French Toast Casserole

Name: French Toast Casserole
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 1 h 15 min
Total time: 1 h 25 min
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon unsalted butter; 10 cups (1-inch) cubed bread, from a large loaf of day-old French bread (see Tip); 2 cups/480 milliliters whole milk; 6 large eggs; 1/4 cup/50 grams lightly packed light brown sugar; 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1 teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal); 4 tablespoons/57 grams unsalted butter, melted; 1/2 cup/100 grams lightly packed light brown sugar; 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon; Pinch of kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal); Fresh berries, confectioners’ sugar, maple syrup and/or toasted chopped nuts, for serving (optional)

By Lidey Heuck

Updated Oct. 15, 2024

French Toast Casserole — Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell.

Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Rating: 5(1,510)
Comments: Read comments

A good breakfast casserole is not only a crowd pleaser, it’s also a practical addition to any breakfast or brunch spread for many reasons: It comes together with a simple ingredient list, it can be assembled, then refrigerated overnight until the next morning, and it is much easier to cook for a crowd than traditional French toast. Day-old French bread works best here, but you can substitute any fluffy white bread or enriched bread like challah or brioche; just remove the crusts if they’re on the thicker side. The butter and brown sugar topping creates a crunchy, caramel-like crust as the casserole bakes, and the inside remains moist and tender. This casserole is plenty sweet on its own, but feel free to dress it up with powdered sugar, maple syrup and fresh berries.

or to save this recipe.
Subscriber benefit: give recipes to anyone
As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.
Subscribe
Share
Print Options
Include recipe photo

Ingredients

Yield:8 servings

For the Casserole

1tablespoon unsalted butter
10cups (1-inch) cubed bread, from a large loaf of day-old French bread (see Tip)
2cups/480 milliliters whole milk
6large eggs
¼cup/50 grams lightly packed light brown sugar
1½teaspoons vanilla extract
1teaspoon ground cinnamon
1teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)

For the Topping

4tablespoons/57 grams unsalted butter, melted
½cup/100 grams lightly packed light brown sugar
½teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
Fresh berries, confectioners’ sugar, maple syrup and/or toasted chopped nuts, for serving (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.

Preparation

Make the recipe with us

Step 1
Grease a 9-by-13-inch (or other 14-cup) baking dish with the butter, then place the bread cubes in the pan and spread them into an even layer.
Step 2
In a medium bowl or large measuring cup, combine the milk, eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Whisk until smooth.
Step 3
Pour the custard mixture over the bread and press gently to help the bread absorb the liquid. Set aside, covered, for at least 30 minutes at room temperature, or up to 12 hours in the refrigerator.
Step 4
Heat the oven to 400 degrees and let the casserole sit at room temperature while the oven heats. Meanwhile, make the topping: In a small bowl, mix the butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt with a fork until smooth.
Step 5
Dollop the mixture all over the casserole, then gently spread it with the back of a spoon until the entire surface is covered. (If preparing the casserole the day prior to baking, don’t add the topping until just before it goes into the oven. Reheat the topping, if needed.)
Step 6
Bake, uncovered, until puffed and golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Cut into squares, and serve hot. Top as desired.

Tips

To dry out bread cubes, spread them on a sheet pan and bake at 350 degrees until dry to the touch but not browned, 10 to 15 minutes.
To freeze: Assemble the casserole through Step 2 and refrigerate for at least 3 hours (or overnight). Tightly cover with plastic wrap, then foil, and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then resume the recipe at Step 3.

Ratings

5 out of 5

1,510 user ratings

Have you cooked this?

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Comments

Sean8 months ago

I’ve made this three times now, and it is a VERY forgiving recipe. This time I made the most alterations: made a half recipe in a smaller pan, used leftover cinnamon swirl bread (and so cut the cinnamon entirely and the sugar in half), added nutmeg, substituted coffee for ¼ of the milk, and sprinkled chopped pecans and flaked coconut over everything before putting on the butter topping… and it turned out great. Absolutely feel free to play with this recipe.

CC9 months ago

Made this for brunch today. It was delicious and a huge hit! I used challah bread and after reading the comments, I made these small adjustments: 1) slathered the glass baking dish with unsalted butter (no sticking!); 2) added the zest from one orange to the custard mixture; 3) doubled the topping and added roughly chopped pecans to it. Put the baking dish on a sheet pan to prevent any burning on the bottom and watched it carefully to ensure no burning. Lovely, crusty, favorful casserole!

Laura1 year ago

This was delicious. I just used whatever bread I had leftover. I baked it covered for 30 minutes and then uncovered for another 10-15 minutes.

Courtney1 day ago

This was delicious! Per the comments, I added the zest of one orange, and did the melted butter and cinnamon sugar separately. I also cut the brown sugar in the topping in half (so that there was 1/4 cup in the custard mixture, and 1/4 cup in the topping) and it was still plenty sweet. The one thing I'd do next time would be after pouring the custard over the bread cubes, to actually go and mix up the bread cubes in the custard to make sure everything is really nicely soaked, including the top.

Jill Daytona2 weeks ago

So good! Leftovers heated up nicely in the following days. As other reviews mentions, you can swap out ingredients based on what you have available.

ralph2 weeks ago

The instructions about freezing seem to suggest that we put the bread cubes in a pan, cool it a bit, and then freeze it. What do we do with all that mixed egg liquid that doesn’t get added until Step 3 maybe a month later?

Private comments are only visible to you.