Nutella-banana stuffed French toast

I made this particularly for my husband, who is a big fan of French toast and nutella and banana crepes.  This is something like a marriage of the two: French toast stuffed with nutella and thin slices of ripe bananas.

When the boys (my husband and our 7-year old) took me out for Mother's Day breakfast recently, my husband ordered French toast and it reminded me of how much he likes them.  I actually used to make it for him for dessert sometimes; I haven't done that in a long time given all the "real" desserts I'm often fixing up.  We've also moved more towards pancake territory recently  for our weekend breakfasts so I haven't made a batch of French toast in a while.

So this is just a reminder to make some French toast if you and your loved ones enjoy them.  If you're like me, you probably have nutella in the house at all times.  It's been a childhood favorite of mine and my pantry is never without an extra container.  Also, if you're like me, you're always looking for ways to use ripe bananas.  Bananas are another thing I buy consistently.  This little recipe is a good way to take advantage of all that.


I'm no French toast expert, I'm afraid.  I know that I like a fairly prominent egg flavor in the custard and I love how vanilla extract adds a special kind of sweetness to it.  I usually use a good-quality bakery white bread for my French toast, though I know a lot of recipes suggest challah (which I'm actually not a huge fan of).  Making this French toast reminds me of another project I'd love to tackle one day - making homemade bread!  Now that I've said it aloud, I feel like I'll have to do it.  I'll give it a go eventually!

I slather about a tablespoon of nutella on both sides of the bread, then layer thin slices of banana over one slice before covering it with the second slice of bread to make a sandwich.  I don't need to say that the better the banana (i.e, a nice, fragrant, just ripe banana), the better tasting nutella-banana stuffed French toast you'll have.  

The custard is simply a couple of eggs, mixed with some low-fat milk, a dash of sugar and some vanilla extract.  I cook my French toast in a non-stick skillet with a bit of canola oil until it turns golden brown.  It's very fast and easy to get on the table. 

It might have been a cloudy Saturday morning this past weekend (we planned to grill that night so, of course, it was bound to rain and it did just that all weekend!) but we sure had a lovely, cozy family breakfast to kick off the day.

My husband oohed and aahed over this French toast, as considerate husband are prone to do.  My son was a traditionalist and polished off some plain French toast (with a good amount of maple syrup) instead.  In other words, everyone was happy - including the cook!

If anyone has tips on making good French toast, I'd love to hear it!


Recipe:

Nutella-Banana Stuffed French Toast
Adapted from Cooking Light

- Serves 2 - 

2 large eggs
3 tablespoons low-fat milk (I used 1%)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 slices bakery-style thick white bread
4 tablespoons chocolate-hazelnut spread (Nutella)
1 large banana, thinly sliced
Canola oil, for cooking 
Powdered sugar, for dusting French toast

Crack the eggs into a shallow rimmed plate.  Lightly beat the eggs with a fork and then gently beat in the milk, sugar, and vanilla extract.

Spread 1 tablespoon of nutella over each slice of bread.  Top 2 of the bread slices with a layer of sliced bananas.  Sandwich each of the banana covered slices with the other 2 pieces of bread.

Heat a couple of teaspoons of canola oil in a non-stick skillet over medium-heat.  Dip the sandwich into the custard, turning it and making sure it's fully coated throughout.  Gently place it into the hot skillet and cook, about 2 minutes on each side, until French toast is golden brown.  Repeat with the other sandwich.  

Slice on the diagonal and dust lightly with powdered sugar before serving.