Mother’s Day is right around the corner! This Overnight Cream Cheese-Stuffed Lemon French Toast with Strawberries is the perfect Mother’s Day breakfast or brunch. It can be made the night before.
One of my favorite things in the universe are cream cheese filled croissants. Also right up there are strawberries and lemons together. I also love French toast made with croissants instead of regular bread because the texture is so fabulous. So…this recipe is kind of a combination of all my guilty pleasures.
Ingredients Needed
French Toast
- Croissants – You’ll need 6 large croissants. You want them a little stale/dried out so they will soak up all the custard you’ll be pouring over them.
- Cream cheese – Use full fat or low-fat, avoid fat-free.
- Powdered sugar
- Lemons
- Lemon extract
- Eggs
- Whole milk
Strawberry Sauce
- Granulated sugar
- Vanilla or almond extract
- Fresh strawberries
Garnish
- Fresh strawberries
- Whipped cream
How to Make It
- First you’ll make your strawberry sauce. This step can be done a day or two ahead of time. Wash strawberries, remove stems and give them a rough chop. Combine berries, sugar, and extract in medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for five minutes, stirring/breaking strawberries up with a wooden spoon constantly. After five minutes, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly (if you have a glass blender jar) and a lot (if you have a plastic blender jar). When cool enough, transfer mixture to blender and pulse until desired consistency is reached. You can also use an immersion blender, which makes things super easy!
- Combine some softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice and beat with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
- Slice the croissants in half lengthwise and and generously spread the bottom half of each croissant with the cream cheese mixture, using all of the cream cheese mixture. Press the croissant tops down onto the cream cheese, flattening them a little. Place them into a 9×13″ pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
- Next, whisk together some eggs, milk, powdered sugar, lemon extract, and lemon zest. Pour evenly over the croissant mixture. Cover the pan with foil and refrigerate overnight for for 8-10 hours.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350. Place the covered pan in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 20-30 minutes or until the croissants are golden brown and all the liquid is absorbed. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 5-10 minutes.
- Cut into squares and serve with strawberry sauce, sliced strawberries, and, if you want (how could you not want?), sweetened whipped cream.
Storing and Other Tips
- Store leftover French toast in an airtight container in the refrigerator and consume within 3-5 days for best results.
- If you need to, you can cut your croissants into halves, or even fourths, depending on what you need to do to fit them into the pan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the custard mixture HAVE to soak overnight?
This recipe has only been tested as written. If you’d like to experiment, I would recommend letting the custard mixture sit for at least 8 hours before baking.
Mine turned out soggy. What happened?
Your croissants were likely too fresh! If they are not already getting stale, leave them uncovered on the counter to dry out a bit before using.
Cream Cheese-Stuffed Lemon French Toast with Strawberries
A delicious overnight French toast utilizing stale croissants, cream cheese filling, and bursting with fresh strawberry and lemon.
Servings servings
Equipment
Ingredients
French Toast
- 6 croissants large, stale
- 1 8-ounce package cream cheese softened, light is fine
- 1 ¼ cups powdered sugar
- 2 lemons
- 1 ¼ teaspoons lemon extract
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
Strawberry Sauce
- ⅓ cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or almond
- 1 pint strawberries
Garnish
- strawberries fresh, sliced
- whipped cream sweetened
Instructions
French Toast
- Slice the croissants in half lengthwise. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, zest of one lemon, strained juice of one lemon (about 1 ½-2 tablespoons), and ¾ cup powdered sugar. Mix with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
- Spread the lemon cream cheese mixture over the bottoms of the croissants and then replace the tops, pressing down to flatten. If necessary, cut into halves (or even fourths if necessary; you may not need to cut them at all) and arrange the pieces evenly in a 9×13″ pan lightly sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.
- Whisk together the milk, eggs, lemon extract, zest from the second lemon, and remaining ½ cup of powdered sugar. Pour evenly over the croissants and cover with aluminum foil. Refrigerate for 8-10 hours.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350℉. Bake covered for 30 minutes and then remove the foil and bake for another 20-30 minutes or until the croissants are golden brown and the liquid is absorbed. Remove from the oven and allow it to stand for 5-10 minutes. Cut into squares and top individual servings with strawberry sauce, freshly sliced strawberries, and sweetened whipped cream if desired.
Strawberry Sauce
- Wash strawberries and remove stems. Roughly chop strawberries.
- Combine berries, sugar, and extract in medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for five minutes, stirring/breaking strawberries up with a wooden spoon constantly.
- After five minutes, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly (if you have a glass blender jar) and a lot (if you have a plastic blender jar). When cool enough, transfer mixture to blender and pulse until desired consistency is reached. You can also use an immersion blender.
Notes
Store leftover French toast in an airtight container in the refrigerator and consume within 3-5 days for best results.
Nutrition
Calories: 234kcal, Carbohydrates: 37g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.003g, Cholesterol: 50mg, Sodium: 133mg, Potassium: 176mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 25g, Vitamin A: 311IU, Vitamin C: 33mg, Calcium: 63mg, Iron: 1mg
Calories: 234kcal
Cost: $8
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Questions & Reviews
I make this every year for Christmas brunch at my daughter’s house, and also for Easter brunch at my home! Have even made while on vacation with friends as a special treat! Everyone loves it!
Have made this many times over the past several years for Easter brunch and always received many compliments.
I also made on a trip to the outer banks with friends and everyone ate it until it was gone. Just packed my lemon extract in my liquids bag for the flight and made for a lovely breakfast by the ocean.
I’m trying to make this now and I wish you’d updated the printable recipe to indicate the cream cheese was to be softened, instead of leaving that info buried in the blog post 🙁 I didn’t allow it to soften first and my cream cheese mixture is lumpy and feels ruined.