This Overnight Baked French Toast has all of the sweet and savory flavors of traditional french toast, but in an easy-to-make and serve casserole form. Thick slices of bread get dipped in a lightly sweetened egg mixture, then cooked until golden on the outside and soft on the inside. When it bakes, the topping creates a nice, sweet crunch, and kind of slips in between the cracks of bread. It comes together in minutes, making it perfect for busy mornings or a weekend brunch. Pile on your favorite toppings like fresh fruit, syrup, or a sprinkle of powdered sugar.
Ingredients Needed
- eggs
- half and half
- milk – whatever kind you have on hand is fine! I use 2 parts half and half to one part milk (whatever I have on hand) but you could also use all whole milk if you’ve got that around. Or 1 part cream 2 parts milk…you’ve got options. Just don’t use all skim milk for the liquid, you need to have the fat in there to get a nice creamy custard.
- brown sugar
- cinnamon
- kosher salt
- vanilla extract
- French bread – you can use a number of different breads in this. A loaf of french bread works great; that’s what I usually use, but feel free to use something like brioche, challah, or any other good french-toasty bread. You can buy it a day or two ahead of time because slightly dry bread absorbs the liquid really well. Don’t fret if you have fresh bread though, I often don’t dry out my bread and it works great; I actually like it extra soft like that. If you’d like to dry out your bread, you can pop it (already chopped) into a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes.
- butter
- brown sugar
- white sugar
- cinnamon
- ground nutmeg
- for serving: we recommend melted butter, maple syrup, powdered sugar, berries, whipped cream, or whatever else you’d like! You can serve this a million and one ways. If you’re serving with frozen berries, thaw them (and drain if you want) and mix them with a little sugar before serving since frozen berries tend to be tart.
How to Make Overnight French Toast
This is a simple overview of the recipe, you’ll find a full printable recipe below!
- Whisk eggs, half and half, milk, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and vanilla in a large bowl.
- Butter a 9×13 dish, cut bread into 1-inch cubes, and place in dish.
- Pour egg mixture over bread, gently toss to coat, spread evenly, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
- For topping: mix brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg; cut in cold butter until crumbly. Cover and refrigerate.
- In the morning, preheat oven to 350°F, uncover casserole, sprinkle topping evenly, and bake 40 – 50 minutes (until golden and set).
- Cool 5 – 10 minutes before serving; add syrup, berries, whipped cream, or powdered sugar if desired.
Storage & Other Tips
- Prep ahead: the best part of this recipe! This recipe was designed to sit overnight, so the bread can truly soak up all of that delicious, sweet egg mixture.
- Refrigerate leftovers (up to 3 – 4 days): let the casserole cool to room temperature, then store in an airtight container or cover it tightly with plastic wrap in the fridge.
- Freeze for long-term storage: you can freeze baked casserole (wrapped in plastic or foil) in the freezer for 2 – 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to use day-old bread?
Yes, day old or slightly stale bread absorbs the custard better and keeps the casserole from getting soggy. If you’re using fresh bread, dry it out first in a low oven.
I forgot to prep it the night before. Do I still have time?
It happens! You want it to soak for at least 8 hours before baking, so as long as you can fit that in, you’re good.
How do I know when it’s done baking?
Look for a golden-brown top and a set center. When lightly shaken, it shouldn’t jiggle. A toothpick inserted should come out clean.
What bread works best?
Sturdy, crusty breads like French, Italian, sourdough, challah, or brioche are ideal. Avoid soft sandwich bread unless it’s dried first. Having nice, thick chunks makes all the difference though!
Overnight Baked French Toast
This overnight baked French Toast with crunchy brown sugar topping comes together in just a few minutes the night before, then bakes in the morning for an easy, festive breakfast treat!
Ingredients
- 8 eggs
- 2 cups half and half
- 1 cup milk whatever kind you have on hand
- 6 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt a little less if using table salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 lb. loaf of French bread
- softened butter for greasing baking dish 2-3 tablespoons
Topping
- 4 tablespoons packed brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 tablespoons cold butter
For Serving
- melted butter
- maple syrup
- powdered sugar
- berries
- whipped cream
Instructions
- Crack eggs into large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Whisk in half and half and milk. Add brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and vanilla. Set aside.
- Use softened butter to butter bottom and sides of a 9×13 baking dish. Cut bread into 1 inch chunks and place in dish. Whisk egg mixture one more time and then pour evenly over bread. Use a rubber spatula to very gently toss bread, moving bread on bottom to top, and making sure all of the piece on top get dipped in egg mixture. Spread out evenly, cover dish, and place in fridge overnight.
- To make topping, place brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl and stir to combine. Cut cold butter into very small pieces and add to bowl. Use clean hands to break up butter and combine mixture until crumbly. Cover and place in fridge until morning.
- When ready to bake preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove plastic from dish and sprinkle topping evenly over top. Bake for 40-50 minutes or until top is golden brown. You can stick a knife or skewer in the casserole to make sure the egg mixture is set on the bottom. *Note I have left a generous baking time window because it varies on ovens and the size of your bread cubes. I used to cook this closer to 60 minutes at my old house, but in my new convection ovens it’s done closer to 45. Keep an eye on it and let me know how long yours takes to bake!
- Let cool for 5-10 minutes before cutting into squares. Drizzle with melted butter and syrup, top with berries, whipped cream and a sprinkle of powdered sugar if desired.
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Questions & Reviews
We usually have some kind of breakfast casserole Christmas morning so decided to go crazy and try this one for the first time. Baked it nearly an hour, could have done 5 min less but it was fine. Loved the crunchy topping. All the fresh berries were sold out on Christmas eve so I bought a frozen triple berry blend, thawed overnight in the fridge and let them come to room temp in the morning. I drained the juice and thickened it slightly with cornstarch and stirred back into the fruit. Topped casserole with fruit and fresh whipped cream. Everyone enjoyed.
A homerun on Christmas morning! Thanks for a great recipe, and Merry Christmas!
Thanks for the wonderful recipe. It worked perfectly as written for us (baked for 45 minutes) and my family loved it, especially the wonderful cinnamon sugar crunch of the topping.
I baked mine for almost an hour and a half and it was still soggy on the bottom. 🙁 Going to try it again with less milk.
This was a hit! I used the Very Cherry Berry frozen mix from Trader Joe’s mixed with a little sugar and it was perfect! Took about an hour in the oven. Thanks!
So I really hope that you guys get this even though it is xmas eve – I was wanting to make this for breakfast tomorrow but I currently can’t have dairy. I have a good butter substitute so no problem there and I have lot of substitutes for the milk, my only thing is the half and half. Could I just use more milk in place of the half and half and call it good or would that not work?
Yumm-o! Looks fabulous! You and Kate have a very Merry Christmas! 🙂
Question!!! I have made overnight french toast only one other time. I was SOO excited at the possibility of throwing it together the night before. I was truly disappointed when the middle was GOOEY! As in, not done. Now. I have never had bread pudding. I am not sure if it’s supposed to be that gooey or if my pan was not large enough or if it wasn’t baked long enough? If I baked it any longer, the top would have been hard. The outside parts were delicious, but the majority of the inside was inedible. Any suggestions? I REALLY WANNA MAKE THIS FOR CHRISTMAS MORNING! 😉
Could have been your recipe, your pan, under-baking, I can’t tell ya. All I can tell you is properly cooked and with the right recipe, it shouldn’t and won’t be gooey, soggy or undercooked.
I was never a big fan of the traditional French toast but I have to say this type appeals to me and yours looks great. Can’t wait to make it for someone!!
This recipe looks so good! =)
Im a big French Toast fan!