This Brioche French Toast Casserole is the answer to all your busy mornings! Make this casserole the night before, bake it in the morning, and enjoy delicious, rich french toast with a streusel topping.
Jump to:
You know those mornings where you want to eat a big, delicious breakfast but you don't feel like physically making it? Well here is the answer to all your problems.
This Overnight Brioche French Toast Casserole is the perfect thing to whip up the night before (quite quickly I might add), take your time getting out of bed the next morning, throw it in the oven and you got yourself a delicious, warm french toast bake with an amazing cinnamon streusel on top. It doesn't get easier than this!
If you're looking for more easy breakfasts for a crowd, try my Butternut Squash Quiche, my Broccoli Bacon Quiche, and next week I have a new savory casserole recipe coming out!
Recipe Ingredients:
- brioche bread- Like I said above, probs the most delicious bread out there. I have other options posted below though if you need to swap! If you love brioche like I do, you should try my Brioche French Toast!
- heavy cream & milk- I use both in this recipe to make the french toast casserole richer. You can definitely use all milk if you don't want to use heavy cream. I have not tried this recipe with dairy-free milk, but you could probably sub for something creamy like oat milk!
- maple syrup- I used this as a sweetener in my french toast bake (instead of sugar). If you don't want any sweetener, just skip this.
Step by Step Instructions
step one: make the casserole and streusel
Cut (or break apart) your brioche bread into 1-inch cubes and place it into your greased 9x13 baking dish. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, heavy cream, milk, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Pour this over the top of the bread evenly. Cover with foil and place in the fridge
You can make the crumble topping the night before as well by mixing together the cold butter, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt with a pastry cutter or two forks until you get pea-sized pieces of butter. Place this in a ziploc baggie or plastic container and leave it in the fridge overnight. You could also make the topping in the morning if needed.
step two: let it sit overnight
Let your casserole and topping sit overnight in the fridge. The brioche will soak up all the egg/cream mixture while it sits.
step three: add the streusel
Right before you bake your casserole, sprinkle the streusel evenly across the top of the casserole.
step four: bake and enjoy!
Bake the casserole in a preheated 350-degree oven for 45-55 minutes, until the center is cooked and the top is golden! If you notice the casserole is starting to brown too quickly while baking, you can take it out, cover it with tin foil and return it to the oven.
Frequently Asked Questions
Brioche is a very rich, very delicious french bread. While most standard bread can be made with just water, yeast, flour, and salt, brioche is enriched with eggs, milk, and butter- actually making it a cross between bread and a pastry. It belongs in the same category as croissants and danishes... AKA it's the bomb!
You sure can! The longer it sits, the better- so if you can make it first thing in the morning and let it sit for 4-5 hours, that would help! If not, you can throw it together in a pinch and bake it right away. It'll still taste delicious, just know that your bread won't have all that time to soak up the creamy custard.
I use and recommend brioche bread for this recipe because it's amazing, but there are other types of bread that would work perfectly in this recipe as well. You could use: challah, french bread, texas toast, or basically any thick bread
Yes! Cut this recipe in half and make it in an 8x8 baking dish. Baking time will be less, so I would check it around 30-35 minutes and then keep an eye on it from there.
Tips & Tricks:
- I would stick to using brioche bread or another bread listed below, anything else won't give you the hearty, rich french toast bake you are looking for!
- If you want to cut back on the sweetness, you have two options. Omit the maple syrup from the casserole, or cut the streusel recipe in half (or leave it off completely, although I don't recommend this because it's so good)!
- If you notice the casserole is starting to brown too quickly while baking, you can take it out, cover it with tin foil and return it to the oven.
- Dust the top with powdered sugar for a little extra sweetness.
- Serve with maple syrup- this is great without it as well though!
Storing & freezing tips:
This can be stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the fridge. You can heat it up in the microwave for 30-60 seconds and enjoy it warm!
You can also freeze this casserole after you bake it- let it cool completely and then either wrap it tightly in foil or cut it into serving sizes and place it in a freezer-safe container. Let it defrost in the fridge overnight and heat it back up in the oven until warm, or in the microwave. It will stay good in your freezer for up to 2 months.
Need more breakfast and brunch recipes?
If you made this recipe, I would love to know what you thought! Leave me a star rating and a comment below - I read them all! ⭐️ Your reviews not only help my business but other bakers as well!
Want an exclusive first look at all my recipes? Join my email newsletter which sends Bake & Bacon recipes straight to your inbox as soon as they go live, so you never miss a recipe!
Want to keep up with Bake & Bacon outside of the blog? Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Youtube. Tag me on any social media and use the hashtag #bakeandbacon so I can see what you are baking!
📖 Recipe
Overnight French Toast Casserole
Video
Ingredients
French Toast Bake
- 1 loaf brioche bread mine was 17.6 ounces
- 8 large eggs
- 1¼ cups heavy cream
- ½ cup milk
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- pinch of salt
Streusel
- ½ cup unsalted butter cold and cubed
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup all-purpose flour spooned and leved
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
Make the Casserole
- Cut (or break apart) your brioche bread into 1-inch cubes and place it into a greased 9x13 baking dish.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, heavy cream, milk, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt until combined. Pour this over top of the bread evenly and gently toss, making sure all pieces of bread are able to soak some of the liquid up.
- Cover with foil and place in the fridge overnight (or for 4-5 hours).
Make the Streusel
- You can make the crumble topping the day before as well by mixing together the cold butter, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt with a pastry cutter or two forks until you get pea-sized pieces of butter.
- Place this in a ziploc baggie or plastic container and leave it in the fridge overnight. You could also make the topping in the morning if needed.
Bake
- Preheat your oven to 350° F. Crumble the streusel evenly over the top of the casserole and place in the oven for about 45-55 minutes, until the casserole is baked through in the middle and golden on top. If you notice the casserole browning too quickly, you can add foil on top during the baking process.
Notes
- Storing & freezing tips: This can be stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the fridge. You can heat it up in the microwave for 30-60 seconds and enjoy it warm!
- If you want to cut back on the sweetness, you have two options. Omit the maple syrup from the casserole, or cut in half the topping (or leave it off completely, although I don't recommend this because it's so good)!
- If you notice the casserole is starting to brown too quickly while baking, you can take it out, cover it with tin foil and return it to the oven.
- Serve with maple syrup- this is great without it as well though!
Nutrition
This post contains affiliate links which means if you purchase something off of one of those links I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my blog!
Michele says
I have made this several times in the last year and my picky eater sons absolutely love it!! I make it for Christmas and Easter breakfast and just made tonight for a special treat for them tomorrow morning!
Thanks for sharing!
Kelly Hamilton says
Thanks so much for this comment, Michele! So happy to hear your sons enjoy it!
Grammacat says
I just made this recipe. It was very easy. I used Egg Nog instead of the heavy cream. I also added cooked ground Pork sausage. I let it sit overnight. I used a recipe I created for the topping. I used dry pancake mix instead of flour.After cooking the casserole for 40 minutes, it was still a little too wet so I put it under the broiler for about 2 minutes, then added the topping. 30 seconds more under the broiler. Perfect. I had a taste and it was wonderful. I'll be sharing the casserole with my friend and her two kids! Thanks for the great recipe.
Kelly Hamilton says
Glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, Grammacat!
Autumn says
Definitely going to make this again, it was delicious! 🤤
Kelly Hamilton says
Thank you so much for trying this recipe, Autumn. So happy to hear you enjoyed it!
LAURA GOSHORN says
Made a half recipe. It was great. Used leftover brioche rolls and buns. Next time will add some nutmeg, walnuts and/or blueberries or crasins.
Kelly Hamilton says
Thanks so much for trying this recipe, Laura! So happy to hear you liked it!
LAURA GOSHORN says
Could you add fresh cranberries to the custard mixture?
Kelly Hamilton says
I haven't tried but I don't see why you couldn't!
Carrie says
Made this on Christmas morning for my family and it was a HIT! So so yummy and perfect on a chilly morning. Loved that you could prep it the night before so was super quick in the morning.
Kelly Hamilton says
Thanks for trying this recipe, Carrie! So glad you and your family enjoyed it!
Nicky says
I made this last night for breakfast today (Christmas) and it was lovely - thank you! The only thing I wish I'd done differently was raised the oven rack. I think it was too low so the bottom of the casserole burned a bit before it was cooked all the way through. Next time I'll know better!
Kelly Hamilton says
So happy to hear you loved this recipe, Nicky! I will add a note to bake on the middle rack of the oven, that should be perfect for next time!
Tracy says
I made this today as a test run for Christmas morning and WOW! It's unreal! Will be making it again for Christmas morning brunch for the whole family!
Kelly Hamilton says
Thanks so much for trying this recipe, Tracy! So happy to hear you loved it!
Dana says
Our favorite Sunday morning breakfast 🙌🏼 A new twist on a classic that’s SO good!!
Kelly Hamilton says
So happy to hear you love this recipe, Dana!🥰
Katie C says
Made this for Christmas Day brunch and it was incredible! Super easy and a total hit with the fam 🙂
Kelly Hamilton says
Thanks for trying this recipe, Katie!! So happy to hear you and the family enjoyed it!