A traditional French petit déjeuner is often a simple breakfast of baguette tartines—slices of bread with butter and jam—alongside coffee, café au lait, or tea. This easy version serves four, using crisped baguette and gently warmed milk for a relaxed breakfast that is quick to assemble and easy to adapt.
Ingredients
- 1 baguette, about 14 oz (400 g)
- 6 tbsp (85 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (160 g) fruit jam or preserves, such as apricot, strawberry, or raspberry
- 1/4 cup (20 g) medium-roast ground coffee
- 1 1/2 cups (355 ml) water
- 1 1/2 cups (355 ml) whole milk
- 2 tbsp (25 g) granulated sugar, optional, for serving
Instructions
- Set out the breakfast ingredients. Allow about 12 minutes for preparation. Slice the baguette into pieces about 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) thick. Put the butter in a small dish and spoon the jam into a separate bowl. Measure the coffee and water, and set out four cups. If the butter is firm, cut it into small pieces so it softens while you prepare the coffee.
- Brew the coffee. Heat the water in a kettle or saucepan until it boils, about 4 minutes. Put the ground coffee in a French press, pour in the hot water, stir once, and steep for 4 minutes. Press the plunger down slowly. If you do not have a French press, use a drip coffee maker and brew the same amount of strong coffee; the flavor will be similar, though the body may be lighter.
- Warm the milk and crisp the bread. While the coffee steeps, warm the milk in a small saucepan over low heat for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Take it off the heat when steaming; do not let it boil or form a thick skin. Toast the baguette slices in a toaster or under a broiler for 2 to 3 minutes, turning or checking as needed. Toasting is optional: fresh baguette is also commonly served as tartines.
- Make the café au lait. Divide the brewed coffee among four cups, using about 3/4 cup (180 ml) coffee per person. Add about 3/4 cup (180 ml) warm milk to each cup, aiming for roughly equal parts coffee and milk. Serve sugar separately so everyone can sweeten their own cup.
- Build the tartines and serve. Set the warm bread, softened butter, and jam on the table. Spread butter on each slice, then add jam, or let everyone make their own. Serve promptly while the coffee is hot and the toasted bread is crisp.
Tips
- Choose bread with a good crust. A classic French baguette gives tartines their crisp edges and chewy middle. If a fresh baguette is not available, use a crusty country loaf or sourdough; sandwich bread works in a pinch but makes a softer, less traditional tartine.
- Let the butter soften naturally. Soft butter spreads without tearing the bread. If you forgot to take it out, cut it into small cubes and leave them at room temperature while the coffee brews. Avoid melting it, since melted butter can soak into the bread and make the tartine greasy.
- Keep the coffee strong enough to balance the milk. Café au lait should taste of coffee, not just warm milk. Use freshly ground coffee if convenient, or use a little less water with your usual brewing method. Do not compensate by boiling the brewed coffee, which can make it taste harsh.
- Use a favorite preserve rather than chasing one exact flavor. Apricot, strawberry, raspberry, and cherry all work well. A smooth jam spreads easily; a chunky preserve gives more fruit in each bite. If your jam is very firm, stir it briefly before serving instead of heating it.
Serving Suggestions
Bring everything to the table at once: a basket of bread, butter, jam, and cups of café au lait. In France, breakfast is often lighter and less elaborate than lunch or dinner, and a simple tartine with a hot drink is a familiar everyday pattern. The exact bread, spread, and drink vary by household and region, so this is a practical breakfast combination, not a claim that every French breakfast looks the same.
For a more substantial weekend table, add a croissant or pain au chocolat from a bakery, along with seasonal fruit or a small pot of plain yogurt. These pastries are often eaten without extra toppings, though a little jam is welcome if desired. Put out napkins and a small plate for each person; the bread can be dipped into café au lait by those who enjoy it, but dipping is optional. For children or anyone avoiding coffee, offer warm milk, cocoa, or tea instead.
Serve the coffee in bowls if you want a more old-fashioned, leisurely feel, or use regular cups for an everyday meal. A small glass of water alongside the coffee is also a useful addition. Keep the table simple: the charm of this breakfast is that it depends on good bread, a few well-chosen accompaniments, and food served while it is fresh.
Variations
Use a different loaf. A rustic pain de campagne, sourdough, or whole-grain loaf makes a hearty tartine. Slice dense bread a little thinner than baguette so it is easy to bite through. A softer brioche is another option, though it makes a richer and sweeter breakfast; toast it lightly and use less jam.
Change the spread. Honey, chestnut spread, or a thin layer of chocolate-hazelnut spread can replace fruit jam. These are convenient alternatives, but they make the breakfast sweeter and less fruit-forward. For a savory tartine, spread on a little butter and add thin slices of radish with a pinch of salt. Savory toppings are a variation rather than the classic butter-and-jam combination.
Adjust the drink. Use semi-skimmed milk for a lighter cup or oat milk for a dairy-free version. Oat milk tends to taste sweeter and may foam differently, but it warms well over low heat. For a stronger drink, brew a small amount of espresso or concentrated coffee and combine it with warm milk; the result is closer in strength to a latte than a bowl-style café au lait.
Make it a bakery breakfast. Replace some or all of the baguette with croissants or pain au chocolat. These pastries are best served at room temperature or warmed briefly according to the bakery’s directions. Avoid heating them for too long, which can dry out the interior and make chocolate filling too hot to eat comfortably.
Storage and Reheating
This breakfast is best assembled just before serving. Keep unsliced baguette at room temperature in a paper bag or bread box and use it within about 1 to 2 days, when its crust and crumb are at their best. Avoid refrigerating bread, which can make it stale faster. If you have more bread than you can use, slice and freeze it in a sealed freezer bag for up to about 2 months; toast slices straight from frozen or thaw them at room temperature.
Refrigerate leftover milk promptly, within 2 hours, in a covered container and follow the date and storage directions on its package. If you have mixed coffee and milk, refrigerate it within 2 hours and use it within 1 to 2 days for best flavor. Reheat a single portion gently on the stove or in the microwave, stirring and stopping when hot; do not repeatedly warm and cool the same batch. Butter and opened jam should be stored according to their labels. If tartines have already been topped, they can be refrigerated, but the bread will soften, so they are better eaten fresh.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a typical traditional French breakfast?
A common everyday breakfast is a hot drink with bread, often a baguette or other loaf served as tartines with butter and jam. Croissants and pain au chocolat are popular bakery choices, especially as a treat, but they are not required for a traditional breakfast. Customs differ between households, and some people prefer tea, fruit, or yogurt.
What does tartine mean?
A tartine is a slice of bread with a topping. For a breakfast tartine, the bread may be fresh or toasted and is often spread with butter and jam. The word covers many toppings, so a tartine can also be savory; the butter-and-jam version is simply a familiar breakfast style.
Is café au lait the same as a latte?
They are both coffee served with milk, but they are usually made differently. Café au lait traditionally combines brewed coffee with warm milk in roughly equal proportions. A latte is generally made with espresso and steamed milk, so it has a different coffee base and often a thicker layer of foam.
Can I make café au lait without a French press?
Yes. Brew strong coffee with a drip machine, pour-over, or another coffee maker, then combine it with warm milk. Use a little less water than you would for a regular-strength pot if the milk dulls the coffee flavor. The French press is convenient, but it is not essential to this breakfast.
Should the baguette be toasted?
No. Fresh baguette is perfectly suitable and gives a soft-centered tartine with a crisp crust. Toasting is useful when the bread is a day old or when you prefer a crunchier slice. If the loaf has gone very hard, toast it briefly and serve it promptly; butter and jam are easier to spread on bread that is warm but not brittle.
Can I prepare any part of this breakfast ahead?
You can slice the bread and portion the jam and butter shortly before breakfast, but the best texture comes from keeping the bread uncut until near serving. Coffee can be ground and measured ahead, and the cups can be set out the night before. Brew the coffee and warm the milk at breakfast time rather than storing a prepared café au lait, so the drink tastes fresh and the milk is not left sitting out.
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