This EASY French Toast Casserole has a super crunchy cinnamon sugar top! Bake immediately or make ahead and refrigerate overnight. Make your family happy this Saturday morning!
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With this French Toast Casserole, you’ll skip the hassle of standing at the stove and frying each individual slice of French toast in the pan.
You still get the best parts of a slice of French toast, but with a lot less effort: soft and custard-like centers, cinnamon-infused edges, and an extra-crunchy toasted topping.
Video: How to make French Toast Casserole
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French toast casserole
what you will need
You’ll need a fairly large loaf of bread for this French toast casserole — enough to make about 10 cups after dicing. Use any good quality bread, like French bread, sourdough, ciabatta, or challah. I actually really liked the sourdough bread because the slightly tart flavor helped balance out the sweetness of everything else.
Leave the crusts on the bread as this gives the casserole a good, crunchy texture!
Add some toppings!
I also added some orange zest and dried cranberries to my version to brighten the flavors. You can omit these if you’d like, or add your own favorite dried fruit to the casserole!
By the way, these extra crunchy tops are like cinnamon sugar croutons. When testing this recipe, I always plucked them from the top and left the bottom for my husband. Pssst… don’t tell anyone.
How to make overnight french toast casserole
You can absolutely make this recipe straight away and bake it right away, but for a completely hassle-free and stress-free morning, put it together the night before and bake it when you get up in the morning. This actually gives the bread even more time to soak up the milk, making the inside of the baked casserole more pudding-like and decadent.
Here’s what to do: Assemble the casserole in step 4, cover tightly, and refrigerate overnight. The next day, uncover the casserole, drizzle with the topping and bake. The baking time will be a little longer.
Ways to make this recipe your own
We’ve received some fabulous comments since we first posted this recipe! Here are a few ideas you should definitely try:
- Add a little liquor to the pudding, like amaretto or rum (a few tablespoons should do the trick!)
- Use cinnamon strudel bread for the bread!
- Do not substitute milk for milk, e.g. B. almond milk or cashew milk
- Use donuts or leftover cake instead of bread (oh my god)
- Add some crispy, crumbled bacon, either in the mixture or on top – or both!
What other ideas do you have? Tell us in the comments!
Looking for more french toast recipes?
- Baked Blueberry French Toast
- French toast with eggnog
- French toast filled with honey ricotta
- Apple Cinnamon French Toast Muffins
- Baked Cherry French Toast Casserole
Bake French Toast Casserole Now Vs. Later
If you make this casserole right away, the top layer of bread can get hard because it hasn’t had enough time to soak up much of the egg mixture. To avoid this, try these tips.
- Use a softer bread.
- Instead of pouring the custard over the bread cubes in the casserole dish, mix the bread cubes and custard together in a bowl first to soak all the cubes with the custard.
If you let the casserole sit overnight before cooking, you won’t need to make any adjustments. And you get a creamier texture.
How to store leftovers
Refrigerate leftovers tightly closed for up to 5 days. Place in a preheated oven at 350°F for 10 to 15 minutes or until warmed through and crispy on top again. The slices can be reheated in the microwave.
Can this french toast casserole be frozen and reheated?
The ready cooked casserole can be frozen, although fresh is better. However, if you have leftovers to freeze, wrap individual servings in plastic wrap and then a layer of foil. Thaw each slice overnight in the refrigerator or microwave on the defrost setting. Heat in the microwave until just warmed through.
5 more easy breakfast ideas
- Baked oatmeal with mixed berries
- Shakshuka with feta, olives and peppers
- zucchini bread
- Sheet Pan English Breakfast
- Overnight oats with strawberry buttermilk
From the editors of Simply Recipes
French toast casserole
Make Ahead Instructions: Assemble the casserole in step 4, cover tightly, and refrigerate overnight. The next day, uncover the casserole, drizzle with the topping and bake. The baking time will be a little longer.
This casserole reheats well, although the pieces of bread on top gradually lose their crispiness. The best way to reheat it is to bake it in the oven at 350F for 10 to 15 minutes to heat through and get the top crispy again.
ingredients
For the casserole:
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10 cups good quality french breadSourdough, ciabatta or challah, diced
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1/2 cup (45G) chopped pecans
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5 big eggs
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1 1/2 cups whole milk
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1/4 cup (50G) granulated sugar
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Zest of 1 medium orange, finely grated (optional)
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1/2 teaspoon Cinammon
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1/4 teaspoon kosher Salt
For covering:
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4 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
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3 tablespoons (40g) dark Brown sugarpacked up
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1 teaspoon Cinammon
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prize kosher Salt
Optional toppings for serving:
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1/4 Cup dried cranberries
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1/4 Cup powdered sugar
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1 tablespoon maple syrup
method
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Preheat the oven to 190°C:
Place an oven rack in the middle position.
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Dice bread:
Cut the bread into 1-inch slices, then cut into 1-inch cubes. You can also tear the bread with your hands. Leave the crusts on.
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Layer bread and pecans in a casserole dish:
Lightly grease a 2-quart (if you want thicker slices) or 3-quart (if you want thinner slices) casserole dish with cooking spray or butter. Add enough bread cubes to cover the bottom. Sprinkle a few tablespoons of pecans on top. Continue layering the bread pieces and pecans.
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Preparation of the cream:
In a small bowl, whisk the eggs together. Add milk, sugar, orange zest, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, and salt and mix well. Pour the egg and milk mixture evenly over each piece of bread. (I found it easier to pour the mixture into a large measuring cup with a spout first before pouring the mixture over the bread.)
At this point the casserole can be baked immediately or covered and refrigerated overnight.
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Drizzle with topping:
In another bowl, mix the melted butter with the brown sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Using a spoon, drizzle the mixture evenly over each piece of bread.
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Bake:
Bake the casserole uncovered for 35 to 45 minutes. I baked mine for about 38 minutes. Leave the casserole in the oven longer if you want the bread pieces to brown and crisp on top.
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Remove, cool:
Allow the casserole to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.
Sprinkle with dried cranberries and powdered sugar, if you like. Serve at the table with maple syrup.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 277 | calories |
| 9g | Fat |
| 42g | carbohydrates |
| 8g | protein |
