Apple Cider Donut "French Toast"
In the kitchen I'm all about 2 things...experimenting and not letting things go waste. We never, ever, EVER have left over apple cider donuts, but this year, I'll admit we got a little carried away on our annual Fall apple picking trip to Smolak Farms. Instead of tossing them, I thought it could be cool to use them like day old bread for French toast. After coming up with this recipe...next year we'll buy extra apple cider donuts just to recreate this. So yummy.
Ingredients:
- 4 apple cider donuts, halved down the center like a bagel, then cut in half moons (I'm sure there are some awesome recipes out there, but we buy them at the orchard when we go apple picking every year.)
- 3 apples peeled, cored and cubed (we picked Macouns this year)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup melted butter
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 5 eggs
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- For topping: powdered sugar and maple syrup optional
Method:
- In a small bowl, mix the melted butter with the brown sugar. Place butter and brown sugar mixture at the bottom of a 9x9 baking dish OR I put them in 8 oz ramekins to have individual treats.
- In a bowl, toss the cubed apples with 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Place them in the baking dish over the butter and cinnamon mixture.
- Arrange the cider donuts over the apples like you would bread for french toast, overlapping if necessary.
- In a large bowl, mix the eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon and salt until well blended. Pour the egg mixture evenly over the cider donuts.
- Cover the baking dish tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 6 hours. Remove from the fridge at least 15 min before baking.
- Heat oven to 350°. Bake uncovered for 25 minutes, then cover loosely with aluminum foil and cook for additional 25-35 minutes, until cooked through.
- Remove casserole from oven and let it cool slightly before serving. Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar and a drizzle of maple syrup.
Note: We are in the middle of a kitchen renovation so I made this in my Breville toaster oven, and have not tested this in a regular oven.