This Cherry Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast will give you the feeling of eating dessert for breakfast - it's perfect for a holiday brunch!
Here's a hot take for you: there is no meal I hate eating at a restaurant more than brunch. I just don't understand the desire to wait in line to eat overpriced food that can just as easily (and for a fraction of the price) be prepared at home.
And for Mother's Day, the busiest restaurant day of the year? No way! I would definitely way rather stay at home, and make Cherry Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast for my mom, or have Mr. Dreamboat at my kids make it for me.
Like my Almost Instant Cherry Cheesecake Bites, this idea came to me when I was trying to figure out tasty ways to use up my huge Costco jar of cherry preserves (that did not include just eating it straight from the jar with a spoon).
If you've never made stuffed French toast, it's easier than it sounds. I does not involve any actual "stuffing" it just involves making a sandwich, then dipping the whole thing in French toast batter (eggs, milk and some flavorings) and frying it up.
If you're not into the Cherry Cheesecake idea, other common fillings for stuffed French toast include peanut butter and jelly or banana slices, and Nutella.
How to Make Cherry Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast:
Start off with mixing up the "cheesecake" part of the filling. This is simply a combination of reduced-fat cream cheese (or neufchatel) and vanilla Greek yogurt.
Next is the egg batter: a mixture of eggs, milk, maple syrup (or sugar), vanilla, and cinnamon. Transfer this to a shallow, wide container (like a pie plate or 8" round cake pan) to make for easier dipping.
The next step is to assemble the "sandwiches" by spreading two slices of bread with a light cream cheese and Greek yogurt mixture, then top one slice with cherry preserves (available in the jam aisle). Repeat this 3 more times to make a total of 4 "sandwiches"
Then dunk each side of the sandwich in the egg mixture until it starts absorbing into the bread and gets pretty soggy (it'll only take a few seconds) then fry it up in a little butter until golden on both sides.
All that's left is cooking - simply fry the stuffed French toast in a little butter in a non-stick skillet, flipping when the first side is golden brown.
Serve with a little powdered sugar - you don't even need syrup!
Cherry Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast Ingredients:
- Reduced-fat cream cheese or Neufchatel
- Vanilla or honey-flavored Greek yogurt
- Eggs
- Milk: or use your favorite non-dairy milk or water
- Maple syrup: or replace with sugar or agave syrup
- Vanilla
- Cinnamon
- Butter or use spreadable butter or your favorite non-dairy butter alternative
- Thick-cut bread or brioche: or use Gluten Free bread to make this recipe Gluten Free
- Cherry preserves: find this in the jam aisle. If you can't find it, use canned cherry pie filling instead
- Powdered sugar: Optional; for serving only
Want more Dessert-Like Breakfasts?
Cherry Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast Nutrition Notes:
The nutrition information in the recipe below includes 2 slices of bread, so one Cherry Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast "sandwich" if you will.
To make your Cherry Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast gluten-free, simply use gluten-free bread to make it.
Cherry Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast
Ingredients
- ½ cup light cream cheese or Neufchatel softened
- ¼ cup vanilla or honey flavored Greek yogurt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1-2 Tablespoons butter
- 8 slices thick-cut bread or brioche (use Gluten Free bread to make this recipe Gluten Free)
- ¼ cup cherry preserves
- powdered sugar optional
Instructions
- Stir cream cheese and yogurt together with a silicone spatula in a medium bowl until smooth. Set aside.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, maple syrup, vanilla and cinnamon until mixed. Pour into a pie plate or other shallow dish.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in the skillet.
- Spread about 1 tablespoon cream cheese mixture onto each slice of bread. Spread 1 tablespoon of the cherry preserves on 4 of the slices. Close each of the slices with the cherry preserves with a slice of bread without cherries together to form a sandwich.
- Dip each sandwich in the egg mixture. Immediately place in the skillet. Repeat with remaining sandwiches. Cook until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side.
- Serve immediately, with powdered sugar if desired.
Nutrition
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