Why A Bag Of This Sweet Bread Makes French Toast 10X Better

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The quality of French toast, more so than the other common syrup-laden breakfast dishes, is dependent on the decisions that you make at the grocery store. Ingredients are always important in putting together a tasty sweet breakfast, but the bread you use for French toast defines not only the flavor of the dish, but also the texture. While just about any variety can work for this breakfast favorite, choosing well can turn it from average to extraordinary. To experience this for yourself, simply swap your usual French toast loaf for a package of King's Hawaiian Sweet Rolls.

King's Hawaiian Sweet Rolls are just what they sound like, a brand of sweet dinner rolls from the Big Island of Hawaii. These days, the brand has production facilities on the mainland in Georgia and California, but the origin of King's Hawaiian rolls points back more than 70 years to a little shop called Robert's Bakery in Hilo, Hawaii. From the very beginning, the sweet breads and rolls produced in this bakeshop were popular, but as the decades passed, it grew from a small local bakery to an operation capable of putting its products in grocery stores across the country. And after you try making French toast with these sweet rolls, you'll be thankful that it doesn't require a trip to the Aloha State to pick up this ingredient.

Generally, the best bread for French toast is a bit stale, but with King's Hawaiian, that isn't necessary. The soft, pillowy texture of the rolls is half of the joy of using these rolls as your base. The other half, of course, is the flavor of the bread, which brings a delicate sweetness to every bite, regardless of what you top it with.

Turning King's Hawaiian rolls into French toast is not too different from the norm, but there are a few slight deviations that will give the best results. First, you'll want to slice the rolls. You can halve them across the middle, as if you were turning them into a slider bun, and this will work just fine. Alternatively, you can try cutting them into large cubes to better balance the crispy edges and pillowy centers. The bread's soft texture also means that you'll want to dip the bread in custard rather than soaking it, so that it doesn't turn to mush. Aside from those small changes, though, the process is the same — at least until it comes time to add toppings.

Hawaiian sweet rolls are slightly more sugary than most other breads, but that doesn't mean that you necessarily need to change the toppings for French toast. If you want, standards like maple syrup, powdered sugar, and fresh berries will work great. But why not give your sweet roll French toast the royal treatment with some Hawaiian-inspired toppings? For instance, try sliced bananas and a few spoonfuls of pineapple preserves. Toasted chopped macadamia nuts and shredded coconut are also island-ready ingredients that could add a touch of "aloha" to your sweet roll French toast. Or, for a simple swap that swings the core French toast flavor profile toward the tropical, skip the maple syrup and instead drizzle on some cream of coconut or sweetened condensed coconut milk. Using King's Hawaiian Sweet Rolls is enough to completely change your French toast experience, but you might as well really embrace those island flavors while you're at it.