Welcome to the modern world, where molecular gastronomy has its hold. For those of you who don’t know, molecular gastronomy focuses on the science behind food. The transformations food takes when it is subjected to various cooking techniques. This practice was coined in France by Herve This and was practiced and perfected by elBulli a restaurant in the south of Spain. Today as modern cooks, we aren’t using the tools Julia Child grew up with! We have such an array of kitchen electrics that it is hard to keep up with the pulse of the food movement.
It is why today I am able to say we have an excellent vegan egg yolk created by the company Vegg. Really! A vegan yolk, and what a saving grace to breakfast foods. The best part of this egg yolk, is that unlike other substitutes for dairy/egg products, it is only made of four ingredients. It’s so simple that it seems crazy no one had thought of it before! Not only through molecular gastronomy can this product have the look of an egg yolk, it made the best French toast I have ever had. My boyfriend is an occasional meat eater and he agreed that this was spot on to the original. And if there is a vegan equivalent that tastes the same, why should everyone not have it? No cholesterol, no egg hangover, and because the egg yolk has nutritional yeast in it, you will get B12- its the only plant based food that has this vitamin! So buckle up, buy a pack (it goes a long way) and make yourself some Vegan French Toast Damnit!
Here is a link to the picture and video on wired magazines website! Check it out, it is interesting to watch them make the membrane around the “yolk”. Don’t be discouraged if you are someone who didn’t do well in science class, you don’t need all the fancy equipment for this recipe. Thankfully for this recipe all you need is a bag of the vegan egg yolks. It makes about a liter of yolks per bag (30-40), and it kind of reminds me of being at space camp when I was ten eating the freeze dried food stuffs.
I originally followed the recipe on the label which makes amazing French Toast, but I found myself not knowing what to do with the excess vegg mixture which found a graveyard in the back of my fridge. Thus, I changed the recipe by halving it so I would not have any leftover wasted mixture. Make sure to use a cast iron skillet or something non stick, as I have had my share of tragedies making breakfast due to stainless steel…not to mention the clean up. Another trick I learned with breakfast foods is to make sure that the skillet has been heated up, you want the food to come in contact with a very hot pan. It is the same logic as cauterizing meat, if it is not hot enough the food will stick, leak everywhere, and create a big mess. Good luck and enjoy having your breakfast favorite back again!
Vegan French Toast using the Vegg:
Makes 2 servings
2 tsp Vegg powder
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup soy milk (or almond, I would avoid rice milk. This recipe is great with unsweetened soy)
2-3 tsp cinnamon and more to garnish
1 banana cut into slices
Vegan Margarine (Earth Balance) for frying
1. Blend the Vegg, water, and soy milk for 15 seconds in a blender. Do not mix by hand, the Vegg will not incorporate, again don’t mix by hand! Pour the mixture out into a baking dish for dipping the bread. Sprinkle the cinnamon into the mixture and whisk for 10 seconds, then dip one slice letting it soak for about 10 seconds on each side. Don’t dip them all at once, dip the bread once you have space in your skillet to do so.
2. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat with a Tbsp or so of Earth Balance. Fry in vegan margarine to give it a salty flavor that is most delicious as oil could give it an off flavor. Check your heat to make sure you aren’t burning your French Toast, but don’t continually check the underside as French Toast does better left alone. Flip once the bottom is golden brown adjusting your heat if the skillet is too hot/ too cold. Continue to dip and add French toast being careful not to over crowd the pan. I generally cook 1 or 2 pieces at a time. The first one of two may come out a little weird, but don’t get discouraged you will become a pro in no time.
3. Once all are cooked slice in half and drizzle maple syrup, sprinkle with cinnamon, and garnish with sliced bananas. ENJOY!
My Boyfriend's Kitchen 