Breakfast Stout French Toast stuffed with Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting

10.08.14

I’ve been cleaning out my fridge in preparation for vacation. There are jars and containers galore filled with sauces, grated cheeses, and more from kitchen experiments, last week’s dinner, and recent blog posts. One such container was filled with leftover bourbon cream cheese frosting from a batch of pumpkin whoopie pies. I definitely made too much. Oops! But too much of a good thing means more good things, at least in this case. I picked up a loaf of challah bread from the Farmers Market on Saturday and made stuffed Breakfast Stout French Toast the next morning, beer in hand. It’s gluttony at its finest and, in my opinion, the perfect excuse to wake up a bit early and make brunch for some lucky friends.

Makes: 4 servings
Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

Egg Batter

• 1/2 cup cream
• 1/2 cup breakfast stout
  can substitute with double stout, mik stout, or chocolate stout
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon melted butter
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For a pumpkin variation, add 2 tablespoons pumpkin puree and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, but leave out the vanilla extract.

Bourbon Cream Cheese Filling

• 6 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 ounces bourbon
  can substitute with vanilla extract, pumpkin puree, or stout
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Toast and Toppings

• 1 loaf braided challah bread cut into 1 1/2″ slices
• butter for cooking
• maple syrup
• chocolate chips, blueberries, or blackberries to garnish

Steps

Cream Cheese Filling

Beat cream cheese, butter, and salt in a stand mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add bourbon and mix until well combined. Reduce speed to low; add 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar and mix until fully incorporated. If mixture feels a bit loose or if a sweeter filling is desired, add an additional tablespoon of powdered sugar at a time until a spreadable frosting consistency is reached.

If preparing in advance, or if there happens to be leftovers, cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

French Toast

Create a pocket in each slice of bread by using a paring knife to cut horizontally into the bottom or side crust. Carefully fill each bread pocket with 2 tablespoons or so of cream cheese filling. I like to use a pastry bag or ziploc with the corner cut off, but a butter knife also works well.

In a baking dish or pie pan, thoroughly whisk together all batter ingredients. Place each slice in egg batter, allowing to soak for 10 seconds per side.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large, heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, place prepared slices into skillet to brown. Cook 4 to 5 minutes per side, adjusting heat as needed, until golden brown. Transfer to a baking sheet in a 200ºF oven to keep warm while cooking remaining slices.

Serve warm, topped with maple syrup and berries, alongside a breakfast stout.

Tags: bourbon • breakfast • breakfast stout • brunch • cooking with beer • craft beer • cream cheese frosting • french toast • maple syrup • recipe • stuffed french toast

---

---

comments powered by Disqus