The holidays are coming up, and for a lot of us, time becomes precious as we run around getting our homes ready. Even during these times, when our celebrations might be smaller than what we are used to, anything that saves time in the kitchen is always a welcome surprise! To minimize the hustle and bustle of breakfast on those holiday mornings, try baking up some French Toast! You prepare it the night before, pop it in the fridge overnight, and just throw it in the oven and relax! Here are a few of my favorite tried and true French Toast recipes. These are delicious on Thanksgiving morning, Christmas morning, New Year’s Day, or any day of the week!
A basic Baked French Toast recipe is always good to have on hand. It is SUPER easy, you usually already have the ingredients on hand, and you can’t go wrong making it. This recipe calls for slices of brioche bread, but I always make it with a loaf of cubed french bread. Some days, I have also made it with a combination of leftover dinner rolls, my kids LOVE it with Hawaiian rolls, it really is easy to just substitute whatever bread you have on hand, it will NOT mess up the recipe!
This Pear and Raspberry Baked French Toast recipe is not only delicious, but makes it feel as though you are being super healthy! After all, it has FRUIT! The recipe calls for brioche or challah bread, but I always just use a french bread loaf, since those are easier to find at any grocery store. I love to make this in the Fall when pears are in season, but it is also perfect during the summer.
Is there anything more festive for the holidays than cinnamon and pecans? This Cinnamon Pecan Stuffed French Toast is absolutely DECADENT. You can top it off with a praline sauce made with a 2lb bag of brown sugar, or you can top it with berries or bananas. Any way you prepare it, it is DELICIOUS! I got this recipe at a scrapbooking bed and breakfast, called Crop-A-Doodle-Do, that I went on a girl’s weekend many years ago. Our hostess there made it out of cinnamon rolls and it was heavenly, proving that you can substitute whatever kind of bread you have on hand for the french loaf! In the picture above, I actually used challah bread.
Ingredients:
1 french bread loaf, cubed
1 8oz package of cream cheese, cubed (I have also used whipped cream cheese instead and it works just fine!)
8 eggs
2 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup white sugar
1tsp baking powder
1tsp vanilla
1/2 cup pecans (halved, whole, or chopped, whatever you have on hand)
1/2 heavy cream for topping
1/2 cup white sugar MIXED with 1tsp of cinnamon
12-24 hours before serving:
Spray a 9x13x2 inch pan with non stick baking spray or butter the pan. Layer bread in the pan, sprinkle cubed cream cheese (or spoon whipped cream cheese) and pecans on top. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, sugar, milk, vanilla, and baking powder until well mixed. Pour over bread mixture and refrigerate until ready to bake.
Baking:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour the 1/2 cup of heavy cream over bread and sprinkle with the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Bake for about 45-55 minutes, until a knife comes out clean. Serve with plain, with maple syrup, or with Praline Sauce. You can also sprinkle bananas or berries on top before serving.
Praline Sauce:
1/2lb of butter
2lb bag of light brown sugar
2 cups water
1 can sweetened condensed milk
In a heavy saucepan melt the butter. Add brown sugar and water. Cook until mixture comes to a boil, then cook for 5 more minutes. Add condensed milk and bring to a boil again. Mix well and remove from heat. Let it cool a little bit before serving.
No matter which French Toast Bake Recipe you make, you can’t go wrong! They are all delicious and make for a perfect breakfast to celebrate any special occasion or holiday. If your gathering is going to be smaller, just half the recipes and bake in a smaller dish. The time should be a little bit less, but start at 40mn and keep checking to see if the egg base has set. Hope you try baking one this holiday season!