This Healthy French Toast Is Nutritionist-Approved
Lighten up that brunch.

Meh about waffles? Let’s be honest: French toast is the ultimate brunch. The eggy exterior and warm hint of cinnamon make this breakfast staple an absolute winner. Could there be a better way to use up leftover bread? We think not.
But—like most classic breakfast foods—it’s not exactly the healthiest choice. Soaking refined carbs in custard, sauteing it in a pool of butter, and dousing everything in sweet maple syrup isn’t exactly the high-protein power breakfast you feel like you should be eating. And then there’s the fact that you basically feel famished again an hour, thanks to all those empty carbs.
Here’s the secret to making French toast an easier sell on your healthy conscience. Choose your bread carefully. You can use any style you want—sandwich bread, baguettes, rustic loaves—but look for whole wheat bread.
Front-of-package labels can be misleading, so check the ingredients list. A true whole wheat bread should list “wheat flour” or “whole wheat flour” as the very first ingredient.
By sticking to a complex carbohydrate, your French toast will have more protein and fiber, which can help you stay full longer and steady blood sugar levels.
A great whole wheat bread can help make a healthy French toast without that cardboard-y flavor and texture. Other swaps to healthify this brunch recipe are using an egg replacer and choosing low-fat or nondairy milk.
Oh, and don’t forget portion control. Stick to two slices, and fill your plate with other sides, like fresh fruit or veggies.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup egg substitute
- 2/3 cup skim milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 6 slices reduced calorie/high fiber bread (100% whole wheat)
Instructions
1. Beat together egg substitute, milk, vanilla and cinnamon. 2. Dip bread slices in egg mixture until both sides are soaked. 3. Spray a skillet or frying pan with cooking spray and heat over medium high heat. Place bread slices into pan and cook until golden brown on both sides.Nutrition Information
Nutrition Information Based on a Single Serving
*Percent Daily Value are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Dietary Needs

Carbohydrate

Cholesterol



Fiorella DiCarlo is a registered dietitian in New York City.
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I have some great news for you, you do not
have to eat cottage cheese while everyone
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else is eating french
toast on Sunday morning.
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I'm gonna show you how to make
this classic dish much healthier.
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[MUSIC]
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We're going to start with our batter for
french toast,
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this is skim milk,
you can also use 1% or 2% as well.
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The amount of fat in 1% or 2% is really
not going to hurt you, it's actually gonna
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work really, really well because it's
gonna keep you fuller longer too.
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We have some egg substitute here, but
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you can definitely feel
free to add a real egg.
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And keep the yolks in because
that's where all the vitamins are.
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One teaspoon of cinnamon, and
then we're gonna move onto our vanilla.
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And now, this is going to give
it that classic flavor and
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aroma that is so
enticing for french toast.
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So, I'm a little bit of a messy cook,
but we don't care about that.
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All right, so we're gonna go ahead and
just stir that in.
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Make sure that the mixture is nice and
mixed up here,
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so that you don't have strange lumps
on your bread while you're cooking it.
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Sometimes when picking breads
it can be a little confusing,
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sometimes it's whole grain,
seven grain, or whole wheat.
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Which one should you pick?
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Well, if you have a food label,
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the first ingredient on the food
label should be whole wheat,
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because sometimes they trick you and it's
refined flour with added seven grains.
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Remember, when you're shopping for bread,
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pick the one that says whole
wheat as its first ingredient.
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So now we're gonna soak our bread, and
you're going to see that while I do have
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tongs here, I'm gonna use my hands,
because that's what I do at home.
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So, we're gonna go ahead and just go
ahead and just soak it very quickly,
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it doesn't have to sit there for
a very long time.
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Place it right into our pan, okay?
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You hear that little sizzle?
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That's a good thing to hear, because that
means that the pan was heated well enough,
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and we're gonna have a nice
brown crust underneath.
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You can just keep an eye on it,
because you don't want it to over cook.
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Just enough to have a nice brown
crust on the underneath side so
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you can flip it over just in time.
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All right, so we're gonna take
a little peek, okay, good,
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this is the color that we're looking for.
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And we're gonna flip this guy over, okay?
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Look at that, that is beautiful,
it's a perfect little golden crust.
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Let's take a little look here,
okay, looks good to me.
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We're gonna go ahead and
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move this over to our plate, and
look how beautiful that looks.
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Now, the idea with carbohydrates is
you wanna eat them in moderation,
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so you go ahead and
have about two slices of these.
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[MUSIC]
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All right, looks great.
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[MUSIC]
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Okay, so here we are,
we have our new healthy french toast here,
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that you and
your family are going to love.
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[MUSIC]
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Thank you so much for
joining us on Diabetes Bites,
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this is Fiorella DiCarlo and
I'll see you next time.
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