These French Toast Sticks, flavored with vanilla and cinnamon, come together quickly and easily. Lightly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, these sticks are a fun and delicious breakfast that both kids and adults will love!
French toast is a classic weekend breakfast. Slices of bread are soaked in an eggy custard and then placed on a hot, buttery griddle until they are golden brown.
Often it will be dusted with either powdered sugar or cinnamon sugar and then drenched in maple syrup. Or some of our other favorites like:
I have never liked soggy food and as a kid I would cut my French toast into little squares and then dunk them in a dish of syrup that sat beside my plate. In fact, I still do that.
At least I used to do that, until I discovered the perfect breakfast finger food. Homemade French toast sticks!
Why You’ll Love These French Toast Sticks
A handheld breakfast treat that you can dip into syrup and tastes exactly like classic french toast- what’s not to love!
- Simple ingredients – Cinnamon French toast sticks are made with exactly the same ingredients as traditional French toast except the bread is cut into strips, or sticks, before it is soaked in custard and fried.
- Handheld – The result is slightly crispy sticks that can be picked up with your fingers and dunked in your favorite syrup with no knife or fork required. The fact that they can be eaten with your hands makes them a great grab and go breakfast as well and perfect for kids.
- Versatile – There are so many ways you can enjoy this favorite breakfast with your favorite toppings or as is!
French Toast Sticks Ingredients
These easy French toast sticks only require a few simple ingredients.
- Bread – I use a plain white sandwich bread, but they will work with whatever bread you prefer. Brioche or Texas toast are also great options, and whole wheat bread works well too.
- Eggs – Forms the base of the custard and creates the crisp toast
- Heavy Cream – produces a nice thick, rich custard. You can use milk if you prefer.
- Vanilla – enhances the flavor of the custard.
- Powdered sugar – provides a bit of sweetness and helps the toast to crisp
- Cinnamon – adds a nice aroma and warm flavors to the toast. Nutmeg or pumpkin pie spice work well too.
How to Make French Toast Sticks
You are going to love how easy it is to make these delicious french toast sticks.
- Slice bread. Begin by slicing the bread into sticks. Cut the crust off all 4 sides of the bread, then cut the bread into 1 inch sticks. I get 3 sticks per slice using basic sandwich bread.
- Whisk eggs, cream and vanilla. Next, break the eggs into a large, shallow bowl and whisk until they are well blended. Add the heavy cream and vanilla and whisk until you have a smooth custard.
- Add powdered sugar and cinnamon. Next add the powdered sugar and cinnamon and whisk to combine. Heat a large pan or griddle over medium heat and coat with butter.
- Dip bread into custard. Dip each stick into the custard making sure all edges and sides are coated, then place on the griddle. Repeat with remaining sticks, working in batches if necessary.
- Cook. Cook until the sticks are golden brown, then flip and cook an additional few minutes to toast the other side. Move the cooked French toast sticks to a plate and serve.
Variations
While we like this quick breakfast exactly as is, there are a few ways you can make it your own.
- Bread – The best bread for french toast is usually not fresh bread. I like mine to be stale bread so that it holds up a bit better. A dense bread like sourdough or challah would work great.
- Toppings – Feel free to add whatever you’d like! Whipped cream, a cinnamon sugar mixture, warm maple syrup, orange zest, fresh fruit or fresh berries would all taste grat.
- Banana bread – Take this recipe one step further and use banana bread as your bread. The flavor is incredible!
Storage, Make-Ahead and Freezing
These French toast sticks are easy to make ahead and freezer safe. This makes them great for quick weekday breakfasts or even after school snacks.
Once the French toast sticks have cooled, place them on a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Then place the tray in the freezer.
Wait 2-3 hours for the sticks to freeze, then gather them up and store them in an air tight container or large zip lock bag.
To reheat, simply remove as many as you’d like from the freezer and then place them on a baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes.
You can also reheat these in a microwave for about 1 minute, however this method will leave them a bit soft.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are several methods, but we cook this recipe on a griddle. You can also make baked french toast sticks or even make them in the air fryer.
Sonic, Jack in the Box, Burger King and Wendy’s all serve french toast sticks for breakfast.
Yes, you can buy them frozen and they’re great in a pinch. However, I much prefer this homemade version.
More French Toast Recipes
- Pound Cake French Toast
- 19+ Best French Toast Recipes
- Cranberry French Toast Casserole (NO OVERNIGHT REQUIRED!!!)
French Toast Sticks
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 slices bread
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- butter for brushing the pan
Optional Toppings
- powdered sugar
- cinnamon sugar
- maple syrup
- berries
Instructions
- Cut the crust off all 4 sides of the bread, then cut the bread into 1 inch sticks.
- Break the eggs into a large, shallow bowl and whisk until they are well blended.
- Add the heavy cream and vanilla and whisk until you have a smooth custard.
- Add the powdered sugar and cinnamon and whisk to combine.
- Heat a large pan or griddle over medium heat and coat with butter.
- Dip each stick into the custard making sure all edges and sides are coated, then place on the griddle. Repeat with remaining sticks, working in batches if necessary.
- Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the sticks are golden brown, then flip and cook an additional 5 minutes to toast the other side.
- Move the cooked French toast sticks to a plate, dust with powdered sugar or cinnamon sugar and serve.
- If you've tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the ratings or comments!
Nutrition
There were so good! The perfect balance of cinnamon!
This was such a delicious and easy breakfast for our family today!! My kids loved dipping the sticks into maple syrup!
This was so good! We really enjoyed French toast sticks over regular toast.
Love cinnamon-flavored recipes. These sticks look fantastic.
I’m still a kid at heart! I rather have these french toast sticks than pancakes. Love how easy this was to make and was super delish!
This is a perfect recipe for me to make with the grand kids. Can’t wait!
These were perfect! made them for breakfast this morning. My boys said they preferred these French toast sticks to the regular ones.
Looks like something my family would go crazy for. Can’t wait to try it!
Looks so tasty and I love the pictures! French Toast sticks are always so convenient and perfect for breakfast, saving to make soon!
What a beautiful post and an ingenious idea…perfect for the back to school set!