Name: The Best Baked French Toast You Prep The Night Before
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons butter; ¼ cup brown sugar; 12 slices bread; 4 eggs; ½ cup milk; 1 teaspoon vanilla; ½ teaspoon cinnamon; ¼ teaspoon nutmeg; ½ teaspoon salt (optional)

Overnight baked French toast is an all-in-one crowd-pleaser recipe, and as the name implies, it can be prepped the night before, which makes it even better.

This dish is perfect for when you have overnight guests for family gatherings or holiday visits. You have time in the a.m. to enjoy a cup of coffee or two while the oven does the work.

Baked French Toast To Prepare The Night Before

I like to make French toast when we have a house full of grandkids. They love it, and it takes almost no work. I usually fry up a big pan of bacon or sausage to serve with the toast.

If you want to fancy up your French toast casserole, sift a little powdered sugar over it when you remove the dish from the oven or even sprinkle with your favorite berries.

If you need to avoid dairy and gluten, you could substitute dairy-free milk and a very dry, solid, gluten-free bread.

History Of French Toast

French toast is believed to have originated in ancient Rome where it was known as "Pan Dulcis." The Romans would soak bread in a mixture of milk and eggs and then fry it.

The "recipe" spread throughout Europe and eventually made its way to France, where it became known as "pain perdu," which means "lost bread" in English.

More About This Recipe

My recipe is from Suzanne Tignor. Suzanne passed away several years ago. She was a lovely person.

Whenever she would bring food to an event or gathering, she would say, "This is the BEST (whatever) you're ever gonna have!"

It didn't matter if she bought it at the local grocery and dumped it in her dish to serve, or she made it herself.

She set you up to enjoy the food. And it really was THE BEST (cake, cookies, salad, whatever) we had at that meal.

What You Need

You don't need many tools, just measuring cups and spoons, a wire whisk or a fork, and a casserole dish .

Baked French Toast or French Toast Casserole

Put this scrumptious French toast casserole together in a few minutes at night, refrigerate, and bake it in the morning for a delicious, syrupy breakfast. Pop it in the oven for 30-45 minutes in the morning. DE-LISH-OUS!

Ingredients

Syrup

4 tablespoons butter
¼ cup brown sugar

Bread

12 slices bread

Egg Mixture

4 eggs
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon salt optional

Instructions

In an oblong baking dish (9” x 13” or 11"x15"), melt the butter and sprinkle the brown sugar over it. Stir until all the sugar is wet and evenly distributed.

Bread

Lay the bread over the top of the mixture, two slices, side-by-side, then cover the previous layer halfway (see picture) until all the bread is laid on the butter/sugar mixture. (See Notes)

Egg Mixture

Whisk the eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a separate bowl.
Evenly pour the egg mixture over the top of the bread.
Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

Refrigerate & Bake

Bake the casserole (covered) in a 350F degree oven for about 30-40 minutes, then remove the foil covering and bake for an additional 10 minutes until golden brown.