Egg Toast and
Fried Apple-Pecan Compote

This was a special treat my family enjoyed on Saturdays. We didn’t have to go anywhere that day, so we luxuriated in making and eating egg toast and bacon. This “toast” tastes much like egg custard and bread pudding all in one. I make the compote prior to the egg toast so it can be cooking and soaking up the flavors while I prepare the toast. A side of fried apples and pecans just adds to the joy!

Compote

4 tablespoons butter

6 medium apples, peeled and sliced

½ cup firmly packed brown sugar

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ cup chopped pecans

teaspoon salt

½ cup water

Egg Toast

4 tablespoons butter

3 large eggs, beaten

¼ cup milk (or evaporated milk, for added richness)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

8 bread slices (any loaf bread will do)

To make the compote, melt the butter in a medium skillet, and stir-fry the apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, pecans, and salt until the apples are tender, about 15 minutes. Add the water as the syrup thickens and stir all the sugar away from the bottom and sides of the pan. Serve as a complement to the egg toast with bacon or crumbled bacon on top.

To make the egg toast, heat the butter in a large skillet and allow it to melt over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and sugar. Submerge each bread slice in the egg mixture, just long enough to coat both sides in the egg mixture but not to saturate the bread. Place the coated bread in the hot skillet and cook each side until lightly browned, about 2 minutes on each side. Transfer to a warming plate until all pieces are cooked. Serve warm. Use additional butter in the skillet if the toast begins to stick.

Makes 8 servings

My grandfather grew sugarcane just so we could have our own homegrown cane syrup. The cane was cultivated and cut, and we’d always get some raw cane to chew on during the process. The stalks were pressed and the juice was boiled, as the cane was made into syrup in a tedious process. I tasted some of the cane juice at different parts of the process, which I don’t recommend. Cane juice isn’t spectacular. But at the end of the process, the dark brown slow-moving syrup, strong in flavor and filled with nutrients, became something I craved on a biscuit, pancakes, or even a peanut butter sandwich.