Brioche French Toast Casserole with Maple Butter
Our Brioche French Toast Casserole is the perfect recipe for hassle-free lazy weekend mornings or special occasions. What could be better than streusel topped buttery brioche in a velvety custard, served with a pat of sweet & salty maple butter? Not much!
Why and When to Make This Recipe
Oh, sweet breakfast lovers…this is for you! Brioche French Toast Casserole with Maple Butter is an indulgent combination of buttery brioche, velvety custard, and a crunchy streusel topping that will elevate your breakfast game.
Make breakfast hassle-free! Prepare this the night before so you can effortlessly feed a crowd or enjoy a leisurely morning with family. Entice everyone to the table when some seriously heavenly aromas fill your kitchen…it’s one way to get those late sleepers up on a Saturday morning!
Picture waking up on Easter morning or Mother’s Day to the scents of maple, brown sugar and cinnamon in a freshly baked casserole. This delicous breakfast is perfect any time of year, whether it’s a festive holiday, a special occasion brunch, or a sweet treat for lazy weekend mornings. It’ll satisfy your sweet breakfast cravings!
Gather Your Ingredients
I’ve provided substitutions next to the key ingredient to help you tailor this recipe to your needs or personal taste.
- Brioche – Buttery brioche bread is tender, rich, slightly sweet and a perfect breakfast bread. It should be stale or dried out for the best results: see Recipe Tips below. (If you can’t find it, the closest alternative is challah bread, often found as a braided loaf. Japanese milk bread or Hawaiian sweet bread will also provide a similar texture.)
- Custard ingredients – large eggs, whole milk, maple syrup, vanilla extract, ground nutmeg, kosher salt. Maple syrup has more complexity than plain sugar and is a delicious way to sweeten the custard. (You can replace the syrup with granulated sugar. Sub in 2% milk for a lighter custard, or replace some of the whole milk with heavy cream for a richer custard.)
- Streusel ingredients – All purpose flour, brown sugar, ground cinnamon, melted butter. The streusel provides a crunchy contrast to the pudding-like casserole.
- Maple butter – Softened unsalted butter, maple syrup. If you’re going to add a pat of butter to your French toast, why not whip up an easy maple butter to amp up the flavor?
Let’s Get Cooking
Here’s a step-by-step guide to making a scrumptious baked French toast casserole!
Step 1. Prepare the baking dish + bread – Butter the bottom and sides of a 3-quart casserole dish. Add the pieces of brioche in an even layer.
Step 2. Mix the custard – Mix together eggs, whole milk, maple syrup, vanilla extract, ground nutmeg and 1/4 tsp of kosher salt. (I like to do this in a blender on low speed to make sure there are no clumps of egg or nutmeg. You can use a large mixing bowl with an immersion blender, or whisk vigorously by hand.)
Step 3. Pour the custard – Pour the custard mixture slowly and evenly over the brioche, trying your best to moisten every part. If there are dry areas, encourage contact by gently pressing on the top with a spatula or back of large spoon.
Step 4. Rest the casserole – Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight (or at least a couple of hours).
Step 5. Make the streusel – The next morning, combine flour, brown sugar and cinnamon with a pinch of kosher salt in a small bowl. Pour in the melted butter and stir with a fork until it resembles wet sand. Dollop small bits all over the top of the casserole.
Step 6. Bake the casserole – Bake for 45-55 minutes in a preheated 350°F oven until it is puffed up and the edges are golden brown.
Step 7. Make the maple butter – Place softened butter in a medium bowl. Add 2 tbsp of maple syrup and a pinch of kosher salt. With a handheld electric mixer, whip together until smooth. Taste and whip in more maple syrup to taste, a teaspoon at a time.
Recipe Tips for Overnight French Toast Casserole
Start with dry bread – You’ll see references to stale bread or day-old bread for recipes where a liquid is introduced to bread before baking (like bread pudding, Thanksgiving dressing, or strata). Dry bread will absorb custard (or broth) much better than fresh. To dry out a loaf of brioche, you have a couple of options. Both methods can be done in advance; store the dried bread in an airtight container at room temperature. Slow method: spread bread cubes in a single layer across two baking sheets. Leave them on the counter for 24 to 48 hours. Quick method: spread cubed bread across two baking sheets and bake in a 200°F oven for 20 minutes. Allow to cool.
Give it time to absorb – Assembling the casserole the night before gives the bread enough time to absorb the egg mixture so you get that tender, pudding-like texture. It also means you can feed hungry family or company much quicker come morning. If you’re making this for late brunch or you’re an early riser, give it at least 2 hours to sufficiently absorb.
Avoid soggy casserole – Depending on your oven, you may need to bake your overnight breakfast casserole for the full time in order to be cooked through. The casserole will puff up and the internal temperature should be somewhere between 175-190°F. Underbaking will result in a soggy texture and the casserole will deflate.
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
How to store leftovers – Transfer leftovers to a single container or individual airtight containers and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
How to reheat from refrigerated – To reheat the whole lot, cover with foil and reheat in a 350°F oven until warmed through. Individual servings are too easy to pop in the microwave for a minute or two for a quick breakfast.
How to freeze leftovers – Arrange individual servings on a baking sheet lined with parchment or wax paper and pop it in the freezer for an hour or two. Wrap frozen servings in squares of wax paper, then transfer them to an airtight, freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months.
How to reheat from frozen – Place an individual serving on a plate and cover with a paper towel. Defrost in the microwave for 90 seconds (or cook at 30% power). Then, microwave on full power for 1 minute or until heated through.
Really, Really Make-Ahead Casserole Instructions
When overnight is not make-ahead enough (like around the holidays when there’s a bazillion people at your house and way too many things to do)…
Complete the steps through pouring the custard over the bread. (Save the streusel topping for the day you actually bake). Place a sheet of plastic wrap on the casserole so it touches the surface, eliminating opportunities for air contact. Then, wrap tightly with more plastic wrap followed by aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 1 month.
Allow it to thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Add the topping and bake as instructed. Please keep in mind that the texture may not be quite the same after freezing.
Variations and Serving Ideas
This is a pretty straight-ahead French toast casserole recipe, ideal for when you want simple, classic French toast flavors. Add your own flare to send it in another direction!
- Bake with fresh berries when they’re in season. Add 1 to 1-1/2 cups; mix some into the bread and save a few for the top.
- Do the same with nuts…add sliced almonds, pecan halves or chopped walnuts for nutty crunch.
- Add chocolate chips for a seriously indulgent breakfast.
- Add lemon or orange zest to the custard to brighten up the flavor, or enhance other add-ins (like lemon zest with fresh blueberries, or orange zest with chocolate).
Serve overnight brioche French toast casserole with a pat of maple butter. For added sweetness, you can dust with powdered sugar, or drizzle with real maple syrup.
For a really hearty breakfast, serve it with fresh fruit, bacon or sausage, and cheesy scrambled eggs. That sounds like a weekend brunch get-together waiting to happen!
When You Need Breakfast for a Crowd…
- Bacon + Leek Buttermilk Quiche
- Kentucky Hot Brown Casserole
- Onion + Zucchini Egg White Casserole
- Overnight Gingerbread Eggnog French Toast
- Caramel Apple Pecan Coffee Cake
- Chorizo, Egg + Cheese Breakfast Burrito Casserole
- So many sweet rolls…Cranberry Orange, Carrot Cake, Blueberry Lemon, PSL + Cherry
Brioche French Toast Casserole with Maple Butter
Equipment
Ingredients
French Toast Casserole
- ½ tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
- 1 pound brioche bread, stale or dried, cut into cubes (see notes)
- 5 large eggs
- 2-1/2 cups whole milk
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Streusel Topping
- 6 tablespoon all purpose flour
- 3 tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
Maple Butter
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup, or more, to taste
Instructions
- Butter a 2-1/2 to 3-quart baking dish. (Most 9×13-inch casseroles are 3 quarts.)
- Add the cubed brioche to the baking dish in an even layer.
- Combine eggs, whole milk, maple syrup, vanilla extract, ground nutmeg and 1/4 tsp of kosher salt until the eggs & nutmeg are well incorporated. (Whisk vigorously, use an immersion blender, or use the low setting on a regular blender.)
- Pour the custard slowly and evenly over the brioche. The bread will not be fully submerged. With the back of a spatula or spoon, gently press any dry areas so the bread will make contact with the custard thus encouraging it to begin wicking up the liquid.
- Cover the dish and refrigerate overnight (or for at least 2 hours). The custard will fully absorb with time.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a small bowl, combine flour, brown sugar and cinnamon with a pinch of kosher salt. Pour in the melted butter and stir with a fork until it resembles wet sand. Dollop bits of streusel over the top of the casserole.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes, until it is puffed up and golden brown around the edges. (Timing will vary based on the size/shape of your baking dish and your oven. The internal temperature in the center should be somewhere between 175-190°F. )
- While the casserole bakes, make the maple butter: place softened butter in a medium bowl. Add 2 tbsp of maple syrup and a pinch of kosher salt. With a handheld electric mixer, whip together until smooth. Taste and whip in more maple syrup to taste, a teaspoon at a time.
Notes
- Cubing brioche – Use a sharp bread knife to gently cube the brioche so as not to crush the bread. The brioche I get is pre-sliced into 3/4-in slices. I stack a few slices, then cut them in 3 equal sticks; rotate that 90 degrees and repeat so I get 9 cubes out of each slice. If you get a whole loaf, cut into 1-inch cubes or slightly larger.
- Drying out fresh bread – To dry out the brioche, spread cubes across two baking sheets and bake in a 200°F oven for 20 minutes, then cool. Or, leave on the counter for 24+ hours.
- Storing leftovers – Transfer leftovers to a single container or individual airtight containers and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Reheating leftovers – To reheat the whole lot, cover with foil and reheat in a 350°F oven until warmed through. Individual servings are too easy to pop in the microwave for a minute or two for a quick breakfast.
Nutrition
Pin for Later! Brioche French Toast Casserole
I think this would be perfect for a lazy Sunday breakfast or brunch. It would be a delicious treat to have; I think I will have to try this out!
Yes! A cozy, comfort food Sunday breakfast. I froze some and had a single serving this morning…hit the spot!
Thank you!! I made this for Easter brunch and it was a huge hit! My family has never been “sweet breakfast” (pancakes, french toast, waffles…) kind of people. They loved it. I’ve tried other recipes and they come out too eggy. This was just perfect. We will definitely be using this again.
Yay! It’s just right for Easter brunch. So glad you enjoyed it!