Olive Rosemary French Toast

Olive Rosemary French Toast – savory Greek kalamata olive and rosemary yeast bread made into a vanilla and cardamom-scented French toast.

Way back in the mists of time, when this blog was just getting started, I worked with the amazing Casey at Kitchen-Play on several posts. We did a series of posts where each blogger was assigned a course from dinner along with a product to use in developing a new recipe for that course.

Early one morning, I received an email explaining that for the next month participants would be creating recipes using products from Lindsay Olives. Yay! I love Lindsay Olives. I use them all the time. This was going to be great.

Then that second sentence – “Course assigned: Dessert.” Dessert?!? What the heck? Surely it was a typo. It wasn’t.

So, after a few days of thinking, pondering and Googling “olive desserts” I started trying some things. Most of the desserts I found on the internet were created by professional chefs who had made candied olives and then used them in the dessert recipe. So I thought, okay, let’s try candying some olives.

I spent an entire weekend making candied olives following instructions I’d researched online. All I’m going to say about candied olives is, well, there aren’t any in my recipe.

Look – I’m not a professional “recipe developer.” I’m a home cook. A pretty darned good one, but still just a home cook. So I knew that whatever I came up with had to be reproducible by other home cooks and, most importantly, had to be a delicious recipe that most families would enjoy.

It really took some thought and lots of work and, honestly, this recipe almost didn’t happen. I nearly gave up more than once. But, in the end, I think I came up with something that is going to surprise almost everyone!

This recipe starts out as a savory olive and rosemary yeast bread full of delicious Lindsay Greek Kalamata Olives, but then it turns into a wonderful vanilla and cardamom-scented French toast. The yeast bread is easy to make and the French toast portion of the recipe is even easier.

And, even more amazing, it only took one try to get it right. I made the bread one afternoon and the next day cooked the French toast. BeeBop and I took the first bite, looked at each other and said in unison, “Wow! This is amazing!” I truly hope you’ll enjoy it as well.

How to Make Olive Rosemary French Toast

You’ll start by making the olive rosemary bread.

Combine yeast, sugar, and water and set aside for 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine the proofed yeast, olive oil, milk, olives, all-purpose and whole wheat flours, rosemary and salt. Stir until a rough dough is formed.

Turn dough out on a well-floured surface and knead for approximately 10 minutes or until dough is elastic and pliable incorporating up to ½ cup more flour as needed to prevent dough from sticking.

Place the dough into a large, well-oiled bowl and turn so that the top of the dough picks up oil from the bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place for approximately 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Punch the dough down and divide into two equal pieces. Shape the dough into rounds and place on an oiled baking pan. Cut an “X” in the top of each loaf. Cover and allow to rise for an additional 30 minutes or until nearly doubled in size again.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Bake until loaves are browned and sound hollow when tapped. Approximately 35-40 minutes.

For the best results, wait until the next day to make the french toast.

Make the Olive Rosemary French Toast

In a shallow bowl or pan large enough to fit an entire slice of Olive-Rosemary bread, combine eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and cardamom. Whisk until well combined.

Dip bread slices two at a time into the egg mixture for about 15 seconds per side – enough time for the bread to absorb some of the egg mixture but not become soaked through.

Warm a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add butter to skillet. When the butter has melted, place the prepared bread slices into the skillet. Cover the pan and cook for approximately 2 minutes or until golden brown. Turn slices over and repeat.

Remove to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm while cooking the remaining French toast.

Before serving, dust liberally with powdered sugar.

🧾 More Recipes You’ll Like

• Easy French Toast
• Savory French Toast
• Easy French Toast Casserole
• Banana Maple French Toast
• Overnight Sausage and Egg Breakfast Casserole

More Questions? I’m happy to help!

If you have more questions about the recipe, or if you’ve made it and would like to leave a comment, scroll down to leave your thoughts, questions, and/or rating!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Olive-Rosemary French Toast

Savory Greek kalamata and rosemary yeast bread made into a vanilla and cardamom-scented French Toast.

5 from 2 votes

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Course: Desserts

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 1 hour hour 50 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes minutes

Total Time: 2 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 3 servings

Calories: 434kcal

Author: Lana Stuart

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Ingredients

For the Olive-Rosemary Bread

• ▢ 1 package active dry yeast
• ▢ ½ cup warm water 105°-115°
• ▢ 2 teaspoons sugar
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 1 cup warm milk 105°-115°
• ▢ 6 ounces kalamata olives pitted, chopped
• ▢ 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 cup whole wheat flour
• ▢ 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
• ▢ 2 teaspoons salt

For the Olive-Rosemary French Toast

• ▢ 6 slices Olive-Rosemary bread 3/4-inch thick
• ▢ 4 eggs
• ▢ 1 cup milk
• ▢ 3 tablespoons tblsp sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
• ▢ 2 tablespoons butter
• ▢ 3 tablespoons powdered sugar

Instructions

Make the Olive-Rosemary Bread

• Combine yeast, sugar and water and set aside for 5 minutes. In a large bowl, combine the proofed yeast, olive oil, milk, olives, all-purpose and whole wheat flours, rosemary and salt. Stir until a rough dough is formed.
• Turn dough out on a well-floured surface and knead for approximately 10 minutes or until dough is elastic and pliable incorporating up to 1/2 cup more flour as needed to prevent dough from sticking.
• Place the dough into a large, well-oiled bowl and turn so that the top of the dough picks up oil from the bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place for approximately 1 hour or until doubled in size.
• Punch the dough down and divide into two equal pieces. Shape the dough into rounds and place on an oiled baking pan. Cut an “X” in the top of each loaf.
• Cover and allow to rise for an additional 30 minutes or until nearly doubled in size again.
• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Bake until loaves are browned and sound hollow when tapped. Approximately 35-40 minutes.
• The French toast is best made a day after making the bread.

Make the Olive-Rosemary French Toast

• In a shallow bowl or pan large enough to fit an entire slice of Olive-Rosemary bread, combine eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and cardamom. Whisk until well combined.
• Warm a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add butter to skillet.
• Dip bread slices two at a time into the egg mixture for about 15 seconds per side – enough time for the bread to absorb some of the egg mixture but not become soaked through.
• When the butter has melted, place the prepared bread slices into the skillet.
• Cover the pan and cook for approximately 2 minutes or until golden brown. Turn slices over and repeat.
• Remove to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm while cooking the remaining French toast.
• Before serving, dust liberally with powdered sugar.

Notes

Nutrition Information

Serving 1 | Calories 434kcal | Carbohydrates 52g | Protein 16g | Fat 18g | Saturated Fat 9g | Trans Fat 1g | Cholesterol 246mg | Sodium 476mg | Potassium 299mg | Fiber 2g | Sugar 28g | Vitamin A 683IU | Vitamin C 1mg | Calcium 206mg | Iron 3mg

Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.

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— Originally sponsored by Lindsay Olives

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