Sweeten Up Your Holiday Season with this Make Ahead French Toast Casserole

Karla Montalvan
·2 min read

Cookies, pies and everything sweet is what make the holiday season a wonderful treat. But for cooks everywhere, spending time in front of the stove whipping up holiday recipes instead of spending time with guests and family can take away some of the magic.

This #TastyTuesday we're bringing you a french toast casserole recipe you can make ahead so that you may also join in the fun at your next holiday brunch.

¡Disfruta!

Getty Images / Sebastian Kopp / EyeEm

Ingredients:

For french toast

  • 12 slices of day-old bread, cut into 1-inch cubes

  • 2 (8-ounce) packages of cream cheese, cut into 1-inch cubes

  • 1 cup of fresh blueberries

  • 12 eggs, beaten

  • 2 cups of milk

  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

  • ⅓ cup of maple syrup

For blueberry sauce

  • 1 cup of white sugar

  • 1 cup of water

  • 2 tablespoons of cornstarch

  • 1 cup of fresh blueberries

  • 1 tablespoon of butter

Directions:

  1. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish. Arrange 1/2 of the bread cubes in the dish and top with cream cheese cubes. Sprinkle blueberries over the cream cheese, then top with remaining bread cubes.

  2. Whisk eggs, milk, vanilla extract and syrup together in a large bowl until well combined; pour over the bread cubes. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

  3. Remove the casserole from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before baking. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

  4. Bake the casserole in the preheated oven, covered, for 30 minutes. Uncover, and continue baking until the center is firm and the surface is lightly browned about 25 to 30 minutes.

  5. While it bakes, prepare the blueberry sauce by mixing sugar, water, and cornstarch together in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil and cook, stirring constantly, for three to four minutes. Stir in blueberries, reduce heat to low, and simmer until all the blueberries burst, about 10 minutes. Stir in butter.

  6. Serve portions of casserole on plates and pour warm syrup over top or leave in the fridge overnight.

Check out the original recipe here.