Make this apple French toast casserole the night before, then pop it in the oven the next morning. Serve it with yogurt and maple syrup. Yum.
If you have ever made a baked French toast casserole for a brunch or breakfast, you will know what a pleasure it is to be able to make it the day before. No fuss the next day, so convenient and stress-free.
The other nice benefit is not having to stand at the stove making individual slices.
The apples and pears glazed in butter, brown sugar and cinnamon take this dish to another level. Holiday-worthy.
Typically, a baked French toast casserole is a breakfast or brunch dish, but I also like to serve it for a weeknight dinner with a side of bacon, sausage, ham or fresh berries. A dollop of vanilla yogurt or sour cream is good too. And maple syrup of course.
If you are looking for something super decadent (meaning high cal, high sugar, rich and delish), try our sinful baked french toast casserole.
Tailor To Your Taste
Here are a few variations you can try to tweak the casserole to your preferences.
- Add some raisins, chopped pecans or walnuts.
- Add a tablespoon or two of rum or Amaretto.
- Use all apples or a mix or pears and apples.
- Alter the texture to your taste by baking it less for a pudding-like texture or more for a crispier drier texture.
FAQ
All consist of bread soaked in an egg-milk (custard) mixture. You will find a couple of variations such as: using bread slices vs bread cubes; incorporating fillings vs. using them as toppings (or both like this recipe); and add-ins such as berries.
I like using Challah, but French, Italian or simple white bread will all work well.
You can bake it right away OR the next day OR freeze it for later (see options below).
Fully baked is a matter of preference. Some like it moist – more custard-y. Others like it drier. Pierce a knife into the casserole to test for doneness. If it comes out too wet, bake it a little longer.
Make Ahead (3 options)
- With this recipe, you don’t have to make it ahead.
- If you do, there are 3 options. Instructions for all 3 are in the recipe notes.
- Make a day or evening ahead.
- Make ahead and freeze the baked casserole.
- Assemble and freeze the unbaked casserole.
Other easy brunch recipes you might like
- breakfast strata (with great fillings)
- lemon blueberry pancakes
- ricotta pancake recipe with caramelized bananas
- easy cinnamon buns
- make ahead breakfast burritos
How to make an apple French toast casserole
Place bread cubes in a casserole dish. Whisk eggs, milk, cinnamon, brown sugar and vanilla in a bowl and combine with bread cubes.
Apple French Toast Casserole
Ingredients
- 4 cups (400g) bread ripped or cubed – about 1/2 loaf (I remove crusts)
- 4 medium eggs
- 2 cup (500ml) milk (I use 2%)
- 2 tbsp brown sugar (or less)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Apple (and Pear) Mixture
- 1 large apple (gala, honey crisp, cortland, macintosh, other)
- 2 pears (bosc, bartlett, other) or substitute with more apples
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F/190C when ready to bake.
- PREPARE THE BASIC FRENCH TOAST CASSEROLE: Spray an 8 x 8 inch ovenproof dish with oil or grease well with butter. Place bread cubes in the pan. Whisk eggs, milk, cinnamon, brown sugar and vanilla in a bowl. Pour over bread, making sure all pieces get soaked.
- PREPARE APPLE-PEAR MIXTURE: Peel and core apple and pears. Slice apples thinly (about 1/8 inch) and pears a little bigger. Heat skillet to medium and add all apple-pear mixture ingredients EXCEPT the pears. Saute for a few minutes until mixture is bubbly and apples begin to soften. Add pears if using and saute for another 2-3 minutes. Pears need less cooking as they are much softer than apples.
- ASSEMBLE: Pour half of apple-pear mixture onto the pan over the bread mixture. Lightly toss so that the apple-pear mixture is scattered throughout the bread mixture. I use clean hands for this. It's fine if a few pieces of fruit are sticking up or on top. At this point, it's ready to bake. Note 1-3 to make ahead/freeze.
- BAKE AND SERVE: Bake the casserole for about 45-50 minutes until lightly browned. It will puff up. If you like it soft and more custard-like, bake it for 43-45 minutes. If you like it drier and crispier, bake it longer. Just before serving, reheat the rest of the apple-pear mixture in a skillet or in the microwave. Scrape along the sides of the pan before cutting. Serve topped with the apple-pear mixture and a dollop of yogurt or sour cream if desired. Pass the maple syrup.
Notes
- Variations to try
- Add some raisins, chopped pecans or walnuts.
- Add a tablespoon or two of rum or Amaretto.
- Use all apples or a mix or pears and apples.
- Alter the texture to your taste by baking it less for a pudding-like texture or more for a crispier drier texture.
- To make ahead the day before: cover casserole tightly with plastic wrap and store in fridge until you are ready to use it (not more than a day and a half ahead). Also store the other half of the apple-pear mixture in the fridge to be used as a topping when serving.
- To freeze baked casserole: Bake french toast casserole (in a freezer friendly casserole dish), cool completely, wrap well in plastic and tin foil, then freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost casserole and extra topping in fridge the night before use. Reheat casserole, covered with foil, about 20 minutes at 350F.
- For extra apple-pear topping, cool completely and freeze in a sealed container or ziploc bag. Defrost in fridge the day before use, then warm in microwave or in pot on stove. Spoon over casserole before serving.
- To freeze unbaked casserole: Assemble casserole as per recipe. Cover well with plastic and foil, then freeze. Alternatively, spoon casserole contents into a ziploc bag, squeeze out air then freeze up to 3 months. Defrost in fridge the night before using. Bake as per recipe in greased casserole dish, about 45-55 minutes at 375F.
- For extra apple-pear topping, cool completely and freeze in a sealed container or ziploc bag. Defrost in fridge the day before use, then warm in microwave or in a pot on stove. Spoon over casserole before serving.
Nutrition
This apple French toast casserole recipe was inspired by Minimalist Baker in 2016 and has been updated with new information and edits.
Mary Ann Millet says
If I wanted to make this a week in advance, should it be baked then put in the freezer, or 1/2 baked, or ingredients put all together then put in freezer then thawed and baked??
Cheryl says
Hi Mary Ann. Great questions. You can freeze either the unbaked casserole or the baked casserole as well as the extra apple-pear topping. I’ve added instructions for both methods to the notes after the recipe (along with how to make the casserole a day ahead). I hope that helps.
Mary Ann Miller says
Thanks