Torrijas or Decadent Spanish Easter Toasts

All relevant religious holidays in Spain have a reflection in the food. When Spain was a strictly Catholic country, there were tight food rules that everyone was pushed to follow. Although those rules are now largely overlooked, there are some traditional recipes that every family will prepare year after year.

Maybe, one of the most popular Easter recipes is Torrijas, a very simple but delicious dish similar to a French toast, normally made using bread leftovers. There are as many different ways of preparing Torrijas as families live in Spain. And this is a quite common controversial subject, being one’s mother’s Torrijas the best in the entire world. Always.

Torrijas are normally served for breakfast or pudding, and can be enjoyed with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or some whipped cream.

As it usually happens with most traditional dishes, the perfect ingredients and method can vary. Some people put honey on them, other put some red wine, aniseed liqueur or even chocolate. In most houses, you can end up with 3 or 4 different recipes to try and compare after a family Easter event. And after a quite copious dinner, you will be heavily pushed to try them all and give a verdict under the thorough look of your mum, auntie and grandma. Don’t you ever dare to choose a winner. Then, you’ll probably end up with indigestion, laying on a sofa, falling asleep whilst your body struggle to digest 5 Torrijas. This is maybe why in Spain the expression “having a Torrija” means “to be spaced out” or “to be out of it”.

Let me tell you a secret: I have never prepared Torrijas. I always let the other’s surprise me with their creations.

So this week’s recipe is my husband’s first attempt to surpass our mums’ ancient recipes. And you know what? He won. Not because his were the only ones in the competition, but also because they were so amazingly nice and decadent that I could have eaten 3 or 4 in one go.

WHAT DO YOU NEED

1 White Sub Roll 

2 Free Range Eggs

750ml Whole Milk

2 Cinnamon Sticks

1tbsp Ground Cinnamon

1 Lemon Skin

1 Orange Skin

100gr Sugar

500ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil

WHAT DO YOU DO

Put the milk with the cinnamon and orange and lemon peels in a deep pan and bring to the boil. Turn the heat off and let cold up for approximately 10-15 minutes.

Slice the bread into chunky slices, approx 3cm thick. 

Put the sugar, beaten eggs and milk in 3 different plates. Add the ground cinnamon to the sugar and mix.

Put the olive oil in a pan and bring to high heat.

Soak each slice in the milk and then cover them by beaten egg. Tip: you can add an aniseed liqueur or cointreau to the milk for a twist. Carefully lift the bread out of the mixture and let the excess milk drain before placing the bread in the frying pan. Repeat for each of the other slices.

Fry each torrija until each side is golden brown and drain on a kitchen towel. Try not to pile them up while warm.

Sprinkle with the sugar and ground cinnamon mix. If you prefer, drizzle honey over the top. 

Garnish with fresh fruit or vanilla ice cream and enjoy. 

Torrijas keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days.