This overnight Apple French Toast Casserole is hearty and filling, and perfect to feed a large family or crowd. You can prepare most of this baked apple French toast the night before, leaving you with minimal steps to do in the morning.
This Apple French Toast Casserole is a delicious baked breakfast
We love the full on cinnamon and apple scent that comes with baking this! It's a perfect fall breakfast, winter breakfast, or a breakfast for any time you want your kitchen to smell delicious.
This Apple French Toast Casserole is hearty and filling, and so tasty! I have a hard time stopping myself from overeating.
My suggestion? Invite friends over for brunch and make this apple cinnamon French toast bake when you want to feed a crowd.
This is a stunning way to serve apple French toast
One of my favorite parts about this breakfast is that it is stunning when set on the table.
This casserole looks beautiful with the cinnamon streusel crumb topping when it's in the baking pan. And once you cut it into slices to serve, the multiple layers steal the show.
I made this delicious brunch recipe in a square casserole dish, so each slice stands as a 4-inch tall scrumptious piece of breakfast architecture.
Baking it tall gives you a better picture of the layers and texture, but you can make this overnight Apple French Toast Casserole in a 9-inch x 13-inch (23-cm x 33-cm) lasagna pan. (Just keep in mind the baking time will be shorter.)
This Apple French Toast Casserole is easy to make
Although the finished dish looks involved, you'll actually have this overnight apple French toast bake on the table before you know it.
The best part is that you can prepare most of this breakfast the night before, leaving you with minimal steps to do in the morning.
How to make - Use layers
The full recipe is below, but here are a few tips. This overnight Apple French Toast Casserole is so tall because it's made up of three layers.
All three layers - the souffle-like french toast, the intense sweet-tart apples and the golden streusel work together, giving you a delicious and filling Apple French Toast Casserole for breakfast.
First layer
The bottom layer is the french toast (or bread pudding if you please). Bread cubes are soaked in a mixture of eggs, milk, and cinnamon sugar until the bread cannot absorb any more.
Second layer - lots of apples
The second layer of this overnight French toast casserole is made up of apple cubes. The apples are tossed with cinnamon and baked long enough to release an intense sweet-tart flavor when you bite into them.
Third layer - cinnamon crumb topping
And finally, to top off this overnight French toast casserole is a pecan and cinnamon streusel. This crumb topping adds a light crunch, and gives this Apple French Toast Casserole that beautiful irresistible golden crust you wish was on everything you ate.
The cinnamon streusel crumb topping is my favorite part!
You really don't need anything else with it, but sometimes I might be guilty of adding a drizzle of maple syrup.
Make this Apple French Toast Casserole to serve brunch to a crowd
Before you get started, I'll warn you that this makes a filling breakfast.
I love a good breakfast casserole and you can find many recipes on The Worktop. Casseroles for breakfast are a great option when feeding a big family or a crowd because you can prepare the casserole before the guests arrive, and chat with your guests as the breakfast is baking.
This baked Apple French Toast Casserole is particularly nice to make because it will fill your home with the sweet scent of fall as it sits in the oven.
You can save leftovers too
But here's our secret. We also often make this casserole on the weekend and save leftovers for the weekday. I'll happily eat it cold, but it's best when lightly warmed in the microwave.
Your home will fill with a sweet apple cinnamon scent as this bakes
I really hope you enjoy making this delicious French toast. Baking it as a casserole makes it easy to feed a family. The apples and cinnamon also just smell so good when they are in the oven!
If you have any questions, please let me know in the comments below. Enjoy the recipe!
Overnight Apple French Toast Casserole
Print Recipe Save RecipeIngredients
For the French Toast Casserole
- 1 loaf French country bread (pain de campagne) (500 grams) - A white loaf one that is not too crusty
- 10 medium eggs (or 8 large eggs)
- 3 cups whole milk
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon quality vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- 3 medium apples (about 400 grams)
- ¼ cup brown sugar
For the crumble topping
- ½ cup plain flour
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ cup pecans (chopped)
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter - cut into 1-cm pieces
For topping
- icing sugar (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. Lightly oil a 10-inch x 10-inch (25-cm x 25-cm) or a 9-inch x 13-inch (23-cm x 33-cm) baking dish. Set aside.
- Cut the bread into 1 ½-inch cubes. Set aside in a large mixing bowl.
- In another large mixing bowl, beat the eggs. Whisk in the milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg and allspice.
- Pour the egg mixture over the bread. Allow the mixture to sit for about 10 minutes for the bread to soak in the egg mixture. Carefully stir the bread a few times during the time to make sure all the bread pieces are absorbing in the egg mixture. At this point, you can cover the mixing bowl and set it in the refrigerator to soak overnight.
- In the meantime, in a medium bowl, combine the apples and brown sugar. Set aside. If you are making the casserole the night before, you can also do this step the night before and cover and refrigerate the chopped apples.
- While the bread continues to soak in the mixture, prepare the crumble topping. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, light brown sugar, cinnamon, and sea salt. Rub in the butter pieces with your hands, or cut it in using a pastry blender, until you have a crumbly mixture that resembles wet sand at the playground. Gently mix in the pecans. Set aside.
- Carefully tip the soaked bread into the prepared pan. The egg mix should cover most of the bread, but it is okay if a few pieces of the bread sticks out. Evenly distribute the chopped apples on top. Evenly distribute the crumble on top.
- Bake in the center of the oven for about 1 hour 20 minutes if using a 10-inch x 10-inch square casserole dish, or 1 hour if using a 9-inch x 13-inch pan. The bread pudding is done when the egg mixture is set and no longer runny in the middle. Test it by sticking in a butter knife in the middle to check the texture. If the top of crumble gets too dark before the egg mixture is set, cover with a piece of foil and continue baking.
- Serve the Apple French Toast Casserole warm. Top with icing sugar if desired.
Abby says
Where can I buy this bread? What would be a substitution if I can’t find it?
Tina Jui says
Hi Abby! You can use a white bread that is rounded. So not a baguette, but like a pain de campagne. Hope this helps!
Karly says
This looks amazing! Can't wait to try!
Jonathan Jui says
It's APPLE SEASON! Why aren't we having this every day? Or at least every other day?