French Toast Cassarole

[Kimberly954]

I made this today and it was delicious. Actually I assembled last night and cooked this morning. Its from Family Fun Magazine. i used a regular loaf of white bread and it came out fine. Also, I halved the recipe, put it in an 8x8 dish, and just cut the cooking time by 10 minutes. Enjoy!!!

Ingredients

• challah* or other firm white bread
• 1/3 cup pecans or walnuts
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon or to taste

• 8 large eggs
• 1 3/4 cups milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• maple syrup, for serving

Instructions

1. Using a piece of waxed paper, generously grease a 13- by 9-inch glass baking dish with softened butter.

2. Slice the challah into 12 (1-inch-thick) slices, then cut each slice into 1-inch cubes.

3. Chop the nuts using a knife or a food chopper.

4. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, and chopped pecans or walnuts.

5. Arrange half the bread in a single layer in the prepared dish, then sprinkle half the sugar mixture evenly over the top. Add a second layer with the remaining bread and the sugar mixture.

6. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs. Add the milk and vanilla extract, whisking until well blended.

7. Starting from the sides of the dish and working toward the center, pour the egg mixture evenly over the bread. With a spatula, gently press down on the bread to coat it with the egg mixture. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and refrigerate overnight or at least 4 hours.

8. Heat the oven to 350°. Bake the casserole covered for 20 minutes, then remove the foil and continue baking until the casserole turns a light golden brown and looks slightly puffed, about 30 minutes more. Serve the casserole warm with maple syrup.*

Tips:

* We prefer light, airy challah because it absorbs more of the egg mixture. As a result, the baked casserole stays moist inside after the outside is golden brown.

[KaylaMillar]

 yum! I made an overnight french toast casserole a couple weeks ago and it was really good!

[periwinkle163]

 I have been looking for a recipe for this for Christmas morning, Thanks!

[rkoloms]

Here is a healthier version

Overnight French Toast
2 large apples - peeled, cored and sliced
3 Tbsp butter or margarine
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 cup dry sweetener of your choice
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 cup apple juice
1/2 cup plant or animal milk (I use vanilla soy)
1/2 cup yogurt (I use vanilla)
1 tsp vanilla extract
4-6 thick slices of day old bread
In a saucepan, cook the apples in the butter/margarine until they start to soften.  Add the cinnamon, dry sweetener, syrup and cook until the apples are nice and soft.  Pour into the bottom of an 8x8 baking pan.  In a large bowl, mix remaining ingredients except bread.  Dip the bread into the milk/yogurt mix and layer on top of the apple mix.  Pour the remaining milk mixture over the top.  Cover and refrigerate.
In the morning, preheat the oven to 350 F.  uncover the baking dish and bake for 35-40 minutes 

[Kimberly954]

Yeah, thats what I was thinking i was going to make christmas morning as well. Much better than the bread egg sausage overnight cassarole I made last year.

Quoting periwinkle163:

 I have been looking for a recipe for this for Christmas morning, Thanks!