Vanilla Pudding Mix Is The Special Ingredient You Need For Top-Notch French Toast

The secret to sweet, flavorful, top-notch French toast is probably sitting in the back of your pantry. Just grab a handy box of vanilla pudding mix to bring an aromatic, even-sweeter twist to this sweet breakfast favorite. And no, you don't have to make actual pudding to use just as a topping. All you have to do is add the vanilla pudding mix straight to the dipping batter for your classic French toast.

Mix together your milk and eggs before adding in a package of dry vanilla pudding mix. Cover your bread slices evenly with the pudding mixture, and your French toast is ready to cook on the griddle or in a skillet. Opt for cook-and-serve or instant pudding mix, keeping in mind that instant pudding mix may result in a softer texture due to the additives that help make it such a time saver. Additionally, the cook-and-serve mix will give your French toast a deeper and richer flavor. Whoever said vanilla was plain might think twice after tasting vanilla French toast.

Dry pudding mix is so versatile as it has all the flavors concentrated into one dried powder, ready to go. But the benefits of pudding mix go beyond just seasoning. Dry pudding mix offers extra fat, making your French toast batter more flavorful and your slices of bread more moist as well. Dry pudding mix is even commonly used in cake mixes as well to achieve a similar result — a more moist, flavorful cake. Instant pudding mix in your homemade cookies makes a splash too!

But as for the French toast, using vanilla pudding mix in particular helps complement the ingredients already used to make French toast: milk, eggs, and butter. The light, airy vanilla flavor also pairs perfectly with classic French toast toppings like whipped cream and berries. You could branch out and experiment with other pudding mix flavors like butterscotch or chocolate fudge, but vanilla is more tried-and-true and likely to pair best. It's similar to how famous French chef Jacques Pépin uses melted vanilla ice cream for next-level French toast.

You don't have to stop at the vanilla pudding mix when it comes to creating a more interesting French toast batter. Feel free to throw in some other spices like cinnamon or nutmeg for an even more complex, customized French toast. Sure, you could simply sprinkle some cinnamon on top, but why just have a coating of cinnamon when you can layer it into every bite?

And now that you've elevated your milk-and-egg mixture, it's time to step up your bread game as well. While traditional French toast recipes call for using plain, fresh bread, using actual toast can help give your plain toast a more full, even caramelized flavor. Not to mention, it's beneficial to use staler, dry bread to soak up the moisture of your now delicious vanilla pudding French toast mix. But no matter what you choose, have vanilla pudding mix by your side and you'll never strike out on delicious French toast.