Cinnamon French Toast Casserole

This French Toast Casserole is the perfect easy breakfast to serve a crowd. With a classic brown sugar and cinnamon flavor, delicious streusel topping, and bread pudding texture in every bite. It’s like traditional french toast but baked into a casserole dish. You can make in a few hours or prepare for overnight!

Why You’ll Love This

• If you’re looking for an easy breakfast to throw together, this french toast bake is it!
• You can prep french toast casserole overnight for an easy breakfast the next morning
• Perfect for any occasion – whether it’s the holiday season, mother’s day brunch or just a meal prep breakfast.

Casserole Ingredients

This easy baked french toast casserole is broken down into two parts: the french toast and the topping. Here’s what you need for both:

French Toast

• day old bread (crusty french bread, sourdough bread, or something similar) – You’ll want to make sure the bread is on the drier side, so the egg mixture soaks into the bread without it getting soggy. The best bread to use is leftover bread, or stale bread. Keep reading if you need a quick way to dry out your bread.
• eggs and egg whites – I like to use a mix of eggs and egg whites, which lightens up the egg bake a bit but still adds lots of protein.
• milk of choice – feel free to use the milk of your choice such as almond milk, whole milk, soy milk, cashew milk, etc.
• canned coconut milk or half & half – the higher fat milk gives this french toast bake a richer texture.
• brown sugar – for a slightly sweet filling. You can always add more sweetness with toppings as you’d like.
• ground cinnamon – for warmth and flavor.
• vanilla extract – for sweet vanilla essence

Streusel Topping

• unsalted butter – feel free to use plant based of conventional depending on dietary preference.
• brown sugar – for sweetness and that slight molasses flavor
• flour – to help soak up the butter and create the crumb topping. Feel free to use a grain flour of your choice, such as all-purpose, whole wheat white, etc.
• ground cinnamon – cinnamon is always a nice addition to a streusel topping
• nutmeg – adds some extra hint of spice
• pecans – for crunch.

How to Make a French Toast Bake

Making a french toast casserole couldn’t be easier. You just need to cube your bread, make the custard mixture, combine everything together, soak and bake!

Here’s a step-by-step overview of how to make this recipe, with the full amounts of ingredients and directions in the recipe card below.

Prepare Bread

Slice the day-old bread into 1-inch cubes and add to the bottom of a greased 9×13 baking dish.

TIP: If your bread is fresh, you can slice into 1″ slices and bake in the oven at 300ºF for 10 minutes to dry out slightly. Let cool before cutting into cubes.

Mix Egg Filling

In a large mixing bowl whisk eggs, egg whites, milk, cream (coconut milk or half & half), brown sugar, cinnamon and vanilla extract until combined.

Soak & Chill

Pour the egg milk mixture over the bread cubes in baking dish and cover tightly. Chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight (up to 8 hours).

Bake

Add the streusel topping on top of the egg-soaked bread, pressing gently down. Bake the french toast for 45 minutes, up to 55 minutes if you want a crustier topping and firmer texture. If the topping starts to brown too much (check after 35 minutes), tent with foil during the last 10 minutes of bake time.

Topping Suggestions

You can serve this baked french toast casserole recipe a variety of ways. Here are some favorites:

• Fresh fruit, such as blueberries, strawberries and bananas.
• Serve with pure maple syrup for a classic french toast celebration.
• Add whipped cream, yogurt or splash with heavy cream.
• Top with orange zest and powdered sugar for a restaurant quality presentation.

Occasions to Serve

You don’t need a special occasion to serve baked french toast but if you’re looking for some ways to celebrate, here are some ideas:

• Mother’s Day
• Christmas Brunch
• Easter Brunch
• Weekend brunch
• Any holiday breakfast – the flavors are classic so it works for any occasion!

Recipe Tips & Notes

Make sure to use dried out bread. You can do this by letting your loaf sit out on the counter for a day. If you’re in a hurry, slice the loaf into 1″ slices and bake in the oven at 300ºF for about 10 minutes, then continue preparing the bread by slicing it into cubes.

Don’t over-soak the bread – you don’t want it to sit for more than 9 hours overnight.

Feel free to use your choice of milk and butter, depending on dietary needs.

Make sure to grease your baking dish with butter so the baked french toast servings comes out clean.

Storing & Reheating

Store any leftovers in the fridge, covered in the baking dish, and enjoy within 5 days.

To reheat, you can use the toaster oven “reheat” option for about 10 minutes, or simply microwave for about 30 seconds per large slice.

More breakfast bake recipes to try:

• Berry French Toast Casserole
• Pumpkin French Toast Casserole
• Everything Bagel Breakfast Bake
• Vegetarian Breakfast Strata

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