Melty chocolate-stuffed french toast with citrus custard

For this recipe, I decided to focus on an orange-chocolate flavor combination, replacing the usual vanilla extract with orange extract. I added cream because it was in the fridge, and seemed like a good idea. I thought I could amp up the orange flavor with a citrusy cornstarch-based custard. I found a lemon cake filling in Joy of Cooking, 25th printing, 1981 but wanted the focus on orange. I reduced the cornstarch from the original--a lucky error--used the juice of a freshly-squeezed orange, added some Meyer lemon juice and zest and a squirt of regular lemon to add some contrast and cut the sweetness. I reduced the sugar and kicked in orange extract. The result, spooned over the toast, was just plain yummy.

July 30, 2023, 6:10 p.m.