Make breakfast a treat

Every kid has it: the one breakfast that you used to beg your parents to make. For some, it’s blueberry pancakes, waffles or scrambled eggs. For me, it was French toast.

Except in my house, it was called grenki. Growing up in a family of Ukrainian-Jewish immigrants, I didn’t have bacon and sausages for breakfast. It was usually blintzes, either big ones with jam or small ones with apples cooked in.

But my favorite breakfast treat was grenki. My mother, as all mothers can do, made the best grenki. The bread was always sliced evenly, lightly fried and perfectly crispy. When I got older, I tried making my own, but the bread was always too thin and would stick to the pan.

I later learned that the key to making perfect grenki is making sure the pan is heated before adding the bread. Before turning the stove on, I like to add about a teaspoon of oil to the pan and using a paper towel, rub it across the entire pan. Then, I turn on the heat and wait a couple of minutes. Add two more teaspoons of oil, and take the pan by the handle to distribute the oil around. Wait another minute before adding the bread.  

It’s important to heat the pan carefully because otherwise the egg coating will stick to the pan and not to the bread. It’s the attention to detail that I didn’t use when making grenki in my mother’s kitchen, puzzled as to what maternal superpowers she had that I didn’t.

I like making grenki because they’re simple and delicious. But they also remind me of home and those countless weekend mornings of waking up to a delicious smell, knowing that breakfast was ready.  

Ingredients
Two eggs
Whole milk, half-and-half or whipping cream (I find this tastes better than using regular milk)
French loaf
Optional toppings: confectioner’s sugar and fruit, preferably strawberries

directions
1. Heat up oil in pan
2. Slice bread in half-inch slices
3. Whisk the eggs and cream in a bowl until mixed
4. Dip bread in the bowl until thoroughly coated
5. Fry bread until it is dark brown (make sure not to burn)
6. Serve with optional confectioner’s sugar and strawberries