Arme Ritter (German French toast) from day-old spelt bread with cinnamon apples

Arme Ritter (German French toast) made with day-old wholegrain spelt bread, dipped in egg and milk with cinnamon and vanilla and fried in butter, with warm cinnamon apples and honey. A family-friendly breakfast in 25 minutes.

At a glance

• Serves 4
• Prep time: 10 min
• Cooking time: 15 min
• Total time: 25 min
• Calories: 371 kcal per serving
• Protein: 14 g
• Fat: 12 g
• Carbs: 47 g

Ingredients

• 8 slices of day-old spelt wholegrain bread
• 3 eggs
• 250ml milk
• 3 apples
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1/2 tsp vanilla powder
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 pinch of salt

Method

You’ll need: frying pan · saucepan · chopping board · knife · mixing bowl

1. Quarter the apples, remove the cores and cut them into wedges. Cook them gently with the lemon juice, honey and half the cinnamon in a small pan, covered, for 5 min until soft.
2. Whisk the eggs, milk, vanilla, remaining cinnamon and salt in a shallow bowl.
3. Lay the bread slices one at a time in the egg mixture for 20 sec per side, until they've soaked it up.
4. Fry the bread in the butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat for 3 min per side, until golden brown.
5. Serve the Arme Ritter with the warm cinnamon apples.

Good to know

Since the Middle Ages, Arme Ritter have been the recipe for bread that's already a little dry. It's the dry bread that soaks up the egg mixture without falling apart. The cinnamon apples make it a Sunday breakfast.

Swaps

Spelt wholegrain bread → day-old rolls or plaited yeast bread (without refined sugar). Apples → pears or frozen berries (heat them through). Honey → maple syrup. Milk → oat milk.

Cooking tips

Use bread that's at least a day old; fresh bread turns soggy. Don't let the pan get too hot, or the butter burns before the egg has set inside.

Storage

Best fresh; the cinnamon apples keep for 3 days in the fridge.

Allergens

Contains gluten (spelt), egg and milk. Because of the honey, not for babies under 1 year old. Suitable in pregnancy, as the bread is fried through.