Cinnamon Vanilla Baked French Toast

Overnight Baked French Toast Casserole spiced with cinnamon, flavored with vanilla, and topped with a brown sugar crumb topping. Prep it the night before and pop it in the oven in the morning! Everyone loves this dish! VIDEO BELOW.

Hi, friends! I am popping in today to share a recipe that is one of my most popular. This Baked French Toast is a staple in my family, and since I originally published this recipe a couple years ago, I have received tons of great reviews from my readers (thank you, thank you, thank you)!

With Easter and Mother’s Day approaching, I wanted to make sure this recipe was on your radar. It is absolutely perfect for brunch, and I love the fact that it can be prepped the night before.

In addition to Easter and Mother’s Day, Baked French Toast is always our Christmas morning breakfast. Any morning of the year that I want a special meal with little-to-no effort this is the dish I turn to. It’s super simple and the payoff is huge – I’ve never met anyone who didn’t love this dish! Tell me you don’t want to dive right into that?! ↓

Baked French Toast

• Place cubed bread in a casserole dish. I like French bread best. You want your bread to be a day or two old. Not too moist, but not rock hard either. I prefer a bread with a tender crust.
• Make a cinnamon vanilla custard mixture from: eggs, milk, and – you guessed it– cinnamon and vanilla.
• Pour the custard over the bread, cover it tightly and refrigerate for a few hours, up to overnight.
• Right before baking, top the french toast with a simple brown sugar crumble.
• Bake it! The French toast puffs up, the inside is fluffy and tender, and the outside is slightly crisp. It’s like a French toast-bread pudding hybrid! It’s absolutely perfect!

One of the best things about this French toast is that all the work is done the night before. Psssst….that means you get to sleep in and still serve an amazing breakfast!

This Baked French Toast Casserole is perfect for mornings that you don’t want to stand over the stove flipping individual slices of French toast. Anytime you want to serve something extra special without working too hard you will reach for this recipe.

Once you try this dish you won’t want to go back to standard French toast. Baked French Toast Casserole is the way to go! You’ll love diving into this sweet, delicious, hearty breakfast. Grab some warm maple syrup and dig in!

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4.95 from 17 votes

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Cinnamon Vanilla Baked French Toast

Make-ahead Baked French Toast spiced with cinnamon, flavored with vanilla and topped with a brown sugar crumb topping. Prep it the night before and pop it in the oven in the morning!

Course Breakfast, brunch

Cuisine American

Keyword French Toast

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes

Servings 6 -10

Calories 289 kcal

Author Allison - Celebrating Sweets

Ingredients

French Toast:

• One 15 oz loaf French bread cut into large cubes (preferably a day or two old)
• 8 large eggs
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 cup half and half
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Topping:

• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 2/3 cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
• Maple syrup for serving

Instructions

Preparation (allow time to soak overnight):

1. Place the bread cubes in a greased casserole dish (I used a 2 1/2 quart dish).

2. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, milk, half and half, brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. Pour evenly over the bread cubes. Lightly press down on the top of the bread to allow the top layer of bread to absorb some of the custard mixture, or gently stir it to distribute the custard throughout the bread. Cover, and refrigerate overnight (if you want to bake the same day, allow it to soak for at least 3 hours).

3. For the topping: combine brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt. Add butter, and using your fingers or a spoon, work the butter into the dry ingredients until the butter is evenly distributed and the mixture resembles wet, clumpy sand. Cover and refrigerate until you are ready to bake the French toast.

Baking:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove the French toast from the refrigerator (the bread will have absorbed most of the custard). Crumble the topping over the top of the French toast. Bake uncovered for 40-55 minutes, until puffed, golden brown, and set (check that the center is not too wet). .

2. Note: Baking time will depend on how deep your casserole dish is and whether you prefer your french toast more well done. Serve immediately with maple syrup. Leftovers can be refrigerated.

Recipe Video

Recipe Notes

Want to make this dairy free? Swap the milk and half half for 2 cups Silk Original Unsweetened Almond Milk, and swap the butter in the topping for butter substitute. 

Nutrition Facts

Cinnamon Vanilla Baked French Toast

Amount Per Serving

Calories 289 Calories from Fat 117

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 13g 20%

Saturated Fat 7g 35%

Cholesterol 160mg 53%

Sodium 136mg 6%

Potassium 155mg 4%

Total Carbohydrates 34g 11%

Sugars 26g

Protein 6g 12%

Vitamin A 10.5%

Vitamin C 0.3%

Calcium 10.2%

Iron 6.7%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.