If you’ve recently started adhering to a vegan diet, you might be bummed out that you won’t be able to eat French toast any longer. Well, at least it isn’t possible to eat it using the normal recipe.
You can make French toast vegan by making a few important changes, though. Keep reading to learn about your options so you can make the best breakfast that will satisfy your family without breaking the rules of your diet.
Does French Toast Have Dairy?
Yes, a normal French toast recipe is going to contain dairy. Milk is used in most recipes and is stirred into the egg mixture.
This is the mixture that you’re meant to soak the bread in. It’s an important part of making French toast.
Note that not all French toast recipes require dairy. There are plenty of non-dairy recipes out there that you can look into.
Some of these options will be close to being vegan, but they might not be all the way there. Even so, it’s good to know that there are many milk substitutes that you can turn to.
If you’re lactose intolerant, it’s still possible to enjoy French toast. You don’t have to be left behind just because you can’t (or have chosen not to) eat dairy.
Do You Need Milk?
No, you don’t absolutely need milk to make French toast. There are many dairy ingredients that are commonly used in this breakfast staple, but there are also non-dairy options.
Typically, people will replace the milk in French toast with some type of non-dairy milk. For example, there might be recipes that will call for almond milk or soy milk.
So you can find good substitutes for milk that will allow you to enjoy it without consuming dairy. It’s just about figuring out which option suits you the best.
Later, you’ll get some specific advice about making vegan French toast that will help. For now, know that dairy is commonly used, but that you can avoid using milk by turning to non-dairy substitutes.
Does French Toast Need Eggs?
Eggs are another common ingredient that is used to make French toast. The standard recipes are going to ask you to use eggs to help make the custard.
The custard is what the bread is going to soak up. You need to make the bread soak up the custard for fifteen to twenty minutes before you can begin making it.
So can the custard be made without using eggs? Vegans can’t eat eggs, after all.
There are French toast recipes that don’t utilize eggs. You can find recipes that are vegan, and those will never use eggs or dairy products.
You’ll also find recipes that don’t use eggs that still aren’t vegan. Some of these recipes might substitute something else for the eggs while still using other ingredients that aren’t vegan.
Making Vegan French Toast
Making vegan French toast is simple once you have the right ingredients. The most important thing is to find a recipe that replaces all of the non-vegan ingredients with an appropriate substitute.
Instead of using cow’s milk, you’ll be using something like soy milk or almond milk. Soy milk is a very popular choice and is used in many of the most popular vegan French toast recipes.
Ground flaxseeds and cornstarch can be used as an egg substitute. You can also use ingredients such as arrowroot starch if you’d prefer.
Instead of using standard butter to grease the pan or griddle, you’ll need a vegan-friendly option. Vegan butter is a great choice that can help you to get good results.
Aside from vegan butter, it’s also fine to use coconut oil. Coconut oil does a good job of helping you fry the bread slices.
Common Vegan French Toast Ingredients
There are many ingredients that you will commonly find being used in vegan French toast. Soy milk, almond milk, and coconut milk are the most common choices.
As the egg substitute, you’ll be using various things to create the custard-like mixture. You can use ground flaxseed, cornstarch, arrowroot starch, chia, and more.
Ensure that you have some type of vegan ingredient that you can use to grease the pan. You won’t be able to use standard butter.
It’s best to go with either vegan butter or coconut oil to get the job done. Either option will work just fine.
The other ingredients that you’ll be using will differ based on the recipe. However, it’s common to use ground cinnamon, maple syrup, vanilla, powdered sugar, and various types of fresh fruit.
You’ll also be using some type of vegan-friendly bread. Many people recommend ciabatta bread since it works so well when making French toast.
Is French Toast Healthy?
No, French toast isn’t something that can be considered to be healthy. That doesn’t mean that it’s terribly unhealthy, either.
This isn’t likely something that you should eat daily. It’s wise to save it as a special breakfast treat instead of eating it multiple times per week.
Ingredients such as maple syrup and powdered sugar add a lot of calories to the meal. There are healthy ingredients being used in the vegan French toast, but it’s still not the healthiest thing to eat for breakfast.
It would be healthier to eat fresh fruit by itself than it would be to eat it alongside French toast. Do your best to make healthy choices, but don’t avoid eating this meal as a special treat.
How Long Does It Take to Make Vegan French Toast?
Making vegan French toast doesn’t take longer than making standard French toast. The process is pretty much the same.
You need to allow time for the bread to soak in the liquid mixture. This is an important part of the process and shouldn’t be rushed.
The soaking process will take fifteen minutes or longer. Some recipes might ask you to soak the bread overnight, but this isn’t something you need to do when using most vegan French toast recipes.
There will be at least five minutes of prep time and fifteen minutes of soaking time for the bread. Cooking the French toast can be done in just five minutes.
So you’ll be ready to eat in twenty-five minutes or less. It’s not a difficult meal to make for breakfast once you get used to making it.
Final Thoughts
You can easily make French toast that’s very satisfying while still adhering to vegan principles. It’s necessary to replace dairy ingredients and eggs with vegan-friendly substitutes.
Use soy milk, almond milk, or coconut milk instead of dairy-based milk. Replace the eggs by mixing up ingredients such as ground flaxseed, arrowroot starch, cornstarch, and chia.
You can find vegan recipes that will make things easy for you. This will allow you to get great results whenever you’re in the mood for some French toast.
Don’t feel like you have to leave French toast behind just because you’re vegan. You can enjoy this tasty breakfast dish, but you’ll need to get used to making it differently.
Sarah is the founder of Baking Kneads, LLC, a blog sharing guides, tips, and recipes for those learning how to bake. Growing up as the daughter of a baker, she spent much of her childhood learning the basics in a local bakery.