Crispy, crunchy keto french toast sticks coated in sweet cinnamon batter and fried, with 4.8g net carbs and 19.1g protein. I reverse-engineered that Wendy's crunch with protein powder in the coating, and they're just as dunkable.
My kids love these and they have no idea they’re low carb. I’ve been making them on weekend mornings for about two years, and the 90-second almond flour bread I use holds up to frying better than any store-bought option I’ve tried.
The whole thing comes together fast. I make the bread in the microwave, let it cool, slice it into sticks, dip each one in a cinnamon-spiced egg yolk batter, and fry in avocado oil until the outside is golden and crunchy. The protein powder in the batter is what gives them that fast food crispiness. I reverse-engineered why the Wendy’s version has that signature crunch, and protein powder in the coating is the answer.
If you don’t want to make your own bread, store-bought works. Franz, Carbonaut, and Sola are my top three. I’ve tested all of them and Carbonaut has the best texture for frying (it doesn’t crumble in the batter). If you have an Aldi or Costco nearby, check their keto bread aisle too. Whatever brand you use, slice the pieces thin so they cook evenly.
One thing I do differently from most recipes: I only use egg yolks in the dipping batter, never whole eggs. The whites are what cause that sulfurous, eggy smell that turns people off. I figured this out after testing batch after batch, and it’s the single biggest improvement I’ve made to this dish. Drop the whites and the problem disappears completely.
You can also make these in the air fryer. I preheat to 380 degrees, spray the basket, and cook for 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway. The outside gets crispy without all the oil, and my kids actually prefer this method because the coating stays crunchier as it cools. For meal prep, air fryer is the way to go.
Dip them in sugar-free maple syrup, dust with powdered sweetener, or just eat them plain. My family goes through these so fast I’ve started doubling the bread recipe.
What I do differently (and why it matters)
I’ve tested a lot of approaches to this dish, and two things set my version apart.
I make my own bread instead of using store-bought. It takes 90 seconds in the microwave and costs almost nothing. The store-bought keto breads work in a pinch, but some contain gluten and others cause digestive issues I’d rather avoid.
I use minimal eggs. Most recipes call for 6-8 eggs with no flour, which creates bread that reeks of sulfur. I use 1 whole egg and 1 additional yolk. That’s it. The eggy problem disappears.
If you want a flourless version, my egg loaf bread works here too. I designed that recipe with the same low-egg approach.
My favorite dips and toppings
Half the fun is the dipping. I’ve tried just about everything and these are my go-tos.
If you’re building out a full brunch, my keto apple fritters go great alongside these. Both fry up fast.
How I store and meal prep these
Because I fry these, they stay crispy much longer than regular versions. I’ve left them on the counter for an hour and they still had crunch.
I store them in the fridge for 3-4 days and they reheat perfectly. My go-to is a quick fry in a little butter, but the air fryer at 375 degrees for 3-5 minutes works just as well.
For freezing: I flash freeze each piece on a sheet pan, then transfer to a freezer bag. They keep for 1-2 months. I go straight from freezer to air fryer (no thaw needed) and add 2-3 extra minutes. I also meal prep these alongside my keto chaffle breakfast sandwich for busy weeks.
How to make keto french toast sticks
Make the bread using almond flour, protein powder, heavy cream, butter, baking powder, salt, egg white, and sweetener.
Bake in the microwave for 90 seconds or the oven for 9-11 minutes. Let cool before slicing.
Slice into sticks and dip each one in the egg yolk batter.
Fry in avocado oil until golden on all sides, or air fry at 380 degrees for 8-10 minutes.
Key ingredients and substitutions
Bread: I make my own almond flour bread because it fries up better than most store-bought options. If you’re short on time, Carbonaut and Franz both hold up in the batter.
Egg yolk only: I skip the whites in the dipping batter entirely. They’re what cause that sulfurous, eggy flavor. Yolks only and the problem vanishes.
Protein powder: This is my trick for a crunchy crust. I use unflavored or vanilla with minimal carbs. It creates that crispy shell as it hits the oil.
Sweetener: I add about a teaspoon but adjust to taste or skip it. The cinnamon does most of the work.
Heavy cream: Thins out the batter. I’ve swapped in almond milk and coconut milk with good results if you need dairy free.
Spices: Cinnamon and nutmeg. I keep the nutmeg light (1/8 teaspoon) because it overpowers fast.
In a small bowl, whisk together almond flour, protein powder, sweetener, baking powder and salt.
For this step
Almond flour
Protein powder (low-carb)
Sugar free sweetener
Baking powder
Salt
2
Add wet ingredients
Add softened butter, egg white and heavy cream. Mix together with a fork in order to cut the butter into the mixture. Mix until uniform.
For this step
Unsalted butter (softened)
Egg white
Heavy cream
3
Pour into baking dish
Line a rectangle baking dish (about 3×5 inches) with strips of parchment paper and spray with cooking oil. Scoop in batter. Bake in the microwave at 100% power for 90 seconds or bake in a 350 degree oven for 9-11 minutes. Remove from the dish and let cool before slicing.
4
Slice into french toast sticks
Slice bread into 10 small french toast sticks.
5
Mix french toast batter
To a small plate, add egg yolks, heavy cream, protein powder, sweetener, cinnamon and nutmeg. Whisk to combine.
For this step
Egg yolks
Heavy cream
Protein powder (low-carb)
Sugar free sweetener
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
6
Dip
Quickly dip each bread slice into the french toast mixture. Don’t let soak in the mixture, just enough to cover all sides.
7
Fry
Fry french toast slices in a skillet filled with about 1/2 inch of avocado oil over medium heat. Fry until golden brown on all sides. Remove and transfer to a paper towel lined plate.
Nutrition
Per serving: 5 sticks
Calories
558
Fat
50.2g
Protein
19.1g
Total carbs
8.2g
Net carbs
4.8g
Nutrition is an estimate calculated from the ingredients listed. Brands vary, so check labels if you track closely.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make this dairy free?
I've done it. I use ghee instead of butter, unsweetened almond milk in place of the heavy cream, and a plant-based protein powder. The texture is almost identical. I noticed the crust browns a little faster with ghee, so I watch the heat more closely.
Can I use coconut flour instead of almond flour?
I've tested it and it works, but you need way less (about 2-3 tablespoons instead of 1/2 cup) because coconut flour absorbs so much liquid. Add an extra tablespoon of cream to get the batter right. I've also tried lupin flour and it works 1:1, but the bread turns an orangish-yellow color. Both taste good with the cinnamon.
How many net carbs per serving?
Each serving is 5 sticks at 4.8g net carbs, which works out to just under 1 net carb per stick. Two sticks come in around 1.9g net carbs. That math uses my homemade almond flour bread. If you swap in store-bought bread, check the label because carb counts vary a lot between brands, and I always recalculate based on the specific protein powder I'm using.
Can I bake these instead of frying?
I've tried baking at 400 degrees for about 12-14 minutes, flipping once. They come out lighter and less crispy than the fried version, but still good. I brush melted butter on each piece before baking to help the outside brown. The air fryer gives better results than the oven if you're trying to skip the oil.
Better than the diner version I grew up with, and I didn’t expect that from my first keto recipe attempt. Denser than I pictured, but it held together when I sliced it into sticks. I pulled them a touch early and the centers came out soft, so follow the timing even when the outside looks done. Annie, does the protein powder brand affect the crunch at all?
Hi Jordan, whey is what I use and it gives the best crunch. The only other one I’ve tested is a plant-based powder for the dairy free version, so I can’t say much on brands beyond that.
Vanilla works great here, actually makes it taste more like the real thing. I’ve used both and prefer vanilla in this one – the cinnamon coating leans sweet anyway.
Cinnamon smell coming off the pan just stopped me for a second, like legitimately stopped me, because I haven’t had that specific saturday-morning-french-toast smell in almost two years on keto and I had basically accepted it was just gone. Breakfast was the hardest part of switching honestly, not dessert, not pasta, specifically the slow-morning fry smell thing and I had just kind of quietly let it go. Made these sunday and the smell came first and I stood there a little longer than I needed to, then tried one and whatever the protein powder does to that cinnamon coating when it hits hot oil is genuinely something, the outside actually crisps up and holds instead of going soft. Four stars because the bread itself is denser than I remembered but I think that’s just the almond flour base and once you’re dipping and eating it fast it doesn’t really matter. Grateful this one exists.
The bread slices clean after 10 minutes in the freezer. I tried cutting it warm and the edges were ragged enough that the coating clumped, so the chill is worth it.
Brittany, the ragged edge thing is exactly why I freeze mine too. Warm bread drags under the knife and you lose that clean surface the coating needs. Ten minutes, that’s it.
The crunch on these is freaking unreal, no notes on that part. But the protein powder flavor comes through in the coating stronger than I was expecting. After the third stick it’s kind of all I could taste. Pulling back on the protein powder in the batter next time to see if the crunch holds up.
Added a tablespoon of softened cream cheese into the bread dough because I had an open block to use up and figured it couldn’t hurt. It changed the inside completely. The outside still gets that crunch from the protein powder coating but now the middle is soft and almost custardy, which is exactly what french toast should feel like. I’ve made the base recipe twice and this version is genuinely better, the cream cheese just makes it taste so much richer somehow. First batch I was worried it would be too dense but it baked exactly the same, just richer. Already planning to try adding a tiny bit of vanilla extract to the egg batter next time to see what that does.
Never thought to add cream cheese to the dough itself. Makes sense for that inside texture though. And yeah, vanilla in the egg batter, I’d start at 1/2 tsp.
Wasn’t sure about putting protein powder in the batter. Figured it would taste chalky, but the coating came out with an actual crunch to it, the kind you’d expect from a drive-through. Not what I expected at all.
That crunch was exactly what I was chasing with this. Protein powder in hot oil acts more like a coating than a flavoring, so the chalk never actually shows up.
Threw in a pinch of nutmeg with the cinnamon in the batter and it completely shifted the flavor. The protein powder coating was already doing something great texture-wise (those crispy ridges are freaking unreal), but the nutmeg makes it taste like actual diner french toast. Non-negotiable addition from here on.
Batch six and I finally stopped overthinking the frying step. The first few times I was flipping too early (before they had time to set up), and the coating would slide right off. Held off until they were really golden on the bottom and the protein powder crust locked in exactly like Annie shows. I also started adding an extra pinch of cinnamon to the batter and the flavor is just warmer. These are my Friday morning thing now.
Four batches in and I started double-dipping in the egg batter before frying and the crust came out thicker and crunchier than anything I’d gotten on the first few tries.
Used vanilla-flavored whey instead of unflavored and the cinnamon hit way harder than I expected. Also: let the bread cool completely before slicing into sticks or the edges tear. Ten extra minutes of patience, way cleaner cuts.
Churro coating is accurate. Vanilla protein amplifies the cinnamon sweetness in a way plain doesn’t, and it sneaks up on you. I need to try it with a cinnamon sugar dip on the side.
My kid was halfway through breakfast before he thought to ask where I ordered them from. The protein powder coating gives them this crunch that apparently does not compute as ‘something made at home.’ Showing him the dirty pan was the best part of my morning.
Made these yesterday and the coating kept sliding off in the pan. Not sure if I flipped too early or the oil was too hot. Any visual cue for when they’re ready to turn?
The sides are your cue. When the bottom edge goes from wet to golden it’ll release on its own. If you’re pushing it, it’s not ready. I’d also back off the heat a little, medium not medium-high.
