The Cajun version of French toast made with stale bread is called pain perdu. The French name literally means “lost bread,” referring to bread that has become stale and would otherwise be wasted. Soaking it in an egg-based custard gives old bread a second life.
In Louisiana, pain perdu is especially associated with New Orleans Louisiana Creole cuisine, though it is also familiar across Cajun cooking. Traditional versions often use New Orleans-style French bread, which is dipped in a mixture of beaten eggs and milk or cream before being fried or griddled. Stale bread works well because it absorbs the custard without falling apart as quickly as fresh bread.
Pain perdu is commonly served for breakfast or as a sweet dish, with powdered sugar, cane syrup, honey, or fruit syrup. It is not the same as grits, boudin, or beignets: grits are a corn-based dish, boudin is a seasoned sausage, and beignets are fried pastries. The broader dish has many international names, but pain perdu is the Louisiana French term.