I’ve been making a lot of homemade bread lately, thanks to a new cookbook that I got, Bread Toast Crumbs, and even though homemade bread is super inexpensive, I hate seeing any of it go to waste. I’m experimenting with all sorts of ways to use up the leftover odds and ends of my bread and today I tried a recipe that I’ve wanted to make for quite some time, a 5-Minute Microwave French Toast Mug. This small-batch French toast (or bread pudding) in a mug is an excellent way to not only have a quick treat, but use leftovers and reduce food waste at the same time. Win-win.
And I have the more traditional French Toast recipe too, if that’s what you are looking for.
All recipes are rigorously tested in our Nashville Test Kitchen to ensure they are easy, affordable, and delicious.
What Type of Bread Should I Use?
Like in our bread pudding recipe, you can use just any type of bread for this 5-Minute Microwave French Toast Mug, but the sturdier the better. Whole wheat works great, too! I’d steer clear of rye or super squishy white sandwich bread, if possible though. Cinnamon raisin bread is a natural for this use, as is brioche.
Customize Your French Toast Mug
I’ve given the very basic recipe below, but you can customize it with all sorts of fun add-ins or toppings like berries (I topped mine with frozen raspberries below), sliced bananas, more maple syrup, powdered sugar, chocolate chips or syrup, or walnuts, pecans, or even peanut butter! Basically, anything that you’d like mixed into a pancake will probably be good mixed into or used as a topping for this French Toast Mug. You can even experiment with savory mugs by skipping the maple syrup and stirring in some shredded cheese, herbs, and diced ham. You can bet you’ll see a savory version of this on the blog soon!!
5-Minute Microwave French Toast Mug
Servings 1Ingredients
- 1 tsp butter ($0.04)
- 3 Tbsp whole milk ($0.07)
- 1 tsp maple syrup ($0.11)
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract ($0.21)
- Pinch ground nutmeg ($0.02)
- 1 large egg ($0.27)
- 1 cup bread pieces* ($0.10)
OPTIONAL TOPPINGS OR ADD-INS
- berries
- sliced bananas
- nuts
- powdered sugar
- peanut butter
- chocolate chips
Instructions
- Place the butter in a large mug and microwave for 15-20 seconds, or until it is melted. Add the milk, maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, and the egg to the mug and whisk until everything is well mixed.
- Add the bread pieces to the mug and gently stir until all the pieces are saturated with the egg and milk mixture. Be careful not to stir too roughly or the bread pieces may fall apart. Let the bread sit and absorb the liquid for about 1 minute.
- Microwave the mug for 60-90 seconds, or until the mixture is solid. I have a 1250 watt microwave and find that 70-80 seconds is about perfect. You may need to experiment to find just the right cooking time for your microwave and mug size.
- Serve immediately, or deck it out with your favorite toppings.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Want to try a savory microwave breakfast mug? Try my 5-Minute Savory Microwave Breakfast Mug!
How to Make A Microwave French Toast Mug – Step by Step Photos
Start by placing 1 tsp butter in a large microwave safe mug. Microwave for about 20 seconds, or until the butter is melted. Add 3 Tbsp milk, 1 tsp maple syrup, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp vanilla extract, a pinch of ground nutmeg, and one large egg to the mug with the melted butter. Whisk the mixture until it is very well combined.
Tear or cut a piece of hearty bread into 1/2-inch pieces (about one heaping cup of bread pieces). Add the bread chunks to the mug and gently stir until they are saturated in the egg and milk mixture. Let them sit for about one minute to fully absorb the moisture.
Microwave the mug for 60-90 seconds, or until the mixture is solid and slightly puffed up. The total cooking time will depend on the wattage of your microwave and the size and thickness of your mug. I suggest starting at 60 seconds and adding 10-15 seconds as necessary.
You can add all sorts of fun toppings after it’s cooked, or even stir them in with the bread chunks before cooking. Berries are always a nice tart contrast to the slightly sweet mixture, but if you have a sugar tooth you can do things like chocolate chips, banana slices, or powdered sugar. Nuts are delicious as well!
I can’t wait to try a savory version!
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Hmm is anyone else having problems with the images on this blog loading? I’m trying to figure out if its a problem on my end or if it’s the blog. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
This was easy and delicious! But we call this bread pudding in Louisiana..
Has anyone else experienced this turning out as a weird bread frittata? How do you prevent this?
Quite good, definitely wouldn’t call it French toast more of a bready eggy mixture- which again is delicious just not what I was craving.
Toddler has been on an eating strike, but loved this and asked for more!
I played with the recipe to make it savory and used Beth’s ratios and suggestions from Beth and the comments. The egg, bread (2 slices of soudough), butter, and milk ratios remained the same. In the same ratio I subbed maple syrup for hot sauce, and vanilla extract for a squeeze of lemon. I did a quick shake of onion powder and garlic powder instead of cinnomon and nutmeg. I mixed the toppings in when I threw it in the microwave I used a little bit of corn, bacon bits, green onion, a little bit of chunky salsa, and I topped it with a little cheese. I was pleased how it turned out my cook timed was longer but only because of my microwave wattage. Thank you Beth love the blog!
Thank you for this recipe! I am the only one in my household that enjoys bread pudding, and I have missed having it. Now, I can enjoy it any day of the week, and it is perfect!
Hi Beth,
I love this recipe, but invariably certain parts of it turn out a bit eggy, with a lot of white from the egg white. How can I prevent this? I made sure to whisk it a lot.
Hi Poppy! You could try cooking for about 45 seconds to a minute longer. Your microwave may have a lower setting.
This isn’t ‘French Toast’.
I was surprised that I actually liked this, because I usually find microwavable mug recipes to be disappointing. The only reason I’m giving it 4 instead of 5 is because I had to make some adjustments for it to work. I know I used more than a cup of bread (and it was hearty, dried up bread) and it was still pretty eggy in the end. I also had to microwave for 2 minutes before the egg mixture was cooked. Not a big deal and easy adjustments. I topped it off with some butter and syrup it perfectly fulfilled my french toast craving (and helped me use up my dried up homemade bread).
Oops, sorry! I didn’t mean to reply to your comment. Was trying to leave my own comment.
Hello!
Thanks so much for these amazing recipes! Since we’ve started dating, my partner and I have spent a lot of time in the kitchen bonding while making a lot of the recipes on your website (not to mention then eating the yummy food!). We’re currently typing this out while eating this french toast! Keep up the good work!
I don’t have maple syrup handy. Is there anything that I can use as a substitute for the syrup to give it some sweetness? Would honey suffice?
Yes, you can definitely use honey. :)
Had this earlier last week; I enjoyed it! Thx for the recipe.
I made this using two slices of Thompson’s cinnamon raisin bread. They were thinking slices and the egg was large. Awesome!
I just made this for breakfast—I loooove bread pudding and this was it!! I used day old french bread, because I like a little squishiness. So great. Thanks so much for this recipe, I love not having to make a big batch of pudding or french toast. Can’t wait to try a savory pudding. Your recipes are my favorite.
Thanks much for sharing your wonderful recipes! This is my first comment to any website ever, but I especially enjoy your quick & one-pot recipes. I have used this recipe only three times and it’s marvelous with all the different additions/variations. Today’s was savory (1st time again): onions, shoestring potatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, cheese &. substituted habanero sauce for syrup.. So delish: full & thankful…thankfilled!!
This was incredibly delicious! I made it in a small bowl with honey instead of maple syrup and added in chopped walnuts and chocolate chips. It was really easy and I will definitely be making it again! Thanks for giving a poor college student with limited funds and kitchen amenities a way to make a tasty breakfast.