This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This best-loved French toast casserole is perfect for making ahead of time! It’s perfect for holidays and gatherings and is delicious.
This French toast casserole is by far my most popular, but people also love our Cinnamon Roll French Toast Bake, and for a savory casserole – Sausage Breakfast Casserole.
WE Love it + You Will too!
We love breakfast foods. I could eat it any time of the day, and it’s fairly common to come over to the Merkley home on an evening and find us eating Belgian Waffles or this French Toast Casserole, which we LOVE.
Here is why you’ll love it too:
- CASSEROLE OF A CLASSIC. Everyone loves French Toast and this casserole version is even better, especially served with Buttermilk Syrup.
- MAKE AHEAD. This recipe is best when made the day before but also makes crazy days even more simple.
- HOLIDAY + SPECIAL DAY FAVORITE. It’s a great recipe for special days but since it’s made ahead of time, it makes cooking for holidays (like Christmas) so much easier!
It’s also great for brunch and baby showers. 😉
Best Bread TO USE?
This oven French toast bake calls for sourdough bread, which is my personal favorite.
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.
Here are some other options:
- Brioche
- Challah
- Pullman Loaf
- French Bread
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.
How to make French Toast Casserole
This baked French toast takes a few steps but is quite simple.
- 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.
SeRVING TIP
This French toast bake is delicious when drizzled in maple syrup, but here are a few more tasty ideas.
- Buttermilk Syrup
- Cinnamon Buttermilk Syrup
- Whipped Cream and sliced strawberries
French Toast Bake Recipe Tips
This baked French toast casserole should be soft on the bottom and crisp on the top.
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.
Variations
Change up your French toast casserole recipe with these delicious twists:
- 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!
Be sure to also check out our: Cream Cheese French Toast Casserole, Blueberry French Toast Casserole and our Pumpkin French Toast Casserole.
How TO Store French Toast Casserole
- 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 prebaked, cook it at 350°F for 20 minutes. If it has not been pre-baked, cook according to the recipe directions.
- STORE. 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.
More French Toast Recipes:
French Toast Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
French Toast
- 1 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 the 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°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.
Video
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 from Mormon Mavens in the Kitchen.
I made this with Gluten Free Bread. It turned out awesome! Everyone enjoyed it for Christmas breakfast.
Perfect 🙂 Thank you so much for letting me know! Glad it was a hit!
Love This! I used a whole grain skinny French bread instead. I also added some small cubes of cream cheese. My mom makes a French toast casserole and my husband doesn’t like the texture because it gets soggy. The skinny loaf stayed firm and everyone loved it! I’ll definitely be making this again!
Sounds great!! I will have to try! Thank you for sharing that!
I Made this for our Christmas Morning, used King’s Hawaiian Bread. I think I’ll bake it 60 minutes next time instead of 52. But it is delicious!
Glad you liked it! Thank you so much 🙂
This recipe Tastes so amazing and turns out PERFECTLY every time!
I give this recipe 5 stars because of ease and taste!
Yay!! I love hearing that 🙂 Thank you so much!
Made this for a family Christmas brunch and it was a big hit. I had to make this for someone lactose intolerant so substituted coconut milk and coconut cream. I doubled the brown sugar and cinnamon in the topping and added cinnamon to the egg mixture as well. plenty sweet and no need for syrup.
That sounds perfect! I am so glad it was a hit. Thank you for sharing that!
We love this recipe and have used it many times! We have varied it just a little and love this addition….would love to know what you think 🙂 We make the recipe as per the directions, and then in the morning, we dump two cans of apple pie filling into a 9X13 (or larger) baking dish, then dump the soaked french toast on the top, add the butter cinnamon crumble and bake. We love this and have called it “Apple Fritter Breakfast Cassarole”
That sounds delicious!! Thank you for sharing that. I will have to try!
I’ve actually made this with Sweet Bread loaf. the bread is drier and took less time for it to be on the stale side. Cut back some on the sugar also. I used a bit of maple syrup added to the egg mix. comes out perfect every time. I bring it to work on Christmas eve for our crew and bake it while we work. its a tradition now…Thanks so much for sharing. its always a big hit!! oh, using maple syrup in the mix eliminated the need to use it after its baked.
Thanks for sharing what you did!! Sounds great! I am glad it is a hit!
I like this recipe a lot more than Paula Deen’s Praline french toast. I had a smaller loaf so I didn’t use all of the egg or butter/sugar mixture. Even then, I would’ve lightly drained it because I like a drier french toast. Not a huge fan of the bread pudding consistency that so many baked french toast recipes yield. This is perfect. Not too sweet and not too dry. My french bread was so stale i could hardly cut it with my serrated knife lol. I think this made a difference as to how firm the whole thing got. thank you for sharing! This is now going in the recipe box. 🙂
You are so welcome! Thank you for sharing that! You made my day 🙂
i accidently used 12 eggs instead of 8. I didn’t pay attention. it was so delicious! Also, I made homemade blueberries on the side because it has bread pudding flavor to it. i drizzled it with syrup. It is a big hit in our house. thank you!
Yum! Lol..I am so glad you liked it! Thank you!
Can this be par cooked ?
I personally haven’t tried?