Overnight Gingerbread Eggnog French Toast

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Gingerbread Eggnog French Toast is the perfect holiday breakfast solution for a crowd! There’s hints of molasses, ginger and nutmeg in a rich eggnog custard. Assemble it the night before and bake it while you open gifts!

Baked French Toast Casserole

Always have a houseful for the holidays? Breakfast bakes and casseroles are ideal solutions for feeding all the extra people!

If sweet bakes are what everyone is craving, you gotta try this gingerbread eggnog french toast. It’s so easy to make and will fill your house with holiday aromas.

Gather Your Ingredients

Add a couple of seasonal ingredients to your stash of pantry staples and you’re good to go!

Eggs — these are one of the base ingredients for the custard.
Eggnog — typically, you’d use milk for the custard, but eggnog is adding a rich nutmeg flavor and sweetness, so no sugar is needed.
Molasses — is made from the sugar-making process. It’s also what gives brown sugar its…well, brown. The same goes for gingerbread! It’s sticky, sweet and a little smoky.
Gingerbread spices — obviously, there’s going to be ground ginger…and cinnamon + allspice, too.
Vanilla extract
Kosher salt — just a pinch.
Soft French bread — as opposed to a super dense, crusty loaf.
Unsalted butter — to butter the pan and to make a ginger cookie crumble.
Gingersnap cookies — for that extra little gingery kick. You’ll crush these to combine with melted butter.

How To Make Gingerbread Eggnog French Toast

Beat the eggs, eggnog, molasses, spices, vanilla + salt together in a bowl to make a custard.
Butter a 9-in x 13-in casserole and add the bread (cubed or sliced).
Pour the custard over the bread making sure to saturate each piece. Press down gently to help that along.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Before baking, combine melted butter and crushed cookies to sprinkle over the casserole, then bake!

Serving Suggestions

You can simply dust the French toast bake with powdered sugar. I like to drizzle just a bit of maple syrup over it and sometimes add a dollop of lightly sweetened fresh whipped cream.

While the French toast bakes, prepare some fresh fruit and breakfast sausage to serve alongside.

Your Recipe Questions Answered

What’s the best bread for French toast?

I’ve suggested a loaf of soft French bread, not the crusty, artisanal kind. Buttery brioche or challah would also be amazing. Either way, day old bread will be thirsty for the custard and drink it up while it chills overnight.

Do I have to use eggnog?

Absolutely not! Eggnog isn’t for everyone, so just substitute with milk or even a non-dairy milk.

What else can I use instead of gingersnap cookies?

First, you don’t have to use them at all if you don’t want to. But, gingerbread or molasses cookies would also make a nice cookie crumble!

How do I make cookie crumbles?

Depending on how hard or soft the cookies are, you can crumble them with your hands. For harder cookies, put them in a zip-top bag and whack it with a rolling pin, or pulse them in a mini food processor.

What to Sip

It’s the holidays after all, so I’m not going to judge if you decide to have some spiked eggnog with breakfast! If that’s not your speed, try a Homemade Gingerbread Latte or Creamy Eggnog Hot Chocolate.

When to Make This

Oh, definitely for Christmas morning! It can be assembled in about 10 to 15 minutes the night before. Add the cookie crumb topping in the morning. Then sit back and enjoy opening gifts while the French toast is in the oven!

More Breakfast Recipes for a Crowd…

A casserole filled with baked gingerbread eggnog french toast dusted with powdered sugar.

Overnight Gingerbread Eggnog French Toast Casserole

Linda Feller

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8 50

Breakfast

American, French

215 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

5 large eggs
1¾ cups eggnog, (or dairy/non-dairy milk)
2 tablespoon molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon allspice
pinch kosher salt
8 ounce soft french bread, cut into thin slices or cubed (or brioche or challah)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
¼ cup gingersnap cookies, crumbled (or gingerbread or molasses cookies)

Optional Toppings

powdered sugar
maple syrup
whipped cream

Instructions

Beat together eggs, eggnog, molasses, vanilla extract and all the spices + kosher salt.
Butter a 9×13 casserole. Layer in the french bread slices or cubes. Carefully pour the eggnog mixture over the bread, being sure to soak each piece.
Cover and refrigerate overnight. (see notes below)
Preheat oven to 350°F. Melt 1 tbsp unsalted butter. Toss the butter with crumbled gingersnap cookies and sprinkle over the french toast. Bake for 35-40 minutes.

Notes

Nutrition calculations do not include the optional toppings.

*To bake right away, allow for at least 30 minutes of rest before baking for the bread to absorb the custard. For a late morning brunch, assemble & chill for a couple hours before baking.