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.
Made this for Mother’s Day Brunch
It was fantastic
I used cinnamon bread
There were no leftovers
My family loved it
Yay! I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks for giving the recipe a try.
I made this for Mother’s Day and it was a hit! I used 1 loaf of Brioche bread from Fresh Market and halved the liquids, so 4 eggs, 1 cup of whole milk and no heavy cream. I used all of the other ingredients as listed. Let soak overnight. In the morning, baked with the foil on for 30 minutes and foil off for 20 minutes. It was perfect and not soggy at all! My husband, whom doesn’t not like french toast, told me it was delicious!
Yay!! I’m so glad that the recipe was a hit! Thanks for sharing what you did. Glad your hubby enjoyed it too!
I double the topping but this is a family favorite!
Oh so happy to hear that! That topping is yummy… don’t blame you for doubling it. 😉
I am pinning all these recipes! They look delicious and easy to make! I have a “Breakfast Club” where friends meet and we have a treat with our coffee,! These fill the bill! I have made the French toast casserole and have added blueberries or peaches too. Thank you so much!
How fun is that?! I love that idea. So glad you can use some of these recipes for that group!
An absolute winner!
Thank you!!
Made this today on a campers weekend. I used Hawaii bread, in place of milk used sweet cream coffee creamer and cut back a little on sugar. Every one was very happy, enjoyed it for breakfast. Then lunch and snacks. Will do again
Yum! Thanks for sharing what you did!! Glad to hear it turned out well!
made this today, eating right now.. DELICIOUS!! I followed the recipe (did forget the vanilla though)
I’m so glad that you enjoyed the French toast bake!! Thanks for giving it a try!!
I made this for Easter brunch last Sunday and it was a big hit! We have gluten allergies in the family so I substituted with GF ingredients and it worked out just fine. Everyone wanted the recipe! This one is a keeper!
I’m so happy to hear it! And that it worked well with GF options too. Thanks for sharing!
I was skeptical never made anything like this before and all I can say is OMG it was so good. I used French bread and it turned out good. Now I did cut down on one egg only cause mine were extra large eggs. I just printed this and it will be my go too from now on.
Yay!! So happy to hear that! Thanks for giving it a try. Glad to hear it was a hit.
When you say french bread, do you mean a regular sized baguette?
I used some leftover whole wheat bread and sprinkled in some pecans. It gave it a very wholesome flavor and was SO very delicious! We will definitely be using this recipe more often. I can relate to the morning rush! We also enjoy breakfast foods at dinner.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thanks for sharing what you did.
In case someone wants a 2022 comment ❤️ Just made this, used one French baguette from Publix (the long ones) and halved the egg mixture to avoid sogginess, and put it in a round 10-12 in cake pan to avoid sogginess and help keep it even. I put it in for 30 mins and monitoring it, added another 10 mins just to crisp it! I didn’t want to make too much in case my kids put their nose up to it 😜 but it is delicious!
Thanks for sharing what you did! Glad you enjoyed the recipe!