For years, I’ve been flying through Miami on my way back to visit family and friends. Personally, I found it a little dissapointing because most of the food options were similar to what I had just left behind in Central America and there wasn’t a Chick-fil-A to be found. But after reading a travel tip somewhere that said something like, “look for the line of airport employees and eat there.” I found that long line at the La Carreta quick service line (not the actual restaurant) and asked a few employees what they liked to order. Every single person said get the guava and cheese pastelito.
This was new to me, as guava in Nicaragua is guayaba (guava is a different fruit) and it definitley is not paired with cheese. But oh my goodness, If you are a salty sweet fan, you will love the guava and cheese combo. The guava is sweet, sticky and just a little tart and the salty cream cheese make a gooey salty and sweet filling inside flaky pastry. If you are ever passing through the Miami airport or visiting Miami or Cuba, be sure to try a guava and cheese pastelito. But if travel is not in your immediate future or you share my love for salty and sweet foods, this guava and cheese stuffed french toast will hit the spot.
Chosing your bread
Raise your hand if you thought you did not like french toast as a child, because your mom made french toast by just dunking a piece of wheat bread in milk and eggs. Sorry mom. My feelings for french toast have changed since then, but there are a few non-negociables for good french toast. The first is the bread. For this french toast, I would suggest a pretty basic white bread that is not pre-sliced. To keep the stuffing from oozing out, it’s best to be able to slice the bread yourself extra thick. How thick? Think the thickness of two slices of bread. Using a very sharp knife, slice a pocket in your bread that extends almost the width of your bread and about an inch from the bottom. Be sure not to cut through the bread. To help your bread absorb the custard and prevent it from falling apart, slice your bread the night before making your french toast and leave it out on the counter to become a little dry and stale. If you don’t slice ahead, don’t worry. Just slice your bread and pop it in the oven on 200 degrees F for about 10 minutes to dry out a little.
Stuffing the bread
Once your bread is ready, it is time to stuff. Use a butter knife to gently spread about a tablespoon of spreadable cream cheese in the pocket of your bread. It might get a little messy. That’s ok. Once your cream cheese has been spread, add a tablespoon of guava jam to the bread pocket and spread it around. Try to spread the cream cheese and jam as evenly as possible into all the corners of the bread pocket. Using your knife, clean up any cream cheese or jam that have sqeezed out the best that you can. Repeat the process with all your bread slices.
The custard
Once your bread has been stuffed, in a shallow pan beat together the milk, eggs, rum, salt and vanilla until the eggs are fully incorporated with the milk. Typical french toast custard has some kind of sweetener mixed in, but because of the sweetness of the jam, this custard is more savory. Preheat a large skillet over medium heat with a half tablespoon of butter. While your pan is heating, dip both sides of each bread slice in the custard for about 5 seconds. Place slices in the hot pan, cooking in shifts if needed to ensure your pan is not over crowded. Allow the french toast to cook on each side for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. While your french toast is cooking, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Once your french toast is golden brown, place on a baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees F for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Serve and store
While cooking, the guava jam and cream cheese melt together to make a sticky, gooey filling. Now, I’m not going to tell you what to do with your french toast, because that is personal business. But, I will say in my opinion, this french toast doesn’t need anything other than a light dusting of powdered sugar. Serve with a side of bacon if you really want the full sweet and salty experience. This french toast is best served fresh. But, if you have leftovers and want to reheat, place your french toast in a skillet with a small amount of butter over medium low heat for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until heated through. It can be kept in the fridge for up to 4 days.
If you are interested in bringing this guava and cheese stuffed french toast to your breakfast table, here is what you need to know…
Guava and Cheese Stuffed French Toast
Ingredients
- 4 slices extra thick white bread
- 4 tbsp guava jam
- 4 tbsp cream cheese spread
- 2 large eggs
- ⅔ cup whole milk
- 1 tbsp rum
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- In the top of each slice of bread, carefully cut a pocket in the bread, without cutting through the bottom or sides.
- Using a butter knife, spread one tbsp of cream cheese and one tbsp of guava jam in the pocket of the bread slice.
- To make the custard, in a shallow pan, beat the eggs, milk, rum, salt, and vanilla together.
- Coat each side of each stuffed bread slice in the custard for 5 seconds.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add a half tbsp of butter to the skillet once hot and add the slices of bread to the skillet. Allow to cook 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden. Cook in batches if needed to avoid overcrowding.
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- Place your cooked french toast slices on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven on the middle rack for 10 minutes. Remove and let cool 5 minutes before serving.
- Top with a sprinkle of powdered sugar and enjoy!
Notes
- To prevent your bread from becoming too soft or falling apart in the batter, slice and leave out overnight or toast at 200 degrees F (94 degrees C) for 10 minutes.
- Store cooked french toast in the refrigerator up to 4 days.
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