Ellie Krieger is known for preparing delicious “light” versions of favorite comfort foods, and for a post-Christmas brunch I made up a pan of her peach French toast bake. This oven-baked French toast is a pretty good substitute for the pan-fried stuff you’re used to, so you can save a few calories and some time with this easy recipe.

Peach French Toast Bake

I made this using my copy of Ms. Krieger’s The Food You Crave: Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life, but it is also available on foodnetwork.com.

This recipe involves coating bread in an egg batter just like regular french toast, but the bread is allowed to soak overnight before being baked, as opposed to getting a pan fry. I found some whole grain French bread at my grocery store, which worked well for this. The suggested baguette would have a crunchier outside initially, but would probably be reduced to a similar texture after an overnight egg batter soak. For this “lighter” version, the egg batter is made up of 4 whole eggs and 4 egg whites. That way, you still get the color and full flavor of the whole eggs while reducing some of the cholesterol with just egg whites. The eggs are mixed together with milk and vanilla and poured over the bread slices, which should now be lining a greased pan.

Sliced peaches are tossed with brown sugar and spread across the top. I used frozen peaches, which you can just keep frozen for this, but of course if fresh are in season, by all means, use them! If you use frozen peaches, you don’t need the lemon juice in the recipe. It is just meant to keep the fruit from turning brown.

After adding the peaches, sprinkle the remaining brown sugar and some cinnamon over the dish. Then cover and let sit overnight. The next morning, you can crawl out of bed, put the dish into a 350 degree oven, and crawl back into bed for the 40 minutes it takes to cook up. I think for a more flavorful egg batter, in the future I will mix cinnamon (and maybe some other spices) into the actual egg mixture instead of just on top. Top the finished product with powdered sugar or maple syrup and serve with bacon for a delicious and healthy(-ier) breakfast.

Peach French Toast Bake
2005, Ellie Krieger, All rights reserved

Ingredients
Cooking spray
1 large whole-wheat baguette (about 8 ounces)
4 whole eggs
4 egg whites
1 cup low fat milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 cups sliced peaches, fresh or frozen
1/2 lemon, juiced about 1 1/2 tablespoons
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions
Spray a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Slice the baguette into 1/2-inch slices and arrange the slices in a single layer in the baking pan. Whisk together the eggs, egg whites, milk and vanilla. Pour the egg mixture over the bread in the pan. In a medium bowl, toss peaches with the lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of the brown sugar. Scatter the peach slices evenly on top of the bread. Combine the remaining brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the top. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Uncover and bake for 40 minutes.

Serving suggestion: Top with a dollop of vanilla yogurt, a drizzle of maple syrup and a side of Canadian bacon.