Overnight French Toast Casserole is one way to get a delicious and well loved breakfast favorite prepared for a crowd and quickly on Christmas morning or New Year’s Day. Those are two of the rare occasions where I can actually manage to remember to prep a breakfast casserole the night before.
For baked French toast, you can assemble the dish the night before and simply pop in the oven the next morning. Once in the oven, you do not need to babysit the French toast while cooking unlike in stovetop French toast recipes. This collection of oven baked French toast recipes demonstrates how this technique really allows the flavors to soak into the bread, making each bite delicious. If you can’t always plan ahead for breakfast, many of these French toast recipes only need a short time to soak before baking.
Serves:6 to 8 servings
Ingredients
- 1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces)
- 8 large eggs
- 2 cups half-and-half (is light cream, made with: half milk half whipped cream)
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Dash salt
- Praline Topping, recipe follows
- Maple syrup
Directions
Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.
Praline Topping:
- 1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. Makes enough for Baked French Toast Casserole.
Recipe adapted from Paula Deen
