Nessa's Family Kitchen French Toast

Keeping hens has now become fairly popular. There are so many advantages to having them with very little work. On any given day our 5 beautiful hens lay either 4 or 5 eggs between them. These eggs are far superior to the shop bought variety, not only are they free range but also they are also organic. The term 'free range' is actually quite elastic.Food produces are permitted to use this term even if their hens aren't out in the open once their barn is bigger with greater space for the hens. This is, of course, better for the poor hens than those horrid cages, however I always find it interesting how the picture on the egg carton doesn't actually depict how the hens are being reared. We feed the hens scraps, such as potatoes, rice etc. Also we include oats and organic layers mash. I always buy organic feed that is GM free. Grass is also essential for healthy birds. Organic eggs are more expensive to produce but their taste really makes them worth it. 

The French call this pain perdu (lost bread). It is made with slightly stale leftover bread (if your bread is not stale, leave it out overnight to dry out). You can add ground spices to the egg mixture such as cinnamon, nutmeg or mixed spice, or stir in mashed fruit like bananas, raspberries or strawberries before frying. French Bread is a great way to introduce eggs into a child's diet. My boys particularly like theirs with a splash of vanilla extract.

French Toast

Ingredients

2 eggs
2 tbsp Cream or milk
1/2 teasp vanilla extract
15g (½oz) butter
4 slices of bread, white or brown
Icing sugar, for dusting

Method
1. Whisk together the eggs, the cream or milk, vanilla extract and the salt in a bowl.
2. Place a frying pan over a medium heat and melt the butter. Soak a piece of bread on both sides in the egg mixture, then place in the pan. Cook for 2 minutes on both sides until the bread is deep golden.
3. Place on a warmed plate and dredge generously with icing sugar to serve. Cook the remaining pieces of bread in the same way.