vitamins A, E, B5, B12 and folate, plus minerals selenium, iodine and iron (you can check out more nutrition facts on the Australian Eggs website).

Plus, eggs are also a source of vitamin D, which is actually quite hard to obtain from food. The best way of getting in a lot of vitamin D is to get a little bit of time in the sun; this is why vitamin D is sometimes called vitamin sunshine! Out of all food sources though, eggs are one of the best. Just make sure to eat the yolks, as that’s where the vitamin D is. Two eggs will give you approximately 8% of your recommended daily intake.

You get the yolks and all in this gorgeous savoury French toast. It’s really easy to make; just whisk the eggs with a touch of milk, sprinkle on some extra parmesan and lightly pan fry. The toast will get a lovely dark brown, slightly crisp outside. To prevent it from browning too quickly and burning, make sure to keep the stove set to a moderate-to-low heat.

Of course, no meal is complete without vegetables for me, so I’ve served up this savoury French toast with a side of mushrooms. Sliced, fried in olive oil and seasoned with herbs, they’re the perfect nutritious accompaniment. If you’re not a mushroom fan, swap them out for another veggie; you could also serve this French toast with oven-roasted tomatoes or some pan-fried zucchini slices.

Savoury French Toast with Mushrooms

Savoury French toast with mushrooms puts a fancy spin on eggs and toast but is an absolute breeze to make. Choose a wholegrain bread (can be gluten free), add a sprinkle of parmesan, and load it up with herby mushrooms. It’s a healthier breakfast delight! 

4.80 from 5 votes

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Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: gluten free, nut free, vegetarian

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes minutes

Servings: 2 serves

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 120 mL milk of choice (make sure it's unsweetened)
• 25 grams finely grated Parmesan cheese plus extra to serve if desired
• 4 thick slices bread
• 200-250 grams mushrooms, sliced (cup or portobello mushrooms work well)
• 1 small bunch chives
• extra virgin olive oil or other preferred fat for frying
• salt and pepper

Instructions

• Preheat oven to about 50 C; you can keep the toast and mushrooms in there to stay warm while you prepare everything.
• Whisk together eggs and milk, seasoning with a little salt and pepper. Pour mixture into a shallow dish so you can dip the bread in easily. Add in most of the parmesan cheese, reserving a little to sprinkle on the toast slices while they’re frying.
• Heat a non-stick pan up to a moderate-to-low heat. Add 2 teaspoons of olive oil to the pan.
• Dip a slice of bread into the egg mixture, flipping it over so both sides are soaked. I like to let it sit for about 15 seconds on each side, to make sure the egg mixture is soaked in. Pick up the bread and let the excess drip off for a moment. There should be some parmesan stuck to the bread. Pop the bread into the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, until dark golden brown. While the bread is cooking, sprinkle over some of the remaining parmesan so you get a lovely extra bit of crisped-up parmesan on the outside. If the bread browns too quickly, reduce the stove temperature.
• Repeat the cooking process with the remaining slices of bread, and keep the slices in the oven to stay warm while you’re cooking.
• While the bread is cooking, take a second pan and add 2 tsp olive oil. Add the sliced mushrooms and cook until softened. Towards the end of the cooking process, season with salt, pepper and some chopped chives.
• Once everything is ready, serve the French toast with the sliced mushrooms on top, and garnish with extra chives. Add extra parmesan, and a little drizzle of olive oil, if desired.

Notes

*Slightly stale bread works best for French toast - it soaks up the mixture really well. This is the perfect recipe for using up leftover bread!

*If you don’t like/don’t have chives, simply use a pinch of dried thyme, or your favourite dried herb mix, to season the mushrooms. Adding a little knob of butter to the mushrooms while they are cooking is also delicious.

*If you can’t have dairy, this recipe can be made dairy free. Omit the Parmesan and use a dairy-free milk (make sure it is an unsweetened milk). You can add a tablespoon or two of nutritional yeast to the egg mixture for a “cheesy” flavour.

Have you made this recipe?I love seeing your creations! Take a photo and then tag me @nourish.everyday on Instagram!