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A simple and filling OvernightFrench Toast Casserole recipe is a wonderful dish to serve guests!
Are you all ready for Thanksgiving? As you can guess, knowing what a non-planner I am, I haven’t even gone grocery shopping yet! I’d better get on the ball, right?
Actually, Thanksgiving around here this is year is going to be a very quiet one. In years past, we’ve hosted holidays where it wasn’t just the day of to worry about feeding people, it was the entire weekend! After cooking all Thanksgiving, I try to find simple solutions to feed a crowd for the post holiday breakfast. Overnight French Toast Casserole is one of my favorite recipes for a quick and easy breakfast. It serves the need to feed a crowd, can be prepared ahead of time, and is sooooo good!
You may bet thinking “Kristen, you just got done saying you are not a planner. Doesn’t this Overnight French Toast Casserole recipe require some planning?” It does, but doesn’t have to. Let me share what I love about this recipe and some tips to make it awesome.
Why I Love this Overnight French Toast Casserole Recipe
1. This recipe is easy to make
The Overnight French Toast Casserole recipe below is one of the easiest breakfasts. It basically requires slicing Bakery Bread into small bread cubes. After the slicing, in a large bowl you’ll whisk an egg mixture of eggs, sugar, vanilla and milk. Then pour it all into a casserole dish, top it with melted butter, sugar, cinnamon, and place in the fridge. When it’s time to feed the crowd, you take the French Toast Casserole out of the fridge to bake. This recipe calls for the casserole to bake it at 350° for around 45 minutes. Afterwards, you’ll have the most perfectly baked French Toast Casserole for breakfast. It’s that easy!
2. Overnight French Toast Casserole is versatile
For a holiday twist, this Overnight French Toast Casserole uses eggnog. I love giving recipes a holiday makeover. If you aren’t a fan of eggnog, there are many substitutions you can make. I’ve made French Toast Casserole with milk or a milk/cream mixture. I’ve also used flavored coffee creamer, which is a fun one to mix up the base flavor of the dish. Any milk or cream based liquid will do.
3. Fix the Overnight French Toast and Forget It
The best thing about Overnight French Toast Casserole is you can make it in advance. Fix it and forget it, as they say. If you have a busy weekend with company in town, this recipe can be made before company comes and placed in the refrigerator overnight. On the day of breakfast, you pull it out and bake it.
I know I mentioned earlier I’m not always the best at planning in advance. If you’re like me, you may be wondering “Can I make French Toast Casserole and bake it right away?” YES! The BEST way to make French Toast Casserole is to let it sit overnight. This gives all the flavors time to meld together in the best possible way. If you don’t have time to wait overnight, assemble the French Toast Casserole as soon as you can. Let it sit, soaking up the flavors, for at least an hour. This short time won’t be as good as overnight, but your breakfast will still turn out great!
Tips for Overnight French Toast Casserole
- Use Sourdough, French Bread, an eggy Brioche Bread for best results. Regular sandwich bread just won’t cut it in this recipe. Hit up your favorite bakery and ask them what they recommend.
- Choose a variety of toppings for your French Toast Casserole. Serve with Maple Syrup and homemade whipped topping for a combo of flavors that’s really good. Fresh fruit and powdered sugar are also great topping options.
- French Toast Casserole is best served soon after removing from the oven. You can re-heat it to eat later, but I recommend eating it right away. Besides, it’s so good, I doubt you’ll have leftovers anyway!
I love recipes I can get all ready today, place in the fridge, and simply bake the next morning, don’t you? If the answer is yes, check out the Overnight French Toast Recipe below to serve this holiday. It is a definite crowd pleaser.
Besides this Overnight French Toast Casserole, a few of my other favorite breakfast recipes are:
- Cheesy Baked Eggs
- French Toast Monkey Bread
- Avocado Breakfast Casserole
- Homemade Copycat Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls
- Simple Spinach Quiche
- Breakfast Pizza
All of these recipes can be made in a pinch and baked and served to your guests the next morning! So very easy!
I hope you all have a most wonderful Thanksgiving. I am absolutely thankful to each and every one of you for visiting Dine & Dish, commenting and just being there! It means so much to me.
Have a great day full of tasty food and remember to count your blessings! We have a lot to be thankful for.
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5 from 2 votes
French Toast Casserole
A simple, no fuss, French Toast Breakfast Casserole recipe.
Prep Time 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes minutes
Servings 10 -12
Ingredients
- 1 loaf French bread cut into 1 inch cubes (should equal approximately 10 cups)
- 8 eggs
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup eggnog or 1 additional cup of milk instead of eggnog
- 3 Tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
For the Topping:
- 2 tablespoons butter cubed
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- Maple Syrup Whipped Cream or Fruit Preserves (optional)
Instructions
Place bread cubes in a 9x13" baking dish sprayed with PAM cooking spray.
Bbeat eggs, milk, eggnog, sugar, vanilla and salt in a medium mixing bowl until well blended.
Pour mixture over bread and cover and refrigerate overnight.
Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Dot bread cubes with butter.
Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over the top.
Cover and bake at 350° for 45 to 50 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean.
Let stand 5 minutes.
Cut into slices and top with maple syrup, whipped cream and/or fruit preserves if desired.
Notes
Prep time does not include overnight time in the fridge.
