Hot Chocolate French Toast, a breakfast mashup that is decadent and perfect for your sweet tooth, but made with better-for-you ingredients. Vegan, gluten-free, and easy to make!

Why You’ll Love This Chocolate French Toast

Vegan Hot Chocolate French Toast is the perfect way to enjoy hot chocolate for breakfast. Yup! That’s right– this mash-up between hot chocolate and French toast makes the ultimate sweet breakfast combo. The recipe is vegan, nut-free, and can be made oil-free, too. 

In case you haven’t checked out my original Oat Milk French Toast, this is a twist on that recipe, so if you’re looking for something a little more classic French toast recipe, you can try that first.

It’s decadent but made with better-for-you ingredients like cacao powder, ground flax seeds, and vegan chocolate chips/cacao nibs. Oh, and, if you’re feeling extra, add vegan marshmallows to top! I mean, this is a Hot Chocolate French Toast after all! 

The Details

• Make this recipe to use up any about-to-go-bad bread you have in your pantry. Don’t let it go to waste–repurpose it and turn it into this dessert for breakfast situation!
• It makes for a great brunch or special sweet treat breakfast, and it’s kid-friendly too.
• All the ingredients used are whole food plant-based ingredients aside from the marshmallows, that is.
• Last but not least, you can make this gluten-free with your favorite gluten-free bread!

Ingredient Notes

• oat milk: Or non-dairy milk of choice.
• ground flax seeds
• cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
• ground cinnamon
• vanilla extract
• maple syrup
• arrowroot powder: Cornstarch can work as a sub.
• gluten-free bread slices: Or regular bread if you’re not gluten-free. 
• toppings: mini vegan chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, or cacao nibs, mini vegan marshmallows, date syrup drizzle, a drizzle of maple syrup, vegan whipped cream, fresh berries, Nutella chocolate spread, and more! 

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together all your ingredients (except the pieces of bread of course!)
2. Next, allow this milk mixture to thicken for 8-10 minutes, and then give it another quick whisk. This will allow the flax seed to expand and the milk/ flax egg mixture to thicken slightly.
3. Heat a nonstick pan on medium heat, making sure it’s sizzling and ready to go. You can use a little bit of oil of choice or vegan butter if preferred, but if using a good nonstick pan, you can omit it.
4. Soak each slice of bread into the mixture for about 30-40 seconds on each side, then cook on the pan for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Be patient before flipping, and allow each side to really firm up.
5. Before moving on to the next slice, give the dipping mixture a quick whisk.
6. Serve with toppings as desired.

Secrets to Success

• I used vegan and gluten-free sourdough bread to make this recipe. The brand I used is Simple Kneads, but you can use your favorite gluten-free (or glutinous, if you’re not allergic) bread.
• On the topic of bread, if your bread isn’t about-to-go-bad, you can achieve better results by toasting the bread beforehand. Having a drier bread texture is helpful because it will absorb your batter much better. So if you don’t have stale bread, just pop your slices in the toaster!
• Finally, you can make this recipe oil-free by using a good non-stick pan to “fry”.

Serving & Storage Tips

Serve with your favorite toppings such as mini vegan chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, or cacao nibs, mini vegan marshmallows, date syrup drizzle, a drizzle of maple syrup, vegan whipped cream, fresh berries, Nutella chocolate spread, and more!  

To store, place the cooked and cooled French toast slices in an airtight container and store them in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. Reheat over the stove top to crisp up and serve. 

If you make this recipe, be sure to let me know what you think with a star rating and comment below! Follow me on Instagram for more delicious recipes!

 

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