TV and film actor

"I got this recipe from a short-order cook in a New York diner many years ago. It's very simple and delicious and although everyone thinks they can make French toast it ain't necessarily so! The secret is the thickness of the bread, the ratio of milk to egg (which should be 50/50) and the vanilla. There are lots of ways to serve this. My favourite is with a sprinkling of lemon or lime juice, then dusted up with icing sugar. You could put maple syrup on the tast and serve with crisp bacon, or top it with two fried or poached eggs and a sprinkling of grated cheese."

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• 2 large eggs
• 4 fl oz/110 ml milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• A pinch of salt
• 1 small white loaf (must be good quality), cut into slices 0.5 inch/1 cm thick
• 1 oz/25g butter
• 1 tbsp oil

METHOD

Beat the eggs, milk, vanilla and salt together until smooth, then pour the mixture into a wide shallow dish. Dip each slice of bread briefly into the mixture, until wet but not soaked through. Melt the butter and oil in a frying pan and fry the dipped bread over a fairly high heat until golden brown, turning to cook the other side.

Serves 2 to 3