This weekend was one that I will never forget. My wife and I decided to host the middle school girls at our house for our church’s Disciple-Now weekend. That is 11 middle school girls, a female (College Student) group leader, my mother-in-law, sister-in-law, my wife, and then there was me – the Lone Ranger (man). It was going to be survival of the fittest in this wild jungle of estrogen. At least I have two male cats – who by the way were cowering beneath the table.

D-Now (as they call it) is basically a weekend slumber party for the different age groups with Bible study and group projects. They went to a Bhutanese Refugee camp, had worship, and enjoyed a quality Bible study time at the house. Joking aside, it was a wonderful experience, and I was impressed with the quality of our youth and their leader. The weekend was a blast!

I decided to find a French Toast recipe to make for the girls with some bacon and scrambled eggs. This way they could start the day with a nice meal. I thought only teenage boys ate like that. WOW!

I found a Betty Crocker recipe for Banana Foster French Toast. The title alone made my mouth water. The truth is that it was just alright though. There were definitely things that could have made it better.

First you spray a 13″x9″ glass dish with baking spray, cut the cinnamon bread into cubes, and place it in the dish. Then you mix the ingredients, (minus bananas, walnuts, some syrup, and the rum extract). These items will be used later – about 8 hours later. All in all, this is an easy dish to make.

As good as it sounds like it should be, it was just average. The bananas did not really add anything to it, and I am still trying to figure out the foster part. I guess that was the rum-extract mixed with the real maple syrup. The maple syrup (liquid gold) could have been cut in half as well.

My wife said that she loved just the French Toast part (no fruit), and my mother-in-law called it a glorified bread pudding. Most of the girls really enjoyed it, and our friend the college student wanted the recipe. I think that it was a hit for the most part. The best part is that it is really easy, and you make most of it the night before.

Instead of adding the bananas and rum-extract infused maple syrup (which cuts the cost in almost half), I think that a raspberry or blueberry sauce could have added a lot to this recipe. Either way it was worth the effort and the ease to make, but ultimately was just an average dish. 

The basic french toast portion of this dish, provides a great foundation for a different recipe. You need to try it for yourself to really know, and remember “Just because it sounds good, doesn’t make it any more special. It is the guests that make it special!”

Click here for Recipe: Banana Foster French Toast