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If you're looking for the perfect breakfast, look no further! My French Toast Casserole recipe is tender, sweet, and utterly scrumptious- it's hard to believe it's done in just 40 minutes! Be it a Christmas morning treat or just an easy breakfast to keep you feasting for days, this delicious recipe is a for-sure family favorite!
Jump to:
- Overnight French Toast Casserole Recipe
- Overnight French Toast Ingredients
- Overnight French Toast Casserole Recipe
- Making Make-Ahead French Toast Casserole
- Make Ahead French Toast Casserole Tips
- Overnight Casserole French Toast Variations
- French Toast Casserole FAQs
- How to Store French Toast Casserole
- Easy Brunch Ideas
- Overnight French Toast Casserole
- Reviews
Overnight French Toast Casserole Recipe
French toast is one of my favorite breakfasts, hands-down. I tend to save it for special occasions like Mother's Day or Thanksgiving morning, but as my family kept growing, so did the portion sizes!
After years of making french toast, I decided to give breakfast casserole french toast a try! Let me tell you, I've never seen breakfast disappear so fast. I wanted to have leftovers, but I had to make another entire casserole the same day! Thankfully, it's all the flavor with half the work!
It didn't take long for me to learn to make it the day before. Making this casserole french toast overnight saves you all that morning prep, making a big breakfast easy as can be! Not feeding a whole family? Prepare for days of easy breakfasts!
Sooooooo good I made it for my husband and I the last time you shared & we had breakfast for like 4 days
- Julie on Instagram
Overnight French Toast Ingredients
- Brioche or Challah bread: I highly recommend a sweet loaf like Brioche or Challah! I used one with chocolate chips and it was to die for. If you want a more complex flavor, try using sourdough bread!
- Butter: Butter, combined with brown sugar, makes a delicious caramel-y base for this french toast that leaves it crispy, chewy, and utterly decadent.
- Brown sugar: It's important to use brown sugar, not white sugar. The molasses will help pair with the butter for a richer, more delicious caramel sauce.
- Eggs: Any large eggs work, but as always, I really recommend pasture-raised eggs. They just taste better!
- Milk: I recommend whole milk, which thickens up and has a lovely flavor in comparison to skim milk. You can also use half & half.
- Vanilla extract: For a sweet baked french toast casserole, I recommend vanilla extract! However, I've used pumpkin pie extract and almond extract before, and both were delightful.
- Cinnamon: A pinch of cinnamon adds a wonderful aroma and hint of spice that French Toast just isn't right without!
- Powdered sugar (optional): Personally, I like adding a dusting of powdered sugar to the top after it's done baking. It's just so pretty!
- Fresh berries (optional): You can mix them into the casserole before baking (ever tried blueberry french toast casserole?), or add them to the top afterwards for a fresh burst of juicy goodness!
Isabel's Top Tip
French Toast Casserole makes one of the best vacation meals. Prep it the day before you go on vacation, then take it with you to enjoy breakfasts all week long!
Overnight French Toast Casserole Recipe
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Butter a 9 by 13-inch baking dish and cut or tear your bread loaf into cubes.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add brown sugar and mix well until the sugar dissolves completely and the mixture is smooth and beginning to thicken.
- Pour the mixture into the bottom of your greased baking dish. Smooth out evenly across the bottom of the dish.
- Add bread cubes to the baking dish.
- In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, vanilla, and half of your cinnamon. Once whisked well, pour egg mixture over the cubed bread. Make sure all pieces of bread have been soaked. Mix together remaining cinnamon and sugar to make cinnamon sugar, then sprinkle over the loaf.
- Bake 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and fluffy. Remove from the oven and top with powdered sugar and fresh fruit if desired. Enjoy!
Making Make-Ahead French Toast Casserole
Making this casserole ahead of time is super simple. All you need to do is fully assemble it following the directions above, then wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge before baking it. It will continue to soak up flavor overnight!
On the morning you wish to serve it, bake it as usual straight out of the oven, then dig in! This is the perfect breakfast recipe for holidays!
Make Ahead French Toast Casserole Tips
- If your casserole is browning too quickly, cover it with foil for part of the cooking time.
- I recommend using brioche or challah bread for this recipe, or a nice thick sourdough. Avoid regular sliced white bread; it's so thin and airy, it will just turn to mush.
- 1-2 days old bread works best for French toast as it holds up better to the liquid. If you're using a fresh loaf, just leave the loaf out, unwrapped, for 1-2 hours. You can even speed up the process by tearing it into cubes and leaving them out for 30 minutes.
- If you want to avoid dairy milk, you can use almond, oat, or coconut milk instead.
Overnight Casserole French Toast Variations
- Savory: Add in cubed ham, bacon, or even a sprinkling of cheese on top for savory french toast. You can cut back on the sugar or embrace the sweet and savory!
- Orange: Orange pairs wonderfully with maple and caramel, so a great variation is adding orange zest to the milk and egg mixture!
- Blueberry: Mix in fresh blueberries with the bread chunks for blueberry french toast! You can also use frozen, but I recommend rinsing off any stuck-on ice and then dusting them in flour before adding them in.
- Pumpkin: Pumpkin french toast casserole is the perfect Autumn treat! To make it, mix in a can of pumpkin puree into the milk and egg mixture, and use pumpkin pie spice instead of cinnamon.
- Eggnog: This is the Christmas breakfast recipe you've been waiting for! Swap out the milk for eggnog and add a bit of nutmeg to the seasonings for this holiday classic.
French Toast Casserole FAQs
Try serving french toast diner-style, with eggs over easy and sausage links! You can also serve it the English way, with a topping of fresh whipped cream, berries, and syrup. I prefer maple syrup, but you can use your favorite.
There is no need to cover french toast casserole when baking unless you see that it is browning too quickly. If you find the top is browning more quickly than the center is cooking, cover it with foil for some of the baking time.
Use a loaf of challah or brioche bread for the best french toast casserole you will ever eat. I used chocolate chip brioche bread for mine, and it was delicious.
How to Store French Toast Casserole
- Fridge: Casserole french toast can be stored in the fridge for 5 days. I usually keep it in the casserole dish until only a few servings are left, at which point it can be moved to airtight containers. This makes it a great breakfast for the whole week.
- Freezer: Leftover casserole can easily be frozen in serving-sized containers, but only after it's been baked. You can also cover the entire casserole dish in plastic wrap and freeze it that way.
- Thawing: Thaw frozen portions in the fridge overnight, or place in an oven-safe dish and wrap in foil, then bake for 10 minutes at 425°F or until fully warmed through.
- Reheating: French toast casserole can be reheated in the microwave if already cut into portions, or in the oven if you want to reheat the whole dish at once.
Easy Brunch Ideas
- Banana Bread Waffles
- Sausage Breakfast Casserole
- Ham Quiche
- Sheet Pan Pancakes
- Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole
Check out 60 of my favorite buffet menu ideas!
Overnight French Toast Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 loaf Brioche - or Challah bread; we used chocolate chip brioche bread, how fun!
- ½ cup butter
- 1 cup brown sugar - packed
- 8 eggs
- 3 cups milk
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 teaspoons cinnamon - divided (one half is for egg mixture, other half is for topping)
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar - mixed with 1½ tsp. cinnamon for topping
- Powdered sugar - for topping - optional
- Fresh fruit - optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F and butter a 9 by 13-inch baking dish.
- Cut or tear your bread loaf into cubes.1 loaf Brioche
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add brown sugar and mix well, until the sugar dissolves completely and the mixture is smooth and beginning to thicken.1 cup brown sugar,½ cup butter
- Pour the mixture into the bottom of your greased baking dish. Smooth out evenly across the bottom of the dish.
- Add cubed bread to the baking dish.
- In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, vanilla, and half of your cinnamon. Once whisked well, pour egg mixture over the cubed bread. Make sure all pieces of bread have been soaked with the mixture.8 eggs,3 cups milk,3 teaspoons vanilla extract,3 teaspoons cinnamon,1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- Mix together remaining cinnamon and sugar to make cinnamon sugar, then sprinkle it over the loaf.1 cup brown sugar,1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- Bake 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and fluffy. Remove from the oven and top with powdered sugar and fresh fruit if desired. Enjoy!Fresh fruit - optional,Powdered sugar
Notes
- If your casserole is browning too quickly, cover it with foil for part of the cooking time.
- I recommend using brioche or challah bread for this recipe, or a nice thick sourdough. Don't bother with regular sliced white bread; it's so thin and airy, it will just turn to mush.
- 1-2 days old bread works best for French toast as it holds up better to the liquid. If you're using a fresh loaf, just leave the loaf out, unwrapped, for 1-2 hours. You can even speed up the process by tearing it into cubes and leaving them out for 30 minutes.
- If you want to avoid dairy milk, you can use almond, oat, or coconut milk instead.
Stacy says
Hello I plan on making this for dinner. Quick question, if I let it soak does brioche bread get soggy?
Isabel Laessig says
Hi there, Stacy! Thank you for your question! If the bread is a bit older, 1-2 days old, it will hold up better to the liquid. If it's still very soft, fresh bread, I'd be hesitant to let it soak for too long or it will become soggy. As long as you're not letting it soak overly long, it should be fine. If you're making it for dinner, I think it will work out well. And, enjoy!