Banana Bread French Toast

Ingredients

Cinnamon-Cream Cheese Butter:

• 1/2 cup (4 oz.) unsalted butter, softened
• 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt

French Toast:

• 1 cup half-and-half
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp. kosher salt
• 12 (3/4-in.-thick) slices storebought or leftover homemade banana bread
• 6 Tbsp. (3 oz.) unsalted butter, divided
• 1 cup chopped toasted pecans
• Maple syrup, for serving

Directions

1. Gather all ingredients.
2. Prepare Cinnamon-Cream Cheese Butter: beat butter and cream cheese in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 1 minute. Add brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt; beat until smooth, about 10 seconds. Set aside.
3. Prepare French Toast: whisk together half-and-half, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt in a medium shallow bowl until the mixture is fluffy and light in color.
4. Working 1 banana bread slice at a time, dip into egg mixture, soaking about 5 seconds on each side. (Only prepare 1 batch at a time so that the bread doesn’t get too soggy.)
5. Melt 1 1/2 tablespoons of the butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium. Once butter is melted and bubbling, add 3 soaked bread slices to pan and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. (There may be some spots that do not brown; that's normal.) Repeat with remaining butter and banana bread slices.
6. Serve warm with Cinnamon-Cream Cheese Butter, pecans, and maple syrup.

Credit:
By Julia Levy
Southern Living.
Southern Living's editorial guidelines
Published on August 31, 2025