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Traditional German French Toast – Oma's Arme Ritter Rezept

Oma's German French toast is a traditional Arme Ritter recipe that will remind you of sitting around Oma's table. She would make these as a delicious way to use up stale bread and often serve them with cinnamon-sugar sprinkled over the top.

Ingredients:

• 2 large eggs
• ⅛ teaspoon (0.75 grams) salt
• 2 tablespoons (26 grams) sugar
• 1 teaspoon (2 grams) grated lemon zest (optional)
• 1 cup (240 milliliters) milk (part cream if desired)
• ½ pound (227 grams) loaf of stale bread, ½-inch to ¾-inch thick slices
• 3-4 tablespoons (45-56 grams) butter

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°F (93ºC), if you want to keep the arme ritter warm until all are fried.
2. Place a sheet of wax or parchment paper on the countertop.
3. Mix the eggs, salt, sugar, lemon zest, and milk in a bowl.
4. Dip both sides of each bread slice into the egg mixture.
5. Let the bread slices sit for a few minutes on the wax-paper to let the egg mixture soak in.
6. Meanwhile, heat the butter in a frying pan or griddle.
7. Fry the bread slices in batches, until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes per side.
8. Remove the fried slices from the pan and transfer them to a cookie sheet. Place the cookie sheet in the oven to keep warm until all of the bread slices have been fried.
9. Serve with fruit sauce, syrup, or simply sprinkled with powdered sugar or cinnamon sugar.

Notes/Hints:

• For the cinnamon/sugar mixture, stir together 1 tablespoon cinnamon with 4 tablespoons granulated sugar.
• The best type of bread to use is Brioche, French Baguette, or Challah. However, almost any bread will work. Just make sure it's stale so it can soak up the egg/milk mixture. The final texture may not be 'perfect', but the taste will be awesome!

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Unless otherwise noted recipe, images and content © Just like Oma | www.quick-german-recipes.com

Updated: February 22, 2026