Christmas French Toast

I think during the holiday season we often get so caught up with trying to make everything perfect. Instead of “the most wonderful time of the year,” it becomes unenjoyable and stressful.

I know I’m definitely guilty of this. I become so stressed out that I make myself sick.

It’s just very easy to get caught up in the fantasy world of Pinterest and Instagram where everyone has beautifully decorated homes and picture-perfect cookies.

So today, I’m going to be brutally honest and tell you exactly what went into this blog post.

First of all, you should know I didn’t originally intend to make Christmas tree French toast. I actually wanted to make gingerbread man French toast after seeing this adorable recipe from The Gunny Sack. But after visiting several different stores, I couldn’t find croissants big enough to fit a gingerbread man cookie cutter. Not even the croissants at Costco were big enough, which is saying a lot because everything is bigger at Costco. So I had to resort to using the Christmas tree cookie cutter.

Okay no big deal, rght? Except for I’m a perfectionist, and in my opinion, the croissants just looked like triangles after using the tree cookie cutter. Not cool.

And then there was another bump in the road—I didn’t buy enough croissants on the first trip, so I had to go back to the store to get more.

By the time I taped everything and took pictures it was 5:30 p.m. and I was still in sweats and my hair was a mess and guess what—today is my birthday. So I completely missed my favorite workout class and my birthday dinner because I was so focused on making everything perfect. And then of course, I was upset when I realized I spent my whole birthday making Christmas tree French toast that just looked like triangles.

This is a sponsored post by Challenge Butter, but the text and opinions are all mine. Thank you for supporting brands that make Kylee's Kitchen possible!

Fortunately, my sweet mother convinced me that the French toast actually does look like Christmas trees. And even if I don’t think so, they’re absolutely delicious.

Was my life ever in danger while making the French toast? No. Did my job depend on it? No. So why was I so stressed out about it? Because I was judging my recipe based off of what I saw online.

I wanted to share this story as a reminder that what you see online may not necessarily be the full truth. Also, you should never compare yourself or base your self-worth off of what you see online. I can guarantee you’re not getting the full story, and all it will do is drag you down. You are uniquely you and you are the best you you can be. Remember that.

Additionally, I just want to say how grateful I am for my parents. Without them, I would still be in the kitchen worried that my Christmas trees just look like triangles. I couldn’t ask for a better support system.

So if you made it through the essay of a story, I applaud you. And now I will reward you with an absolutely delicious French toast recipe that would be perfect Christmas morning or any other day you’re feeling indulgent and festive!

Christmas French Toast

Ingredients

• 12 croissants
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup Challenge butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• Powdered sugar for dusting

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Use Christmas tree cookie cutter to cut shapes out of croissants; save leftover croissant scraps to use for stuffing or in a French toast casserole later
3. Whisk together eggs, milk, melted butter, vanilla, brown sugar and cinnamon in large bowl
4. Dip trees into egg mixture and line them up in a loaf pan
5. Slowly pour extra egg mixture over trees
6. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes; remove foil and bake for another 20 minutes
7. Remove from oven and dust powdered sugar on top before serving 

Note: You can prepare this ahead of time so it’s all ready on Christmas morning. After covering pan with foil, do not bake and place it in the refrigerator. In the morning, bake as decorated.

Recipe adapted from The Gunny Sack