This is the ultimate French toast. It’s more like dessert, with the crème anglaise and caramel, but one well worth having in the morning. To achieve the perfect balance between crisp outside and custard center, you must completely soak the bread.

　　

Ingredients

Serves 4

　　2/3 cup whole milk

　　2/3 cup heavy cream

　　1/2 cup sugar

　　1 large egg

　　1 large egg yolk

　　1/3 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped, pod reserved for another use

　　4 (1-inch-thick) slices brioche, preferably day-old

　　3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for the pan

　　2 Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and cut into eighths

　　Crème Anglaise (page 251), optional

　　Caramel Sauce (page 251), optional

　　Confectioners’ sugar

　　

Step 1

Whisk together the milk, cream, sugar, egg, yolk, and vanilla bean seeds until the sugar dissolves. Arrange the brioche slices in a single layer in a shallow baking dish. Pour the milk-egg mixture over the bread, submerging the bread. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the bread is completely soaked and almost too soft to handle, at least 1 hour and up to overnight.

　　

Step 2

When you’re almost ready to serve, preheat the oven to 400°F. Generously butter a small rimmed baking sheet. Arrange the apples in a single layer. Dot the apples with 1 tablespoon of the butter. Roast until golden brown and tender, about 10 minutes.

　　

Step 3

Meanwhile, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a large ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. When the butter foams, use both hands to very carefully transfer the soaked brioche slices to the pan. Cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes, then carefully flip. Transfer to the oven and bake alongside the apples until golden brown and puffed, about 5 minutes.

　　

Step 4

Serve the French toast with the apples and the crème anglaise and caramel, if desired. Dust with confectioners’ sugar.

　　Reprinted with permission from Home Cooking with Jean-Georges: My Favorite Simple Recipes by Jean-Georges Vongerichten with Genevieve Ko. Copyright © 2011 by Jean-Georges Vongerichten; photographs copyright © 2011 by John Kernick. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved.Jean-Georges Vongerichten is one of the most influential chefs in the world, having single-handedly redefined haute French cuisine, lightening and refining it by adding select Asian accents. He is the chef-owner of dozens of restaurants in fourteen cities around the world. His flagship restaurant, Jean Georges, at New York's Columbus Circle, is one of six restaurants in the United States to have been awarded three coveted Michelin stars; it received four stars from the New York Times. The winner of multiple James Beard Foundation awards, he lives in New York City and Waccabuc, New York, with his family.Genevieve Ko is a cookbook author and the senior food editor at Good Housekeeping magazine. She has written for Martha Stewart Living, Gourmet, and Fine Cooking and lives in New York City with her family.