Overnight French Toast Casserole with cinnamon, vanilla and a secret ingredient. As healthy as french toast can be while still being an easy and delicious breakfast to feed a crowd.
“Overnight breakfasts” have been a popular thing for a while now.
I’m not sure why it’s taken me this long to jump on the bandwagon because the concept is right up my alley.
Breakfast and brunch foods are some of my favorites, but morning-me is not someoneequipped to cookup french toast on the regular.
Sometimes I I don’t even have the energy to make coffee until I’ve had coffee. #morningproblems
Suffice to say I’m not a morning person and this is whyI adore brunch restaurants so much.
With THIS casserole it doesn’t have to be a special occasion to get your french toast fix.
You spend 5 minutes putting it together the night before, and popit in the fridge til you wake up.
Then the oven will do the work for you while you’re sipping your morning coffee.
So I have a “secret ingredient” I like to include in my french toast that gives it a unique flavor.
Even better if it’s one of those orange juices that is mixed with another fruit juice. I like Simply Orange Juice with Mango, no pulp.
It adds a unique sweetness to it. Depending on my mood I will adjust the amount of OJ I use but for this casserole I’d suggest 1/2 cup, and even a full cup if you decide you really like the flavor.
But first let’s start with the bread. I used a brioche sliced loaf of bread from Trader Joe’s.
I find that fluffy, egg-based breads work best (so challah bread is a good substitution) but sometimes I see Italian bread used also.
Whichever bread you use, you’ll want to tear it up into pieces. The bread pieces should fill a 9×13 casserole dish.
In a bowl, you’ll whip together eggs, milk, half and half, OJ, and vanilla. Pour that over the bread pieces and sprinkle with cinnamon.
Then put in the refrigerator overnight (or at least a few hours) to allow the bread to soak up all the egg mixture!
After baking for 30-45 minutes (longer if you prefer crispy and less if you prefer soft), drizzle with maple syrup. I like mine around 35 minutes.
Depending on how hungry you are it should yield 6-8 servings.
Don’t you want to just smash your face in it?
It can’t just beme?
Like a pie eating contest. A french toast eating contest. That should totally be a thing.
Another overnight french toast recipe: Blueberry Cheesecake French Toast! Or if you can’t wait overnight, try this summer berry stuffed french toast recipe.
Yield: 8
Overnight French Toast Casserole with cinnamon, vanilla and a secret ingredient. As healthy as french toast can be while still being an easy and delicious breakfast to feed a crowd.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
Total Time45 minutes
Ingredients
1 large loaf brioche bread (or challah bread)
6 large eggs
1 cup milk of your choice (I use almond milk with vanilla)
1/2 cup half and half (or more milk)
1/2 cup orange juice (I use Simply Orange with Mango*), no pulp
1 tablespoon vanilla extract, (optional if using almond milk with vanilla)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
maple syrup, for drizzling
Instructions
Tear bread into pieces, slightly larger than bite sized. Place in 9x13 or 3 quart casserole dish.
In a medium bowl, whip together eggs, milk, half and half, orange juice, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour evenly over bread pieces.
Cover and place in refrigerator overnight or at least a few hours to allow the bread to soak up the egg mixture.
In the morning, preheat oven to 350°F. Bake casserole for around 30-35 minutes until lightly browned if you prefer a softer texture, up to 45-50 minutes if you prefer crispier (but watch for burning!)
Remove from oven and drizzle maple syrup on top. Serve warm.
Notes
The bread I used was 12 thick slices of brioche sandwich bread.
Prep time does not include time in refrigerator.
*The orange juice with mango is my *secret* ingredient but orange juice in general will add the extra kick of sweetness!
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Nutrition information is calculated automatically by an online tool at Nutritionix. It is not always accurate. Please use your own tools to check if you rely on this information.
It could be because of the bread you used. If the bread you start with is too soft (such as white sandwich bread), it won't absorb all of the wonderful custard that it should, and it might end up soggy. If you find yourself with a soggy casserole, for whatever reason, try baking it a bit longer until it firms up some.
Ideally it's best if you can soak the bread in the french toast batter overnight however, if this cannot be done I suggest leaving it soak for a minimum of 30 minutes to 1 hour. As we want that custard like middle, cut very thick slices of bread.
There are a few potential reasons why your overnight French toast may be soggy. One possible culprit is that you did not use dense enough bread, which allowed the custard mixture to soak in too much.
The best way to prevent it from drying out is to add a little bit of water, around ¼ cup, to the top of it. Allow the water to seep between the food and the sides of the baking dish. Cover with aluminum foil to seal in the moisture.
There are several possible reasons for soggy French toast. The first is using fresh bread, which soaks up too much of the egg mixture and doesn't cook through, remaining eggy and soggy in the middle. Leaving the bread in the egg mixture for too long is another route to soggy French toast.
Absolutely, you can make French toast in advance and reheat it later. This is a great option for busy mornings or meal planning. Simply cook the French toast, let it cool, and store it in the freezer. Reheat using your preferred method when needed.
A toast rack is the perfect way to do this, but you can also just prop the slices against each other like a little tent. You may also consider wrapping your deli-meats and any salad items separately and only adding them to your sandwich when you are ready to eat.
A creamy custard is the key to incredible French toast, so skip the watery skim milk and go for whole milk or half-and-half. Straight heavy cream turns French toast into dessert, so lean that way if you're looking for decadence.
French Toast is a delicious breakfast entree that is loved by many. With this in mind, french toast can be very calorie dense with high amounts of added sugar and fat. But, it can be tweaked to reduce the sugar and fat content while adding some fiber to your breakfast - yay!
How can you cook French toast so that it doesn't get soggy from the egg mixture but still gets soaked through in order to be soft inside? You need to slice your bread the day before and leave it out to dry overnight. That way, it soaks up the egg while maintaining its shape. Much better final texture.
Overnight French toast is very similar in flavor to a classic stovetop French toast, but instead of individually soaking the bread slices in the egg/milk mixture, then frying them on the stove, you layer the bread into a casserole dish, pour the egg/milk mixture over the top and refrigerate it overnight.
Use brioche or challah. These egg-based breads have a high butter content, meaning their crumb is tender and rich but light. In other words, they're an ideal foundation for super decadent yet airy French toast.
Your perfect companion for making French toast is a non-stick frying pan. CRISTEL® has an exceptional selection of non-stick frying pans with removable handles that are great for both pan-frying and also oven-cooking.
To prevent a soggy top and a firm or crunchy bottom, it's important to use a shallow baking dish, to cook the casserole at the correct oven temperature and for the appropriate amount of time, and to be mindful of the amount of liquid used in the recipe.
Frozen potatoes might release too much liquid, which could water down the casserole. Covering the dish with aluminum foil for the first part of the bake time helps the casserole heat through to the center without drying out on top. Remove the foil for the last half of the bake time so that the top can crisp up.
The best way to bake a casserole can depend on the specific recipe you are using, but generally speaking, covering the casserole with foil for part of the cooking time can help the food cook evenly and prevent it from drying out.
Introduction: My name is Merrill Bechtelar CPA, I am a clean, agreeable, glorious, magnificent, witty, enchanting, comfortable person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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