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.
I made this with regular French bread as I already had some. It was a hit at our brunch yesterday! People commented that it was just right and not too sweet. I would like to try pecan bits in the topping next time. I have another loaf of French that I will cube up & freeze for next time. Can’t wait!
Ooh the pecan bits sound heavenly! Good idea. I’m so glad the recipe was a hit!
This delicious French toast bake got rave reviews when I made it for our Mother’s Day brunch. It was easy to put together and so nice to prep the night before, leaving me plenty of time to get ready. I used brioche bread and accidentally put an additional 1/4 cup of heavy cream in, but it still came out beautifully.
I have a feeling this will be a go-to for holidays for years to come.
Thank you for sharing! I’m so happy to hear it was a hit!
This is amazing!!!!!Had a mothers day brunch it got rave reviews if you want to wow them make this!!!So good!Easy to throw together!
Thank you so much for sharing! I’m glad to hear you loved the breakfast!
Excellent recipe! And so easy! I only refrigerated for 4 hours before baking, but it turned out perfectly- thank you!
You’re welcome!! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it!
Just fantastic! Made this for Mother’s Day, followed the recipe as written and it turned out perfect. I used Challah bread, as that was available in the store. Family raved and had seconds and thirds. Great easy to make ahead of time recipe. Saved to favorites!
Yay! I’m so glad that you and your family enjoyed the recipe! It is a favorite over here too. 🙂
I just made this yesterday for a mother’s day brunch I was hosting and everyone loved it. It was absolutely perfect and didn’t even require any syrup or anything. I wound up adding chopped apples to the bread mix and pecans to the streusel topping….omg soo good!! Thank you so much for this recipe. I will definitely be making this again.
I have made this for two years now and LOVE it. Just wondering, can I prep this two days in advance?
Yes, you should be able to. You can also freeze it before or after baking. Wrap dish with plastic wrap then foil. It can keep for up to 2 months in the freezer. When you’re ready to eat thaw overnight in the fridge, remove all the wrapping and bake. If it been prebaked cook at 350 degree F for 20 minutes. If it has not been pre-baked, cook according to recipe directions.
breads come in many size packages. could you perhaps tell what size package you used of sourdough, thanks
oops read other comments and see answer, thanks. We are going to a local pizza/winery establishment to eat on Saturday for Mothers Day and I thought I would fix this for breakfast the next morning for whomever can attend.
Glad you were able to find the answer in the comments. That sounds like a lovely breakfast for Sunday morning!
Have you tried to make this for people who are lactose intolerant? What size loaf of bread?
I haven’t tried making this for anyone who is lactose intolerant, but I imagine you could substitute the cream with a lactose free option. Perhaps the Silk dairy free heavy whipping cream.
Amazing! I don’t even like French toast and I loved this.
Yay! That’s great to hear. So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
i used thiuis recipe. tasted fabulous. i used your custard recipe, but added fresh strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream cheese to each portion before baking. when it furst came out of the oven it was super fluffy and beautiful! but within 30 minutes fell flat.(still tasted awesome!) do you know what i can do to keep it fluffy?
OMG! This was amazing! Kiddos ate three plates full. I cubed the bread and toasted it in the oven at 300 degrees for 20 minutes to dry the bread completely. I put the bread in a gallon ziplock and poured the custard straight into the bag and refrigerated overnight.
Thank you!! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe!