French Toast Casserole

November 14, 2020

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With the holidays coming up, you might be needing a nice breakfast casserole to serve your guests… if you have any COMING this year, that is!  Most people will have at least a FEW family members stay over and this dish is soooo easy to make and is sure to please the masses!  You will need to plan ahead because it needs to soak in the refrigerator overnight, but it is easy to do the night before while everyone is chatting it up in the kitchen.  Let us know if you try it out and how your group enjoyed it… our family LOVES THIS!  You can cut back on the fat content of the milk used and try using half & half instead of the whipping cream… but just know that the custard base will NOT be as creamy and rich tasting.  Remember that you aren’t going to eat the entire casserole yourself, you will most likely only be eating ONE PIECE… maybe TWO.  LOLOLOLOL  But seriously… this is sooooo delicious that everyone is going to go CRAZY over it!  Mummy has never tried to do it, but I am sure you could easily cut this recipe in half when you just need a smaller portion for your immediate family.  Just try baking it in an 8″ square dish… I think that would work, actually!  We are sending your family lots of love this Thanksgiving and hope that you stay safe and healthy.  KISS KISS

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FRENCH TOAST CASSEROLE

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1 loaf of French bread ( I used a soft baguette) cut into bite-sized cubes / 10 cups

10 eggs

3 cups whole milk

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 TABLESPOONS vanilla extract (yes, that is TABLESPOONS!)

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TOPPING

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1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 stick unsalted cold butter, cut into small pieces

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Grease a 9 x 13″ pan with butter.  Cut your bread into cubes and sprinkle over your greased pan.  In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs.  Add the milk, whipping cream, sugars and vanilla extract.  Whisk until it is well combined and you can feel that the sugars have dissolved.  Pour this mixture evenly over the bread.  Mash down on the bread cubes so that they are all evenly saturated in the egg mixture.  Cover the pan with foil and refrigerate overnight.

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****You can make your topping ahead of time and put it in a ZIPLOCK bag and store it in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake your casserole in the morning.

FOR THE TOPPING:  In a medium mixing bowl, mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt.  Add the cold butter pieces and using a pastry cutter or a fork, mix it until it resembles chunky pieces of sand.  Dump it into a plastic baggie and refrigerate until ready to use.

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In the morning, when ready to bake, remove the foil and sprinkle the topping evenly across the top of your saturated bread.  Bake uncovered in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 1 hour until it is a nice golden brown color.  Serve it warm just like it is…. or add a tiny drizzle of maple syrup and top with assorted fresh fruits.  Daddy likes to have a platter of bacon or sausage with this too… so that’s another suggestion for you!

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BONE APPETIT!