Updated May 22, 2024
(November 27, 2018) Eggy bread, omelet bread or gypsy toast is more commonly known as French Toast. Each year on November 28, people across the United States observe National French Toast Day.
- 4th Century – The earliest reference to French toast dates all the way back to 4th century Rome.The name for French toast in France is “pain perdu”, which means “lost bread.”
- 1400s – Various recipes for what we call French toast spread the world over.
- 17th Century – The name “french toast” was first used in 17th-century England. The recipe — and name — were brought to America by early settlers.
- 1871 – The phrase “French toast” first appeared in print in the Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink in 1871.
- 2019 – A Seattle restaurant adds breakfast cereal to its French Toast recipe — which also includes milk, eggs, cinnamon, salt, butter, thick bread and whipped cream. (They use both Fruity Pebbles and Frosted Flakes.)
- The origins of french toast are not entirely clear, but long before this sweet snack was called “french toast,” similar recipes were being whipped up all around the world. One of the earliest versions of french toast has been traced back to the Roman Empire.
- ‘French toast’ is known by a variety of names including ‘German toast’, ‘eggy bread’, ‘French-fried bread’, ‘gypsy toast’, ‘Poor Knights of Windsor’, ‘Spanish toast’, ‘nun’s toast’, and ‘pain perdu’ which means ‘lost bread’ in French.
- French toast was created by medieval European cooks who needed to use every bit of food they could find to feed their families. They knew day-old bread could be revived when moistened and heated. They also added eggs for additional moisture and protein.
- Medieval recipes for French toast suggest this meal was enjoyed by the wealthy. These recipes used white bread (the very finest, most expensive bread available at the time) with the crusts cut off—something a person of meager means would be unlikely to do.
- Recipes for French toast can also be traced to Ancient Roman times. One of the original French names for this dish is le pain á la Romaine, or Roman bread.
- In Scotland, French toast is traditionally served with sausage between two slices of French toast, eaten as a sandwich. It is also sometimes eaten with ketchup in Great Britain.
- Irish toast is a take on French toast that is a little bit different than most — the Irish don’t eat the bread. Instead, bread is dunked into a dish full of whiskey, then thrown in the trash. The whiskey is then drunk from the dish.
- In Morocco, French toast is made by slicing flatbread into long pieces, dusting it with powdered sugar, and dipping it into syrup for a sweet finger food.
- Italians enjoy their French toast in sandwich form, where one slice of bread is spread with ricotta cheese, drizzled with honey, and sprinkled with sliced almonds and a bit of cinnamon, then topped off with a second slice.
- Hong Kong-Style – The Chinese love their French toast soaked in butter. To make it Hong Kong-style, they coat the slices of bread in two already-beaten egg yolks, then fry the soaked bread with many cubes of butter. After the bread is fried to golden-brown, it’s topped with another large cube of butter and drizzled with condensed milk or golden syrup. Sometimes peanut butter or jam is spread on the slices of bread.
- Golden Bread — Canada. The name “golden bread” is inspired by the golden-brown color of the bread after it’s soaked in sweetened, cinnamon custard, fried in butter, and drizzled with amber maple syrup.
- Wentelteefjes — Holland. The dutch version of French toast is sprinkled simply with powdered sugar and cinnamon.
- Torrijas — Spain. Torrijas is believed to have originated in Andalusian convents during the fifteenth century, and today is eaten during Lent. The Spanish traditionally make it with a French baguette. Some versions are made by soaking the bread in red wine or by drizzling flavored honey over the bread.
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