French Toast Casserole is one of our family’s favorite breakfast recipes. In fact, we make it for special occasions all year long and ALWAYS on Christmas Day. Thick cubes of bread are soaked in a sweet vanilla custard and topped with a buttery cinnamon crumble. It is simple enough for a weekend breakfast and special enough for holiday breakfast or brunch.
The best part is that you can prepare everything the night before. In the morning, just pop it in the oven and let it bake. It’s not only delicious, but feeds a crowd and is especially perfect for feeding guests in town.
For other breakfast favorites, check out our Sausage breakfast casserole and classic holiday breakfast casserole. And if oyu are looking for something equally as impressive to pair it with, try our Easy Candied Bacon.
Why we think you’ll love it:
- Simple. The easiest make-ahead breakfast for holidays or weekends.
- Customize. Easy to customize with fruit, nuts, or chocolate chips.
- Holiday perfection. Perfect for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any special occasion AND perfect for feeding a crowd or enjoying leftovers later.
- Your house will thank you. Our French Toast Bake smells amazing and looks beautiful with minimal effort.
French Toast Casserole Ingredients
- Bread (1 24-ounce loaf of sourdough, brioche, French bread or challah): The main idea is that you want the bread to be sturdy enough that the bread cubes will hold up after being combined with the egg mixture.
- PRO TIP: For any of these breads, you can slice and toast or let slices sit out for 24 hours to make them more stale and sturdy.
- Eggs (8 large): Create the rich custard and give the casserole structure.
- Milk (2 cups) and heavy cream (½ cup): Add moisture and richness.
- Vanilla extract (1 tablespoon): Adds warm, sweet flavor.
- Sugar (¾ cup): Sweetens the custard perfectly.
Topping
- All-purpose flour (½ cup): Helps create the crumble texture.
- Packed light brown sugar (½ cup): Adds caramel-like sweetness.
- Ground cinnamon (1 teaspoon): Brings warm, cozy flavor.
- Salt (¼ teaspoon): Balances the sweetness.
- Cold unsalted butter (½ cup, cut into pieces): Creates the crumbly, golden topping.
How to Make French Toast Bake
BREAD. Cut bread into 1-inch cubes and scatter evenly in a greased 9-x-13-inch baking dish.
EGG MIXTURE. In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, milk, heavy cream, vanilla, and sugar together, then pour evenly over the bread.
CHILL. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
TOPPING. Mix flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. Cut butter into this mixture until crumbly. Place the topping in a small resealable plastic bag and refrigerate overnight as well.
BAKE. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Unwrap the baking dish and sprinkle the topping evenly over the bread. Bake, uncovered, for 45–60 minutes, depending on how soft you like it. This overnight French toast casserole should be soft on the bottom and crisp on the top.
Serve it with some of our favorites, including: Buttermilk Syrup, Cinnamon Buttermilk Syrup, Whipped Cream and sliced strawberries
Kristyn’s Recipe Tips
- BREAD. Choose sturdy bread such as sourdough, challah, or brioche so it can soak up the custard without getting soggy.
- OVERNIGHT. Soak overnight to let the flavors deepen and the bread fully absorb the custard.
- TOPPING. Keep the topping chilled until you are ready to bake, then sprinkle it over the bread for the best texture.
- TOO SOGGY. If your casserole comes out too soggy try some of these tips:
- Soak the bread in a separate bowl. If there’s too much egg in the pan it may be left a little soggy. One way around this is to store your bread mixture overnight in a bowl. In the morning, transfer the bread to the baking dish leaving behind the extra liquid.
- Not soaking the bread long enough. You want the egg mixture to seep deep into the bread for a soft custardy center. If the mixture doesn’t have time to soak into the bread it may end up creating a soggy mess.
French Toast Casserole Recipe
Video
Ingredients
French Toast
- 1 (24-ounce) loaf sourdough bread (or brioche, challah or French bread)
- 8 large eggs
- 2 cups milk
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup sugar
Topping
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Instructions
- Cut bread into 1-inch cubes and scatter evenly in a greased 9-x-13-inch baking dish.
- In a medium bowl, mix eggs, milk, heavy cream, vanilla, and sugar together, then pour evenly over bread.
- Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
- To make the topping, mix flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. Cut butter into this mixture until crumbly. Place the topping in a small resealable plastic bag and refrigerate overnight as well.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Unwrap the baking dish and sprinkle the topping evenly over the bread.
- Bake, uncovered, for 45-60 minutes, depending on how soft you like it.
Notes
Variations.
o For a more savory casserole, add ham and cheese, chorizo, green chilies, sausage, or crumbled bacon.
o For a sweet casserole, add thinly sliced apple, orange zest, sliced apricots, sliced pineapple, blueberries, or chopped pecans.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
For a more savory casserole: ham and cheese, chorizo, green chiles, sausage, or crumbled bacon.
For a sweet casserole: thinly sliced apple, orange zest, sliced apricots, sliced pineapple, blueberries, raspberries, and chopped pecans.
You can also swap ingredients, like milk for almond milk, cinnamon for nutmeg and more!
FREEZE. Freeze this easy French toast casserole before or after baking. Wrap the dish with plastic wrap then foil and freeze for up to 2 months. When you’re ready to eat, thaw overnight in the fridge, remove all the wrapping, and bake.
If it has been pre-baked, cook it at 350°F for 20 minutes. If it has not been pre-baked, cook according to the recipe directions.
If you have any leftover baked French toast casserole, cover the pan with plastic or divide it into individual airtight containers. Keep it in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave.
About 55 or 60 years ago, I’m 83, I found a recipe for 7-up cake in a church cookbook. It called for lemon extract. Well, with a couple young boys running around, I grabbed the Mccormik Rum extract by mistake and added the 1 oz bottle before I realized my error. My family and friends raved about that cake, and still ask for it, so I’ve been using Rum extract ever since. For Easter, I thought I’d try your French Toast Casserole, using Rum extract. I also added about half a cup of raisins and chopped walnut before adding the topping. OMG! Everyone loved it. I only wish I had plumped the raisins in hot water first; they were a little dry. The Mccormik Rum extract isn’t as available as it used to be but can be found on Amazon. Thank you, Kristyn, for sharing your yummy, and easy, recipe. Can’t wait to try some of your other recipes and tips, that prove you’re never too old to learn something new!
That is too funny, but I guess it made your recipe a hit & a favorite! Love what you did with this recipe! So, happy it was a hit! Thank you!!
Amazing!! I halved the topping portions due to what I had on hand, and it was still perfectly delicious.
Perfect!! Thanks for trying it!
LOVE THIS RECIPE! Perfect decadence! I used to love French toast but lately it’s just too eggy for me. This recipe is not eggy at all. I used a 24oz loaf of Texas toast that I left out to dry a little before adding the liquid. Then put it in a seperate bowl in the refrigerator overnight. It soaked up everything! I ended up baking this about 55 min. Around 45 min the edges puffed up. Took the middle a little longer but it was baked to perfection! I put a sheet pan under my glass 9×13 so the bubbling juices would not get on the bottom of the oven.
Love this! Thanks so much for sharing what you did! Happy you love it!
I messed up but I’m not sure how. I followed the recipe but mine turned out with what looks like scrambled eggs in between bread. It tasted yummy but I have a daughter who hates eggs so if it’s not visible she’ll eat it but if it looks or tastes eggy she won’t touch it. I did use fresh farm eggs and homemade sourdough bread. Maybe I didn’t use enough sourdough bread? I like the flavor and it was so easy to make. I gave it 5 stars because I’m assuming I messed up on my end just not sure how and it does taste yummy
Oh, shoot! I’m sorry it didn’t turn out! I wish I knew exactly what happened. I am wondering if there wasn’t enough bread to soak in the egg mixture? Did you soak it overnight?
Perfect as is!
So happy you think so! Thank you!
Fantastic! Made for Easter Brunch and everyone loved it! Added chopped walnuts on top and it was perfect!
Perfect! Thank you for sharing that! Glad you like it!
Made this with a chocolate chip brioche for Easter and it was a huge hit with everyone! Definitely going to make this a holiday breakfast staple from here on out!
That would be so yummy! Thanks for sharing that!
I’ve been making this recipe for years. It’s a family favorite for Christmas and Easter and is also requested by my kids all year long. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!!
You are so welcome! It’s one of our favorites, too! Thank you!
Huge hit. Thank you!!
Glad to hear that!! Thank you for sharing!
How much is one loaf. 16 oz? 24 oz?
I’m wondering the same!
One loaf is about 24oz.