Every Easter my favorite thing to make/eat are cinnamon rolls. My mom made them all the time growing up and I have become accustomed to the smell of cinnamon on Easter morning. This year though I decided to mix things up but wanted to keep the cinnamon smell and flavor. The result is this baked French toast casserole.
Another reason I had a desire to make this dish is I stopped by a Great Harvest Bread Company and found this amazing Challah bread. I sampled a slice in the bakery and fell instantly in love. I knew I had to make something scrumptious with it (although it tastes heavenly with just a spread of softened butter).
The final result of this recipe is a combination of French toast, bread pudding, and coffee cake. It tastes so good it doesn’t even need maple syrup (I would never deny my French toast maple syrup though so I of course had to pour some on).
This recipe is also great if you want to make it the night before and then bake it off it the morning. It’s perfect for breakfast, brunch, or even dessert!
Baked French Toast Casserole
Ingredients
French Toast
- 1 loaf challah bread, sliced into ¾ inch pieces
- 8 eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup cream
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup brown sugar
Topping
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Grease a 3 quart baking dish, and layer the sliced bread in two layers.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, cream, orange zest, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and brown sugar. Pour over bread and allow to soak for at least 30 minutes (1 hour or overnight is preferred).
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Make the topping by combining the brown sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon, and melted butter in a small bowl with a fork. Mixture should form small clumps.
- Sprinkle topping mixture evenly over soaked bread.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes or until middle is no longer running. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.
