Lemon Honey Ricotta–Stuffed French Toast with Strawberries
French toast stuffed with lemon-and-honey-flavored ricotta cheese and studded with juicy fresh berries makes a breakfast that is filling without being overly sweet. You can adjust this recipe to match the season by swapping out the strawberries for cherries, raspberries, or stone fruit.
Ingredients
- ½ cup ricotta cheese
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 3 tablespoons butter divided
- 2 cups hulled and sliced fresh strawberries plus more for garnish
- ¼ cup sugar
- ½ cup half-and-half
- 2 eggs
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch salt
- 8 ¾-inch-inch-thick slices of good-quality challah
- Confectioners’ sugar optional
Instructions
- Whip together ricotta, lemon zest, and honey. Set aside.
- In a medium skillet over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon butter. Add the strawberries, and cook until soft, stirring often. Add the sugar, and cook until the liquid evaporates and a chunky jam has come together. Remove from heat.
- In a shallow, wide bowl or pie plate, mix together half-and-half, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt.
- Spread four slices of the challah with ¼ of the ricotta mixture each. Spread the other four slices of challah with the strawberry jam. Close the sandwiches, and press gently but firmly together.
- In a medium skillet, melt another tablespoon of the butter over medium-low heat. Dip both sides of one of the sandwiches into the egg mixture, allowing each side to sit for about 5 seconds. Place the sandwich in the skillet, and cook until golden brown, about 4 minutes per side. Remove to a wire rack until all sandwiches have finished cooking.
- Cook additional sandwiches, adding more butter to the skillet as needed. When all sandwiches have been cooked, cut them on the diagonal, and serve dusted with confectioners’ sugar or drizzled with honey and topped with additional strawberry slices.
Amy Scheuerman
Amy Scheuerman—culture's former web director—spent eight years in North Carolina where she developed a love of barbecue and biscuits before moving up north to get a degree in nutrition. She now works at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.
