With this French toast casserole, you skip the hassle of standing by the stove and pan-frying each individual slice of French toast.
Instead, you just throw everything into a dish and let the oven do the work! You can even assemble the casserole the night before and bake it the next morning.
You still get all the best parts of a slice of French toast, but with far less effort: soft and custardy middles, cinnamon-infused edges, plus an extra-crunchy toasted topping.
For this French toast casserole, you are going to need a fairly large loaf of bread – enough to make about 10 cups once cubed. Use any good-quality loaf, like a French loaf, sourdough, ciabatta, or challah. I actually really liked the sourdough bread because the slight sour taste helped balance out the sweetness of everything else.
Leave the crusts on the bread since this adds some good, crunchy texture to the casserole!
I also added some orange zest and dried cranberries to my version to brighten up the flavors. You can leave these out if you want, or add your own favorite dried fruits to the casserole!
By the way, those extra-crunchy top pieces are like cinnamon and sugar croutons. As I was testing this recipe, I kept picking them from the top and leaving the bottom for my husband. Shh…don’t tell anyone.
French Toast Casserole Recipe
PrintMake-ahead instructions: Assemble the casserole through Step 4, cover well, and refrigerate overnight. The next day, uncover, drizzle the casserole with the topping, and bake. Baking time will be slightly longer.
This casserole reheats well, though the chunks of bread on the top will gradually lose some crunch. The best way to reheat it is to bake it in the oven at 350F for 10 to 15 minutes to warm through and re-crisp the top.
Ingredients
For the casserole:
- 1 large loaf good-quality French loaf, sourdough, ciabatta, or challah (enough to yield 10 cups of chunks of bread)
- 1/2 cup (45g) chopped pecans
- 5 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- Zest from one medium orange (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
For the topping:
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 3 tablespoons (40g) dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
Optional toppings for serving:
- Dried cranberries
- Powdered sugar
- Maple syrup
Method
1 Preheat the oven to 375F (190C). Place an oven rack in the center position.
2 Slice the bread into 1-inch slices and then cut them into 1-inch cubes. You can also tear the bread apart with your hands. Leave the crusts on.
3 Layer the bread and pecans in a baking dish: Lightly grease a 2-quart (if you want thicker slices) or 3-quart baking dish (if you want thinner slices) 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 chunks and pecans.
4 Prepare and add the custard: In a small bowl, whisk the eggs together. Add the milk, sugar, orange zest, and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon and mix well. Pour the egg and milk mixture evenly over all the bread chunks. (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 right away, or covered and refrigerated overnight.
5 Drizzle with topping: In another bowl, mix the melted butter with the brown sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and a pinch of salt. Using a spoon, drizzle the mixture evenly over all the bread chunks.
6 Bake the casserole for 35 to 45 minutes. I baked mine for about 38 minutes. Leave the casserole in the oven longer if you want the chunks of bread on the top to be more brown and crunchier.
7 Remove the casserole from the oven and let it cool for about 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle dried cranberries and dust powdered sugar on top, if you like. Serve with maple syrup at the table.
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Lisa Lin is the writer and photographer behind Healthy Nibbles & Bits, where she shares simple, gluten-free recipes. She grew up in San Francisco and spent time living in China and Washington, D.C. before moving back to California. Her recipes are often inspired by her time in China and travel throughout Southeast Asia.
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This was awesome. I didn’t have French bread – and not quite enough days old wheat. But here’s a game changer: I was given a bunch of little donuts from a Chinese restaurant. Cut them up and added them to the bread with finely chopped walnuts instead of pecans (what I had on hand). We’re snowed in and this really hit the spot.
My daughter commented how much she loved the orange zest. Nice touch
Can you use salted butter??
You can use any bread and it will still come out good. I have used leftover hot dog buns, sliced white bread, sourdough & all were a bit.
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Amazing recipe, used French Brioche bread, a little Amaretto liquor, walnut and chocolate chips. So easy to follow and customize based on what’s in your pantry/ fridge.
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Great recipe! Easy, and not time consuming.
I made it in a bundt pan because we like the browned edges! Delicious!!!!
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