The best French toast casserole has crispy pieces of bread peeking over and in between pillowy custard bites fragrant with cinnamon and orange zest that give way to nutty, crunchy crumble. An easy breakfast casserole to make ahead, it’ll become your go-to recipe for French toast bake for its sheer simplicity.
Prep Time1 hourhr15 minutesmins
Cook Time55 minutesmins
Course: Breakfast
Keyword: French toast casserole, Baked French toast casserole, French toast bake
Servings: 6people
Calories:
Author: Natasha Minocha
Ingredients
12slicesBread, cut into cubesI used Brioche. Sourdough will work very well here too.
Custard
1 3/4cup / 400 mlCoconut milk, full fatYou can also use half milk ( full fat) and half cream
4Eggs
1/2cup / 100 gmsBrown sugar
1tspVanilla extract
1tsp Cinnamon powder
2tspOrange zest
1/2tspSalt
Crumble Topping
3tbspButter, softened
2tbspAll-purpose flour
3tbspBrown sugar
1/3cup/ 45 gmsNuts, walnuts and pecans chopped
Instructions
Place the cubed bread in a 9" baking dish.
Custard
In a large bowl, combine the milk, eggs, brown sugar,, vanilla extract, cinnamon powder, orange zest, and salt.
Whisk well and pour over the bread. Press the bread down gently so it soaks the custard well.
Cover and keep aside for at least an hour. You can refrigerate the casserole at this point overnight as well.
When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 180C.
Crumble Topping
Combine the softened butter, brown sugar, flour and nuts in a small bowl using a fork, until small moist crumbs are formed.
Scatter the crumble evenly over the soaked bread and bake for 50-55 minutes at 180C, until the top is golden and puffy and the custard is set.
Let the casserole rest for 10 minutes before serving with maple syrup/ honey and fruits on the side. Enjoy!
Store the leftover casserole, covered in the refrigerator for upto 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or in a preheated oven at 180C for 10 minutes.