Crunchy French Toast Sticks

A childhood classic, but elevated to deliciousness, Crunchy French Toast Sticks are an easy breakfast treat that will please ANY crowd!

I love breakfast foods. Pancakes, waffles, egg bakes, ugh… I struggle to pick a favorite. Especially when we’re out for breakfast! There are just too many delicious options!

One breakfast food that is always at the top of my list though, is french toast, especially Crunchy French Toast Sticks!

Sweetened up with a crushed honey oat cereal crust, these french toast sticks are a way to mix up breakfast in a way that everyone in your family will love. French toast is super easy to make (if you’re not sure how you can check out this post on how to make french toast), and it hits multiple food groups – a true mom win in the kitchen!

CRUNCHY FRENCH TOAST STICKS
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When I was little, I LOVED it when my mom made “breakfast for dinner.” There was something so taboo about having pancakes at night. Or whipping up some bacon and cheese omelets instead of our typical meat and potatoes type dinner.

As a mom now, I totally see the appeal for both kids and parents – the kids love the food, the parents love how easy it is to make! No need to spend hours stirring sauces on the stove or marinating chicken in the fridge. Instead, pop on your electric skillet and whip up some Crunchy French Toast sticks!

Of course, these are the perfect breakfast food, but I challenge you to think outside of the box and try them out for dinner sometime… your kids will thank you 🙂

One of the best things about this french toast sticks recipe is that it is super easy to make WITH the kids. When my boys were younger, all they wanted to do was help out in the kitchen, especially when it came to baking.

But man, would I stress if I was making a recipe that needed exact measurements or called for a messy ingredient. (Soooo many eggshells cracked into cookies.) I loved their enthusiasm and excitement, but I did not love the cleanup and less than perfect outcomes of my recipes.

None of that is an issue with these homemade french toast sticks though! The boys loved pounding the cereal into crumbs. They became experts at dipping into an egg wash (it took lots of training on how to effectively crack eggs, but we got there). It’s the perfect morning activity to keep the kids entertained AND it ends up being a delicious meal!

Now that the boys are older, they’re not up quite so early anymore looking for things to do (more like emerging from their rooms like zombies sometime around noon…). But, that’s not a problem, crunchy french toast sticks work as a yummy meal ANY time of day 🙂

French Toast Stick Ingredients

• Honey oat clusters cereal
• Thick cut bread
• Eggs
• Heavy whipping cream – whole milk or half-n-half will work too
• Vanilla
• Butter

You can use pre-cut thick sliced bread like Texas Toast OR grab a loaf of french bread and let it hang out overnight before slicing and then cutting into sticks.

One thing I love about this french toast sticks recipe is that I typically have ALL of the ingredients on hand (I swear my boys go through cereal like it’s their job… we always buy in bulk). That means that whenever the urge strikes for some crunchy french toast, we’ve got what we need without making a trip to the store!

How to Make French Toast Sticks

French toast sticks are the perfect breakfast treat because they are SO quick and easy. No waiting for things to bake in the oven, no overnight setting, and barely any prep at all! You can get this french toast sticks recipe from prep to table in under 15 minutes. So, start cooking!

1. Start by making your cereal crumbs. Add the cereal to a food processor or a gallon zip-top bag. Then you’ll pulse or smash the cereal until it’s in teeny tiny pieces. (If your kids are helping, I suggest the gallon bag smashing method. WAY more fun!) Then pour the crumbs into a shallow bowl.
2. After that, add eggs, cream, vanilla, and melted butter to a shallow bowl. Whisk that all together to make your custard.
3. Next, you’ll cut each slice of bread into 4 even strips. Remember those french toast sticks you used to eat in your elementary school cafeteria? Cut your bread like those!
4. Dredge time! Dunk each strip of bread into the egg wash, then transfer to cereal crumbs. Roll the bread in cereal and make sure to coat all 4 sides!
5. Once you have coated all bread slices, place some of the sticks on an electric skillet for 2 minutes per side cooking until golden brown. If you are using a skillet on the stove, cook over low-medium heat for 2 minutes per side. Remove the cooked sticks and repeat with the remaining ingredients until they’re all cooked.
6. Serve warm with syrup to dip french toast sticks in. You can sprinkle a little powdered sugar on top too if you like. My kids love this!

What to dip French Toast Sticks in?

We are BIG syrup snobs in our house. I grew up dousing my pancakes, waffles, and french toast in pure maple syrup (sorry mom, didn’t realize how expensive that stuff was when I poured half a bottle out every morning…). That’s why maple syrup is always my go-to dipping sauce for my crunchy french toast sticks.

That doesn’t have to be the only option though! We also love using yogurt as a yummy (and slightly less sweet) dipping sauce. This is a particularly delicious option because the crunch of the cereal on the french toast sticks is almost like the granola that I love to add to my yogurt!

If you want to be extra decadent, try dipping your french toast sticks in some chocolate hazelnut spread…YUM.

What other dipping options can you think of?? Leave us a comment and let us know… we’d love to try them out!

Can you freeze French Toast Sticks?

I would be lying to you if I didn’t tell you that there is usually a batch of crunchy french toast sticks sitting in my freezer. They’re perfect for making ahead of time and unfreezing a few at a time as a treat, as a last-minute breakfast, or when you just don’t feel like cooking from scratch!

Here’s how I freeze them to ensure they come out JUST as good as when made fresh:

First, make a batch of french toast sticks following the recipe above. Once they’re cooked, allow them to cool on a wire rack. Make sure they are completely cooled, then place the sticks (with some space between them) on a sheet of wax paper. Put a few layers of french toast sticks and wax paper into a gallon freezer bag and pop them in the freezer!

When you’re ready for some quick and easy french toast sticks, grab however many you want out of your freezer bag and just pop them in the oven (or toaster oven) at 375 degrees for 5-10 minutes!

Want some more delicious breakfast recipes? Check out some of these other Real Housemoms favorites!

• Blackberries & Cream Stuffed French Toast
• Breakfast Ham Casserole
• Overnight Caramel French Toast
• Overnight Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole
• Pumpkin Spice Donuts
• more BREAKFAST recipes…

Tools used to make this Crunchy French Toast Sticks recipe

Food processor: while not a necessity for this recipe, my food processor is one of my most-utilized kitchen appliances!

Electric Griddle: I love my griddle for all things breakfast-making big batches of pancakes, frying up some bacon, and of course, crunchy french toast sticks!