If You Like French Toast, You Have to Try Torrejas Hondureñas
Torrejas Hondureñas
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To celebrate the holidays, we've been chatting with some of our favorite celebs and experts to see how they spend this festive season. We recently sat down with Dafne Mejia—an L.A.-based Honduran-American chef who many folks know from Hell's Kitchen Season 21, where she was the runner-up—to talk about her holiday food traditions. After we chatted, we asked her to share one of her recipes with us. Read on to learn more about how Mejia celebrates the season, then try her version of torrejas Hondureñas in your kitchen.
One thing we make for Christmas are nacatamales, which are very different from Mexican tamales. They have olives and peas and garbanzo beans and braised pork—and raisins and capers. You wouldn't think all of that would go together, but it does. We all sit at the table and make them together. One person does the peas, one does the raisins, etc.
We celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve. We eat right before we open our presents at 12 a.m. and then my mom brings out dessert. She always makes torrejas, which is almost like a very wet bread pudding. She uses piloncillo (cones of cane sugar) and melts them in water with spices. She prepares the bread with eggs like you would for French toast and once the bread is cooked she dips it into the spiced sugar syrup and it cooks for hours until it's nice and soft. It's so good.
Courtesy Dafne Mejia
My favorite dish that I ate in 2023 was the torrejas Hondureñas I prepared for my mom's 50th birthday party. I learned the dish from my mom and my grandmother and being able to prepare my take on the traditional dessert for them was extra special.
While I use a lot of the traditional preparations and recipes in my cooking, I love making small changes that can make the dishes my own. For example, in this dish, I’ve added my favorite bourbon, Off Hours, for an added depth of flavor. When passing down recipes, I think adding a little something of your own deepens the tradition by making it a beautiful combination of the women in my family.
While torrejas Hondureñas are simple enough to prepare for a casual family dinner, they look, and most importantly taste, special enough for a celebration. They were a sweet way to honor and celebrate my mom.
Torrejas Hondureñas
Ingredients
1 qt avocado, canola or peanut oil, for frying (If you prefer pan frying to deep-frying, you can use less oil.)
16 oz piloncillo (whole cane sugar available at Latin markets) or dark brown sugar
1 large cinnamon stick
2 whole cloves
2 tbsp. bourbon (I like Off Hours Bourbon)
5 large egg whites
3 large egg yolks
1 loaf challah, sliced into 1- to 1 1/2-inch-thick slices
Powdered sugar, fresh berries, and ice cream (optional), for serving
1. In a deep skillet, heat the avocado oil until it reaches up to 350°. Set a wire rack inside a baking sheet. (If pan-frying, you can heat a smaller amount of oil in the skillet just before you coat the bread in the egg mixture.)
2. While the oil heats up, bring 4 cups of water to boil in a large pot. Reduce the heat so the water is simmering, then add the piloncillo, cinnamon stick, cloves and bourbon.
3. Using a whisk, break up the sugar. Reduce the heat to low and cook the mixture until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon, about 15 minutes. Set the syrup aside.
4. Add the egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or use a large bowl and an electric hand mixer). Whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Add the egg yolks to the whites and beat until the mixture is light yellow.
5. Dip the bread into the egg mixture to evenly coat.
6. Transfer to the oil and fry until golden on both sides. Transfer to the baking sheet with the wire rack inside.
7. Once all of the bread is fried, transfer it to the syrup, making sure all of the bread is covered. Cook on low until the bread is very soft. (I usually cook it for 1 hour or so.)
8. Divide bread among plates. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and top with fresh berries and ice cream, if using.
