This oven cinnamon toast recipe is one of the kids’ favorite breakfast items! It’s a great way to get a nice crunchy top but the bread still stays soft.
The Very Best Cinnamon Toast Recipe
For the last 40 years, mom has made broiled cinnamon toast for the kids. She would spread some butter or margarine on the bread and then sprinkle it with cinnamon and sugar. Then she would put the cinnamon toast under the broiler and let it cook until the butter melted and became bubbly. This is one of the kids’ favorite breakfast or snack items. It’s a great way to get a nice crunchy top but the bread still stays nice and soft.
Now that my kids are older, they can make the broiled cinnamon toast themselves. This is great, but when they make it mom’s way, I always find this mess all over the counters and floors. As a mother of 4, this is VERY annoying! Yes, I always make them clean it up but it never fails– Someone always “forgets”.
One day I was in the store and saw pre-made cinnamon and sugar butter. I did a double take because I couldn’t believe it! First it was a “Hello, why don’t I do that?” moment for me quickly followed by, “Why would someone pay $3.50 for pre-made cinnamon butter?”
So I came home and killed two birds with one stone. I made a batch of the cinnamon butter, saving myself $3.50 (OK, I wouldn’t have spent that much in the first place :-) and stopped the “clean your mess off of the counter!” problem at the same time.
The best part is that it’s SUPER EASY!!! This really takes less than one minute to make!
The Best Cinnamon Toast Spread
2 cups butter or margarine- softened (note- do NOT use “tub, light or soft” margarine)
3/4 cups sugar
2 Tbsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. vanilla (optional)
1/2 tsp. nutmeg (optional)
If butter is not softened, either microwave it for 8 seconds or leave it on the counter for several hours to soften. Then, add the rest of the ingredients and mix together. Put in a container and store in the fridge. When you are ready for cinnamon toast, just spread on the bread. Place on a cookie sheet. (I use a Silpat and just wipe off the crumbs when cool.) Place under the broiler and a WATCH until the tops become bubbly and start to look crispy. Then remove from the oven before they burn.
That’s it! I’m not kidding when I say my kids will eat an entire loaf of this for breakfast (I have 3 boys and 1 girl). Just add some scrambled eggs and fruit and your breakfast is well rounded, easy and you are out the door for school!
Notes:
- This also makes a great spread for coffee cake, biscuits, pancakes and French toast!
- We normally serve this cinnamon toast plain, but you can top it with fruit, jam, jelly, syrup, fruit flavored syrup (blueberry– YUM!), honey and whipped topping.
One note of warning: I would only let older kids do this themselves as there is the possibility of getting burned on the broiler if they’re not careful.
My mom made this too but sometimes for dessert she would put applesause in a loaf pan and put this same cinnamon toast on top and bake it. Still love it to this day and it makes a great dessert that is very cheap to make.
We had this growing up also, but didn’t oven bake it. We simply made toast, buttered it, and sprinkles sugar and cinnamon on top. No oven mess that way, no watching, and no chance of burning. Makes me hungry thinking about it.
Try it using brown sugar it’s even better!
Peggy. I must have been reading your mind! I saw this recipe this morning and thought it looked really good. So good, in fact, that I put the ingredients together and it’s sitting my my fridge right now. :) I came back to comment to Tawra how good it was when I saw your comment. I did a double take because when I made it this morning, I DID use brown sugar!! I went back to review the recipe after reading your comment, and sure enough it called for plain sugar…not brown sugar. It is VERY good with brown sugar though, and my daughter who is laying on the couch sick at the moment, and hasn’t had an appetite to eat all day, was willing to give this a try!
Hi Jill
When we were growing up my granny would spread peanut butter on bread and toast it in the broiler untill the peanut butter would start to melt and the bread would become toast ,then she would spread a little jelly on the top and boy was it good! This is something quick and easy and makes a good healthy snack!
We use tortilla shells for better health (instead of all the grain in breads..) and spread butter / then sprinkle with a little cinnamon / and drizzle with homemade honey(no sugar). Place under the broiler for only a few short minutes ’til bubbly & WOW, what a savings and it’s very healthy for you too !!!
** for a change we also use butter & sprinkle of garlic salt with a lite shake of parmesan cheese. Enjoy !
Tortilla shells aren’t any healthier than bread… it’s still made from flour. It’s just flat and dense instead of fluffy.
My reicpe: drive 180 miles to mom’s house. Make toast. Spread with butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mom’s has made up in her pantry. Ya-um! It doesn’t taste as good made at my house.
This is SO good! We love it. Thank you for the recipe!
Yum! I haven’t thought about making a spread before. I do love cinnamon toast though. My mom bought me a toaster for Christmas and it sure has been getting a workout.
My poor old toaster oven that I bought at a yard sale for $1.50 when my husband and I 1st married went ka-poot this past fall. I’d hate to think how old the poor thing was when I bought it at the yard sale and my husband and I have been married 20 years. Anyway, my boys (ages 17 and 14) bought me a new toaster oven for Christmas. Broiled cinnamon toast was the 1st thing they asked for when it came out of the box. They said toast from the toaster smeared with butter and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar just didn’t taste the same not broiled. :) A toaster oven was at the top of my son’s list when people were asking him about things he’ll be needing for his dorm room this fall. He said if he can have cinnamon toast and pot pies, he could eat like a king. Ha ha!
I did not grow up with cinnamon toast, and didn’t even know this type of butter was a thing until my 20’s! This recipe is hands down amazing. Thank you so much!!
Oh so glad you like it Laura. This has always been a staple in my home for the kids and grand kids. I always have bread,butter and cinnamon and sugar on hand so when I don’t have cookies the kids love this just as much. ( Me too for that matter. : ) )