How to make the BEST Vegan French Toast! So easy to make in just 10 minutes, using everyday ingredients. You won’t miss the eggs at all in this delicious weekend morning breakfast. A secret ingredient makes these french toast incredibly crisp, thick and perfect!
French toast was one of the first meals I started making for myself as a kid. There wasn’t a lot of cooking or baking going on in my home growing up, in fact I lived on mostly convenience foods like canned spaghettios, ravioli and pop tarts. But we did make french toast a lot, especially on the weekends! It was easy, fast and simply delicious.
I had never made a vegan version of french toast before testing this recipe. Honestly, I was quite doubtful it would work, or be delicious enough to even post here. I have seen recipes for vegan french toast before, but I really couldn’t see how they could possibly taste as good as the nostalgic breakfast of my childhood.
Well, I was SO wrong! My family and I were SHOCKED at how good this vegan french toast tasted, and we ate the first batch up in about 5 minutes flat. Creamy on the inside (but NOT soggy at all), crispy on the outside, with hints of cinnamon and vanilla. The perfect french toast, period, and SO darn easy to make!!
How can I make Vegan French Toast without eggs?
The secret ingredient in my french toast recipe is so common I’m sure you have it in your pantry right now: Cornstarch. It’s perfect for getting that crisp exterior, and works like a charm as the bread cooks in the pan.
Without eggs, your batter for vegan french toast includes these ingredients: Soy milk (or any other non-dairy milk), cornstarch, ground flaxseeds (just a teaspoon, to help thicken the batter), 1/2 teaspoon baking powder (trust me), maple syrup, cinnamon and vanilla.
How do you make vegan french toast?
It’s as easy or easier than the original! Whisk all the batter ingredients in a shallow bowl, large enough to hold a piece of bread.
Heat a little vegan butter or oil in a frying pan. Right before dipping the bread in the batter, whisk the mixture again (cornstarch will settle to the bottom.) Dip a piece of bread in the batter, on both sides, and soak for about 10 seconds.
Add the bread to the pan, and cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden brown and crispy. Repeat with all remaining bread and batter, then serve immediately with maple syrup, powdered sugar and fresh fruit, if desired.
What kind of bread is best for french toast?
I used a quality loaf of ciabatta that was 1 day old. It was perfect. I wouldn’t recommend using soft sandwich bread, or your french toast runs the risk of being soggy. Thicker sliced bread works best, that is quite dry, such as french bread, sourdough or even a day old baguette. Smaller bread is fine, you will just have more french toast!
I hope you enjoy this Vegan French Toast!!
Want more vegan breakfast recipes? Check any of these out:
- Simple Vegan Pancakes
- Best Ever Vegan Waffles
- Tofu Scramble
- Easy Vegan Quiche
- Cinnamon Sugar Vegan Donuts
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Vegan French Toast
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsweetened soy milk (or other non-dairy milk)
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon ground flaxseeds
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 6-8 slices thick sliced quality bread, such as ciabatta or french
- 2-3 tablespoons vegan butter or coconut oil for frying
- For serving: maple syrup, powdered sugar, or fresh fruit
Instructions
- In a shallow bowl, wide enough to hold a piece of bread, whisk together the soy milk, cornstarch, ground flaxseeds, baking powder, cinnamon, maple syrup and vanilla.
- Add a little bit of vegan butter/coconut oil to a pan over medium-high heat and melt. Whisk the batter again right before dipping bread, as the cornstarch will settle to the bottom of the bowl.
- Dip each side of the bread in the batter and let soak for about 10 seconds, then add the bread to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Add more vegan butter/oil to the pan as needed in between pieces of bread.
- Serve with maple syrup, powdered sugar and fresh fruit, if desired.
Video
Notes
- May use any kind of non-dairy milk, such as soy, coconut, almond, cashew or oat milk.
- For gluten free vegan french toast, use gluten free bread.
- This recipe does not freeze well, and is best served fresh.
Made this twice now with perfect results! My dairy and egg allergy kiddos can finally enjoy French toast, and they love it. I think this is even better than “real” French toast with eggs – this doesn’t get soggy at all and the cornstarch crisps it to perfection!
I love that your kids can enjoy French toast! Thanks for your fun and wonderful review and feedback!
This was the real deal and absolutely delicious! The cornstarch gives the finished product a delicate crispiness which was terrific. Super easy and a crowd pleaser, even for the non vegans in the house. This is a keeper!
What a wonderful review! I’m thrilled you loved the French toast! Thank you for this feedback!
Simple, and just wonderful. I’ve enjoyed using different breads for different results. Today I used the artisan rolls from Costco, and it was the best result to date. Thank you!
Hi Jeremy. Sounds so delicious! I’m so glad you are loving the French toast! Thank you for your awesome review and feedback!
Great recipe! Thanks
Toasting the bread prior to dipping it made the bread hold up well. Awesome recipe! The whole family loved it this morning for breakfast!
So fabulous! Thanks for your great idea and feedback!
This was great! my conclusion, we really do not need eggs to make anything. Really enjoyed this. I used homemade whole wheat bread for this, turned out great.Thanks again Nora, your a great cook, everything I make of yours I have enjoyed. keep em coming ! You go Girl !
Thank you, Kaye! I’m thrilled you loved the French toast, and are enjoying my recipes! I appreciate your fantastic review and comments! Happy cooking!
Ohhh🤤 the best french toast I’ve ever had, including the original eggy version. Thank you, I’ve missed french toast so much since going vegan 🙏🙏 not any more 😋
You are welcome! I missed French toast as well, and needed to remedy that! Thrilled you love it! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback and review!
This recipe got me multiple compliments and 3 handshakes from my 6 year old! (We’ve been watching lots of Great British Bake-Off.)
We’ll be doing it again!
I really love this! So fun! Thanks for sharing your fabulous feedback and fun comments! Happy cooking!
Delicious and easy to make! It was a hit with the kids! A different recipe I used previously used mashed banana and while delicious, it stuck to the pan which made it hard to clean while camping. Can’t wait to test this one while camping!
Thank you so much for sharing this yummy recipe. Because of food allergies we can’t use dairy or eggs and this was just perfect.
I’m so glad you were able to enjoy the French toast! Thanks for sharing your wonderful feedback and review!
Wow! I remember trying to make French French toast a few years ago when I first went vegan and it always came out falling apart and gummy. This French toast is perfectly crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. Must be the cornstarch ! I really enjoyed it, thank you 🙂
Hi Viola! I’m thrilled you loved the recipe! Thanks for sharing your fantastic feedback!
I used thick cut white bread from the local bakery. Pro tip – I put the bread slices in the toaster for one minute before soaking them, so each slice would hold the moisture better. Very delicious!
Hi Kayci. Thanks for sharing your tip, and your wonderful feedback and review!
This looks great! Can the batter be made the night before?
I haven’t tried that, but I think it would be ok! Just give it a good stir the next day.
I didn’t had any vegan milk.. so I made it with tined out vegan yoghurt 💗
I love it. But it says American cuisine. Isn’t this french?
Thanks for your wonderful review, Rose! French toast has, surprisingly, been around since before the Roman empire but was given the name, “french toast”, by an American. Who knew?!
10/10, no notes. Needed a quick recipe to throw something together after mother’s day brunch plans collapsed, and I already had everything in the recipe except for a good loaf of bread. I loved it, and my (nonvegan) parents loved it! Thank you!
Glad that worked out great for you! Thanks for sharing your wonderful feedback and review!
I just started milling my own wheat berries and I can digest wheat again! This recipe with my homemade bread was better than any traditional French toast I’ve had. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!! And you waffles are amazing too!
I’m thrilled you are loving my recipes, Katy! Thanks for your awesome feedback and review!
Wish I liked it. Maybe used bread that was too fresh. Came out mushy and gummy. 😞
That’s why I recommend using day-old, thick-sliced bread. It’s the best way to go!
This is fantastic! Everything you want in French toast – especially no weird fried-egg flavors!
How awesome you loved the French toast! Thank you for your wonderful feedback and review!
Since eggs are so expensive now, I decided to try this recipe. It is so good, and now this is our preferred way of having French toast. Thank you for this recipe!
You are welcome, Normajean! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback and review!
Hi! Is there a way to eliminate the flax seeds?
Thanks!
You can honestly leave them out, it still works. Enjoy!
Absolutely delicious!! The BEST vegan french toast recipe ever! Thank you, Nora!!
Perfect recipe , subbed arrowroot starch , simple yet super yummy! Everyone loved it thank you
You are welcome! Thanks for your wonderful feedback and review!
Hubby and I are thriving on a whole food, plant-based diet with “cheat days” on weekends where we enjoy a little bit of processed vegan junk food like Beyond breakfast sausage, a burger, or marinated Daring pieces, and usually some Tostitos. 🙂
I’ve found that Nora’s fabulous French toast recipe needs no butter or oil at all, not even in the pan. A high quality non-stick pan, pre-heated, cooks and browns this toast perfectly without any added oils at all, and that’s how I make it every time. When it stopped working last weekend, I realized my pan had started to fail, and got a new one. A cheap non-stick pan will work for a few weeks, (as my last week’s pan did) but you need to get a really good one to ensure it will last.
Thanks for your terrific feedback and review, Maggie! I’m thrilled you and hubby are loving the french toast!
I’m constantly looking up various vegan recipes, and almost always end up on yours.
I have celiac disease so I really appreciate that you usually have a note about a gluten free option!
I used O’Doughs gluten free vegan bread for this recipe and it turned out great, despite having to omit the vanilla since I ran out.
Hi Stevie. It’s so great you are able to enjoy so many of my recipes! Thank you for sharing your great feedback and review! I appreciate you using my recipes!
This tastes amazing I omitted the maple syrup from the mixture.
Hey there. Can arrowroot powder be subbed for cornstarch? Thank you. I love your recipes!
Yes, arrowroot powder works well!
Made it for breakfast yesterday and my kiddos loved it. 8yro said it was better than regular french toast! 🙂 I used day old brown sourdough and it worked well!
Hi Vicky. How fabulous the French toast was a hit! Thanks for your fabulous feedback and review!
Made this for brunch today and my daughter and I enjoyed it so much. Perfectly sweet and got the approval of my picky 10 year old. I am going to print this one out to add to my favorites binder. Thank you 💚
Hi Kelly. I’m thrilled the French toast was a hit! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback. Happy cooking!