What's better than a sweet breakfast in the morning? Not having to slave over the stove making it. 😎 This French Toast Breakfast Bake is made with all the classic French toast flavours you love but kicked up a notch with some orange zest. Throw it together in less than 10 minutes in the evening and bake it in the morning as you lounge with your coffee. Perfect for Christmas Morning or...any morning where you don't feel like cooking!
If you're loving the idea of a breakfast bake but your crew prefers a savory start to their day, try my Sausage and Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole.
Ingredients
- Bread
- Eggs
- Milk
- Cinnamon
- Vanilla Extract
- Sugar
- Salt
- Orange Zest (Optional)
- Brown Sugar
- Butter
If Classic French Toast is more your jam, check out my French Toast next! If you are just discovering the magic of Breakfast Bakes, then check out my savoury Sausage and Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole after this.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Mornings can be rushed. This microwaves like a dream. When its fresh out of the oven you will get a crunchy top (Like toast) when its microwaved the whole piece will be
Yeah you can, this recipe makes a lot and is enough for 8 people! So if your family doesn't like repeat breakfasts you can freeze half after it has been baked then pull it out of the freezer for another morning. To eat after freezing, thaw in fridge and then microwave or reheat in oven for 15 minutes.
Dried fruit (ie Cranberries) Nuts! (walnuts, pecans etc)
If its all adults add in some amaretto, rum or baileys 1-2 tablespoons worth to the egg and milk mix.
You can pair savory with this too. Add in precooked breakfast sausage chopped up or some bacon crumbles.
You can use whatever bread you like. Lots of people use a French bread loaf.. I never buy bread and I ain't starting now. I make French Toast or this Breakfast Bake when I have had some of my homemade bread on the counter for too long and its past its prime. Older bread will suck up the custard so well. Give your stale bread a second life haha.
Alternatively if calories don't exist in your life, this is fun to make with donuts, croissants, cinnamon swirl bread and other pastries.
How to Serve French Toast Breakfast Bake
If you're Canadian - some maple syrup is a must. If you have good working taste buds, its also a must. I like to serve this with fresh fruit (any berry and bananas work) and some powdered sugar just looks nice in photos haha. See the FAQ sections for more topping suggestions.
French Toast Breakfast Bake
Ingredients
Bread and Custard
- 10 Cups Bread Cubed
- 7 Large Eggs
- 1½ Cups Milk % doesnt matter
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
- 1 Teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon Orange Zest 1 Medium Orange (Optional)
- ½ Cup White Granulated Sugar
- 1 Teaspoon Table Salt
Topping
- ½ Butter
- 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
- 3 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
Instructions
Bread and Custard
- Cut up your bread and measure it out. You should have 10 cups worth! THis is about half of a big loaf of bread or a whole loaf of a small loaf of bread. You'll want to cube the bread with a bread knife. Don't be supper crazy about getting them 100% even it really doesnt matter too much.
- Mix together the eggs, milk, cinnamon, sugar, vanilla and salt. (plus orange zest if using) in a bowl. Toss to coat the bread crumbs in the bowl. You can do this is the casserole dish you're baking it in. But I find it works best to mix in a seperate bowl then place in a greased casserole dish otherwise you can have some sticking issues #AintNobodyGotTimeForThat
- Transfer to a casserole dish that has been sprayed or brushed with cooking oil. Cover with saran wrap and place them in the in the fridge. The liquid should be all absorbed up by morning.
Topping - Added Right Before Baking
- Preheat oven to 375°F
- Microwave the butter until melted then mix in the sugar and cinnamon. Drizzle over the French Toast Breakfast Bake.
- Bake uncovered for 30-40 mins until set. Internal temperature will be 190°F when its baked.
- Leave a review please! Good Or Bad it helps me write better recipes. -Aqueena
Tried on weekend!! Excellent, Easy and Everyone loved it!!💯
We made this dish for an easy Christmas breakfast -everyone loved it! I used almond milk to make it dairy free due to family food sensitivities and a variety of multigrain and white breads I had on hand. The orange zest added a subtle richness to the flavor. We will definitely make this again!
Love that this still worked with your substitutions, that is great! Thank you for trusting this recipe for your Christmas morning! I am so happy to hear that it worked out and that everyone enjoyed it. Thank you for taking the time to leave a review, I appreciate it. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Okay I followed the directions in the worst way. Had no milk so I used half heavy cream half water. Mistook this cook temp for another and only baked at 350 for 30 min. Added chicken sausage (Vermont maple flavor) on top. It was still good. I wasn’t sure what size a casserole dish is (I clearly don’t belong in the kitchen) so it went in a large cake sized dish. And I used regular sandwich bread all made this morning- I didn’t leave it overnight.
Everyone loved it and I will be making this again. Correctly… maybe. Just wanted everyone to know it’s a very forgiving process…
Lol this is such a great review, Amanda. Thank you for taking the time to leave it! I think your dish still worked because you made smart substitutions! I am so happy to hear your experience and that this recipe is flexible. It should help future readers who might want to alter a few things. Casserole and cake pans are the same size usually 9x13” so that is perfect. I love the idea of adding sausage! I will be trying that in the future.
-Aqueena