Poppyseed Stuffed French Toast

Fluffy challah french toast, stuffed with a mascarpone poppyseed filling, this poppyseed stuffed french toast is not too sweet and the perfect weekend brunch.

Should bread be soaked for french toast?

Yes, the bread for french toast should be soaked, but just briefly. I like to soak the already stuffed bread in the egg and milk mixture just before cooking it. The egg should fully soak in but you don’t want the bread to start falling apart.

What is the best bread to use for french toast?

I love using any sort of fluffy brioche bread for french toast but I think that challah bread is the best. For this recipe I used a poppyseed challah which already had poppyseeds on top in addition to the filling that I made but a regular challah or hefezopf will work too!

Are you supposed to grind poppyseeds?

Generally speaking, yes you should grind poppyseeds. It helps to release their flavor as well as give them a softer and smoother texture. I use an old coffee grinder to grind poppyseeds but a spice grinder or mortar and pestle work too!

Tips for making poppyseed stuffed french toast

• While fresh bread will always be delicious, the magic of french toast is that you can use day old or even two day old bread.
• For the filling, make sure the mascarpone is soft and spreadable, if not microwave it just briefly – between 5 and 10 seconds until it is spreadable.
• Don’t skimp on the filling, you want quite a bit of the mascarpone poppyseed filling in between the slices of bread because it will somewhat melt into the bread as it cooks.
• Keep the pan heat relatively low. Because the slices are actually sandwiches and therefore quite thick, they take a little longer to cook than normal. If the heat is too high, the bread will burn before the inside is cooked through.
• Don’t worry if a little filling leaks out while the slices are cooking, it will fry in the extra butter and be delicious afterwards!
• Stuffed french toast will always taste best day of but it actually reheats well if stored in an airtight container in the fridge!
• Ideally top it with Vanille Soße and a dusting of powdered sugar and poppyseeds from my Germknödel recipe.

Additional Cake Recipes to try!

• Germknödel
• Mohnkuchen (German Poppyseed Cake)
• Blackberry Poppyseed Twist

Poppyseed Stuffed French Toast Ingredients

• Poppyseed Challah Bread: I love to use poppyseed challah for this recipe but a regular challah bread or other brioche will work too!
• Mascarpone: Mascarpone makes the perfect base for the poppyseeds and filling for the french toast. It is easiest if it is at room temperature but you can always microwave it briefly to make it spreadable.
• Poppyseeds: Standard poppyseeds should be used for this recipe and then ground until the texture of wet sand.
• Granulated White Sugar: I use just a couple of tablespoons of sugar for the filling but you could use just about any sweetener that you want such as honey or coconut sugar.
• Vanilla Extract: Vanilla adds flavor and enhances the flavor of the filling.
• Eggs: I use one standard large egg per two stuffed french toasts.
• Milk: Any milk will work to whisk with the egg but I usually use 2% cows milk.
• Butter: I prefer salted butter for cooking the french toast but again any butter will work

Toppings

• Powdered sugar & Poppyseeds: I always keep a jar with a mixture of powdered sugar and ground poppyseeds for dusting. While just powdered sugar will work too, the combo is a fun add on to this recipe.
• Vanille Soße: German vanilla custard sauce is my personal favorite for drizzling on top but you can also use melted vanilla ice cream for a faster option!

How to make a Poppyseed French Toast?

Poppyseed Mascarpone Filling

• In a microwave safe bowl, add in the mascarpone.
• Microwave in two 5 second intervals until soft, similar to the texture of sour cream.
• Grind the poppyseeds until the texture of wet sand, they should clump together.
• Add the 20 grams of sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and the ground poppyseeds, into the bowl with the mascarpone and stir to combine.

Assemble

• Slice 4 1″ thick slices of the challah french toast – keep in 2 sets with “matching slices”.
• Spread 1/4 of the mascarpone filling onto one side of each of the slices. They should be the sides that face each other in the matching pairs.
• Sandwich the matching slices together so that you now have two stuffed sandwiches.
• In a large shallow dish or bowl, whisk together 1 egg with two tablespoons of milk.
• Place the sandwiches into the egg and milk mixture.
• While they soak up the egg, heat up a cast iron pan or other large skillet with 2 teaspoons of butter, over low heat.
• Flip the stuffed sandwiches over so that the other side can absorb the remaining egg.

Cook

• Once the egg mixture has been fully soaked up and the butter is fully melted, use a spatula to transfer the soaked sandwiches onto the hot pan.
• Allow the stuffed sandwiches to cook until the bread is golden brown.
• Carefully flip them to cook the other side until golden brown as well.
• Once finished cooking, serve the french toast on warm plates and top with vanille soße or melted vanilla ice cream and a dusting of powdered sugar or a powdered sugar and a ground poppyseed combo.