Strawberry Lemon Stuffed French Toast

Sharing some brunch ideas that would be perfect for Valentine’s! This is an old recipe I didn’t have a chance to post yet.

Maple syrup is of course huge in New England – my friend got married in the cutest lodge on Vermont, and she had New England themed snacks, including apple cider doughnuts and maple popcorn. 

Her wedding favors was legit maple syrup (although she admits she grew up on maple syrup that’s really fructose corn syrup and this secretly prefers the “fake stuff”). I definitely prefer the real maple syrup. Just a light touch enhances any breakfast item.

I personally love food as wedding favors (we made 500 cookies for ours!). Even though I’ve used up the syrup, I saved the glass the maple leaf container and refill it with maple syrup we buy in bulk.

I love stuffed french toast because the cream is so delicious paired with the bread. It’s important to have firm french toast so it doesn’t fall apart – you can read about French Toast 101 on my Nutella Banana French Toast post.

This Strawberry Lemon Stuffed French Toast recipe was a fun adaptation from Simply Recipes.

Even if you don’t have a Valentine’s date, you can eat all this toast yourself. I did!

Ingredients
FRENCH TOAST
3 eggs
1/2 cup milk
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
4 thick slices of old bread (or toasted)
1 Tbsp butter

FILLING
4 oz (half package) cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup full fat ricotta cheese
1 lemon, zested and 3 tablespoons juice
1/8 to 1/4 cup sugar, to taste

TOPPING
maple syrup
powdered sugar (optional)
fresh strawberries

Directions
FRENCH TOAST: If your bread is fresh, toast for about 5 min. In a bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, and cinnamon until combined and pour into a shallow bowl/plate with rims for dipping. Place each slice of bread into the milk egg mixture, allowing the bread to soak in the liquid.  Melt some butter in a large pan over medium high heat. Lay the bread slices onto the pan. Cook the French toast until browned on one side, then flip and brown the other side.

FILLING: Combine the cream cheese, ricotta chese, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sugar. Beat until smooth and combined. Add sugar for desired sweetness.

ASSEMBLY: Lay the french toast on the plate, then layer with ricotta and cream cheese filling and strawberries. Top with another bread slice. Serve hot with maple syrup, powdered sugar, and strawberries. Enjoy!