Wrightsville Beach French Toast

Ingredients:

Cinnamon spread

• 450 g of margarine
• 900 g of granulated sugar
• 350 g of premium flour
• 20 g of ground cinnamon
• 7 g cocoa powder
• 1.5 cups of vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup water

Cinnamon Raisin Bread

• 200 g of high-gluten flour
• 4 cups of bread starter
• 4 tbsp of water
• 110 g of granulated sugar
• 110 g of yeast
• 55 g of salt
• 1.5 cups of vegetable oil
• A mixture of sugar and cinnamon
• Raisin

Maple mousse

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 0.5 cup powdered sugar
• 0.5 tbsp. maple syrup

French toast batter

• 8 cups of eggs
• 3 cups whole milk
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 tbsp. maple syrup
• 0.5 cups spiced rum
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp ground nutmeg

Wrightsville Beach French Toast

• 2 thick slices cinnamon raisin bread
• Maple mousse
• Powdered sugar
• Fresh berries, for decoration

Preparation:

1. Cinnamon spread: Beat margarine and sugar in a large bowl.
   
   Add flour, cinnamon, and cocoa powder. Gradually add butter and water. Mix for 15 minutes and let sit for 5 minutes.
   
   YeastMix the flour, starter, water, granulated sugar, yeast, salt, and butter in a large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment for 15 minutes. Let the dough rest.
2. Cinnamon Raisin Bread: Divide the dough into 600g balls.
   
   Smooth out the dough and sprinkle with the cinnamon-sugar mixture and raisins. Knead the dough 4-5 times and place it in a greased loaf pan. Brush the top and sides with cinnamon spread. Let the dough rest for 25-30 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F). Bake the bread for 46 minutes. Remove from the pan and place on a wire rack to cool completely. Slice thickly.
4. French toast batterIn a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, heavy cream, maple syrup, rum, cinnamon, and nutmeg until smooth.
5. Wrightsville Beach French ToastToss slices of cinnamon-raisin bread in French toast batter. Deep-fry at 350°F (175°C) until golden brown, about 2 minutes.
6. Cut the toasted cinnamon-raisin bread in half diagonally and arrange on a plate. Top with maple mousse. Dust with powdered sugar and garnish with fresh berries.
   
   Maple mousse: Beat the heavy cream in a large bowl with the powdered sugar and maple syrup until smooth.

7. Sourdough bread

   
   It is a homemade bread that is kneaded with a portion of leavened dough made from flour and water.
   
   Day 1: Make a starter
   Combine 60g (1/2 cup) whole wheat flour and 60g (1/4 cup) warm water in a large jar.
   
   Basically, you add flour and water to the jar, feed the starter with more flour and water over time, and then wait until the mixture in the jar becomes bubbly and doubles in size. Don't add too much. Your starter is ready when it's doubled in size, with plenty of bubbles on the surface and throughout the culture.
   
   Stir with a fork until smooth; the consistency will be thick and paste-like. If measuring by volume, add more water if necessary to thin the texture. Cover with plastic wrap or a lid and leave in a warm place at 24-26.6°C for 24 hours.
   
   Tip: Looking for a warm spot? Place the starter on a baking sheet in the oven (turned off) with the light on for a few hours (but not overnight—it can get too hot).
   
   Day 2: Check for small bubbles on the surface.
   Bubbles indicate fermentation, which is what you're looking for! However, don't worry if you don't see anything right away; the bubbles may have appeared and dissipated overnight, which happens quite often.
   
   You don't need to do anything else right now. The starter doesn't require any flour or water. Just leave the starter in a warm place for another 24 hours.
8. Day 2: The starter starts to smell
   During the fermentation process, and even after you've added the starter, a dark liquid may appear on the surface. It's best to pour it off along with the discolored starter. However, the next day, simply leave the starter alone; it feeds when you feed the starter.
   
   Day 3: Whether you see bubbles or not, it's time to start adding flour.
   Remove and discard about half of the starter from the jar (you should have about 60g left). Use a spoon. The texture will be very elastic. Add 60g (1/2 cup) flour and 60g (1/4 cup) warm water. Stir with a fork until smooth.
   
   At this point, the texture should resemble thick pancake batter or plain yogurt (not Greek), so add more water if needed. Cover and leave in a warm place for another 24 hours.
9. Day 4: When the starter falls, it's time to feed it again. Keep feeding!
   Repeat the same feeding process over the next few days. Remove and discard half of the starter and feed it with 60g (1/2 cup) flour and 60g (1/4 cup) warm water. As the yeast begins to develop, your starter will rise, and bubbles will form on the surface and throughout the culture.
   
   Tip: Wrap a rubber band around the jar to measure the rise of the starter as it rises.
   
   Day 7: The sourdough starter is born!
   
   By now, your starter should have doubled in size. You should see lots of bubbles, both large and small. The texture will now be spongy, fluffy, and similar to toasted marshmallows (like s'mores), and it will also smell quite pleasant. If these conditions are met, your starter is now active.
   
   Tip: Transfer the starter to a nice, clean jar. As per tradition, you can also give it a name.
   
   Now you're ready to bake! Start with this simple sourdough bread for beginners—you'll love it!