Best Cinnamon Swirl Bread French Toast Casserole
If you are looking for a French toast casserole recipe, don’t look any further; this one is the best. It is loosely based on the Pioneer Woman’s Baked French Toast, with a few additions and changes. What makes it so good is how easy it is to whip up and all the great flavor in the French toast bake. It’s moist and luscious, like bread pudding and cinnamon rolls in one casserole dish. Perfect for a Christmas brunch or weekend get-together, it can be made the night before and baked the next morning. Give this Cinnamon Swirl Bread French Toast Casserole try, and you will keep making this delicious recipe for years.
What You Need For The Recipe
There are a few key ingredients to making this recipe; here they are:
- Bread: You could use any bread in this recipe, but a great loaf of freshly baked cinnamon swirl bread is best. Skip over the packaged bread in the grocery store, head to a bakery, and get the best bread.
- Eggs: This recipe calls for eight whole eggs.
- Milk Mixture: Both whole milk and heavy cream are essential; the fat content makes this creamy and delicious.
- Sugar: Combine both granulated sugar and light brown sugar.
- Butter: No French toast recipe is complete without unsalted butter.
- Orange Zest: Add the orange zest to brighten up the flavors.
- Spices: Generous amounts of cinnamon and nutmeg round it out.
Step-By-Step How-to Guide
- Step 1: Prepare the baking dish. Be sure to butter the entire dish.
- Step 2: Tear the bread pieces. It’s best to have larger chunks of cinnamon bread, at least 1-inch cubes. Layer the bread into the casserole dish.
- Step 3: In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, cream, vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugars.
- Step 4: Pour the mixture over the bread in the baking dish. At this point, you can cover tightly and store in the refrigerator until ready to bake. Allow at least an hour, but overnight is best.
- Step 5: Make the topping; mix the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg in a food processor (or use a medium bowl with a pastry cutter or fork). Add the cold butter and mix until you reach the consistency of small pebbles. Cover with plastic wrap or place into a plastic bag and refrigerate until ready to bake.
- Step 6: Preheat the oven to 350° F. Sprinkle the topping over the casserole and bake, uncovered, for 50-60 minutes. The top should be golden brown. Enjoy topped with pure maple syrup and/or fresh berries.
Tips For Success
Tip 1 — Allow the bread to sit in the milk/egg mixture for a while; the longer it soaks, the more of a creamy texture the casserole will have.
Tip 2 — Find the best bread. You can make this recipe with any bread; a crusty French bread or even a cinnamon raisin bread would work well as long as you find a great-tasting loaf. I don’t think you need to use stale bread, although that would be fine if you have it.
Tip 3 — Warm maple syrup is always better on French toast.
Tip 4 — When hosting a crowd, this is a great casserole to make and pair with other breakfast casseroles found on Fork & Wander (such as the Italian Sausage and Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole).
For more casserole recipes, check out my A New Take On Top Classic Winter Casserole Recipes.
Cinnamon Swirl Bread French Toast Casserole
Ingredients
French Toast
- 1 loaf of Cinnamon Swirl Bread torn or cut into pieces
- 8 whole eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons orange zest
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Topping
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 8 tablespoons unsalted cold butter cut into pieces
Instructions
- Prepare the baking dish. Be sure to butter the entire dish.
- Tear the bread pieces. Layer the bread into the casserole dish.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, cream, vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugars.
- Pour the mixture over the bread in the baking dish. At this point, you can cover tightly and store in the refrigerator until ready to bake. Allow at least an hour, but overnight is best.
- Make the topping; mix the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg in a food processor (or use a medium bowl with a pastry cutter or fork). Add the butter and combine until you have a gravel-like texture. Cover with plastic wrap or place into a plastic bag and refrigerate until ready to bake.
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Sprinkle the topping over the casserole and bake, uncovered, for 50 -60 minutes. The top should be golden brown. Enjoy topped with pure maple syrup and/or fresh berries.
