By Rip Esselstyn
French toast takes me back to slow Saturday mornings sitting around the Esselstyn family lazy susan table and the feel of powdered sugar on the roof of my mouth. Serve this deliciously healthy version of French toast with pure maple syrup and fresh fruit.
Serves 2
Ingredients:
1 banana, mashed
½ cup milk substitute of choice
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon cinnamon
4 to 6 slices whole grain bread or baguette slices
Instructions:
- Combine banana, milk substitute, vanilla, and cinnamon in a shallow bowl.
- Dip bread slices in mixture and cook in nonstick skillet on medium heat for 2 minutes on each side or until lightly browned.
Variations:
Serve with a light sprinkling of powdered sugar for that roof-of-the-mouth taste.
Rip Esselstyn is a mission-driven man. As a swimmer at the University of Texas at Austin, he was a three time All-American. As a professional athlete, he was one of the premier triathletes in the world for more than a decade. As a firefighter for the Austin (TX) Fire Department, he helped people and saved lives. As a friend to other firefighters, he transformed the way Austin’s Engine 2 ate to save firefighters’ health. Now, as the author of The Engine 2 Diet, he is teaching people the irrefutable connection between what they put in their mouths and their ability to reach their ideal weight and their ideal health. Recently, he has teamed up with Whole Foods Market as a Healthy Eating Partner to raise awareness for Whole Foods Market team members, customers, and all of America about the benefits of eating a Plant Strong diet composed of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
Rip comes from a family steeped in medicine. His great-grandfather, George Crile, co-founded the world-renowned Cleveland Clinic, where his father, Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., was chief of the breast cancer task force and completed one of the most extensive studies ever conducted on the relationship between the heart and diet–proving that a plant-based diet can stop, prevent, and even reverse heart disease.
Rip serves on the Board of Directors for The Wellness Foundation, EarthSave’s Meals For Health Program, and the AllergyKids Foundation.
