baked french toast

Although living alone has some definite perks, it also requires some creativity when food is involved. Last week I happened to have a beautiful loaf of bakery bread with no possible way to eat it all before it got stale. So instead of gorging myself on sandwiches, I added some apples and blueberries and baked up this delicious french toast! 

This recipe will yield quite a large batch of this yummy brunch bake. I only made about half of it for myself. It lends itself easily to adaptation, meaning you can sub in whatever fruit or milk products you have on hand! And oh my goodness, the way this smells as it cooks? Out of this world. You can also prep everything at night and refrigerate until you're ready to bake and serve in the morning, making it a fantastic option for when you have guests! 

What You'll Need:

• 1 loaf Crusty Sourdough Or French Bread
• 8 whole Eggs
• 2 cups Whole Milk
• 1/2 cup Heavy Cream
• 3/4 cups Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 cup All-purpose Flour
• 1/2 cup Firmly Packed Brown Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 1 pinch Nutmeg 
• 1 stick Cold Butter, Cut Into Pieces
•  Fresh Fruit (optional)

What To Do:

Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with butter. Tear bread into chunks (or cut into cubes) and evenly distribute in the pan.

In a medium sized bowl mix together eggs, milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla. Pour evenly over the bread. Cover tightly and store in the fridge for several hours or overnight.

In a separate bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add nutmeg if desired. Add butter pieces and cut them into the dry mixture until mixture resembles fine pebbles. Store in a Ziploc in the fridge.

When you're ready to bake the casserole, preheat oven to 350 F. Remove casserole from the fridge and sprinkle crumb mixture over the top. (If you're using fruit, sprinkle on before the crumb mixture.) Bake for 45 minutes for a softer, more bread pudding texture. Bake 1 hour or more for a firmer, less liquid texture.

Scoop out individual portions. Top with butter and drizzle with maple syrup.

Recipe from The Pioneer Woman