This Overnight French Toast Casserole is prepared the night before for an easy, crowd pleasing breakfast. This breakfast casserole has all the flavors of French Toast with a sweet maple custard that is soaked into bread. It is great for holiday mornings or for when you need to feed a crowd.

Overnight French Toast Casserole Recipe

I remember the first time I tried making an overnight breakfast casserole. It was a disaster.

I was hosting a bridal shower at my house. It was on a Saturday morning, and breakfast/brunch items were on the menu. Being the adventurous person that I am, I decided to try out a new recipe. Don’t get me wrong – I often try out new recipes on guests, but 98% of the time, those guests are family members who are very forgiving if something doesn’t turn out. Well, for this shower, I didn’t know the majority of the girls there. Yet still, I thought it was a good idea to try out a new recipe.

Everything went together just fine. I had figured out the timing, and put the casserole into the oven with plenty of time before we were supposed to eat – or at least I thought I did. The guests started arriving. All of the other food was ready. The timer went off, and I went to check on the casserole, with hungry guests waiting. It wasn’t done. We did something to distract from the food, waiting for the casserole to be done. And waited. And waited. Eventually, we let everyone eat – without the French toast casserole. Eventually, I pulled the casserole out, where it was almost burnt on the edges, but still eggy and wet in the center.

I still don’t know exactly what went wrong with that casserole, but I’m glad it didn’t turn me away from overnight breakfast casseroles forever. So when I volunteered to make breakfast for a family retreat, this Overnight French Toast Casserole went on the menu.

This breakfast casserole was so easy to put together, and it was especially nice that I didn’t have to worry about anything on the morning of the breakfast, except for sticking it in the oven to bake. It really doesn’t get much easier! And this casserole, unlike the one I made all of those years ago, was ready to go in under an hour. We’ve had it many times since that family retreat, and it has become a family favorite.

Ingredients in this Overnight French Toast Casserole

For this breakfast casserole, you will need:

white bread – I use just regular white bread that you can get at the grocery store. Nothing fancy at all. It will take about 2/3 of a regular sized loaf.
cream cheese – I have only ever tried this with regular cream cheese, although I would guess that a less-fat cream cheese would probably work.
eggs – I always use large eggs.
milk – I used 2%, because that is what we keep on hand. Whole milk or 1% would probably work just fine, too.
half and half – this is a mixture of milk and cream. You can usually find it next to the cream at the grocery store. You can also make your own mix of cream and milk.
maple syrup – I have made this casserole with both real maple syrup and pancake syrup. I definitely prefer the real maple syrup version. But my kids, who are used to pancake syrup, prefer the pancake syrup version.
vanilla – I am a fan of real vanilla extract.
powdered sugar – you don’t have to sprinkle on the powdered sugar, but I always do!

Tips for Making this Overnight French Toast Casserole

When you are mixing together the custard mixture, the cream cheese may not mix in completely. I usually still have some small balls of cream cheese in the mixture. Don’t worry too much about them, as they won’t affect the flavor or texture of the finished casserole.
Make sure to set the casserole out for 30 minutes before baking, or your casserole might bake unevenly and take more time to bake.
You can serve more maple syrup at the table, if desired, although I think it is plenty sweet.
Store any leftovers covered in the refrigerator.

More breakfast casseroles you need to try

Creme Brulee French Toast
Croissant Breakfast Casserole with Jerky and Cheddar
Eggnog Croissant Bread Pudding with Caramel Eggnog Syrup
Blueberry Banana French Toast Bake
Cranberry Orange Baked French Toast Casserole
Ham and Cheese Breakfast Casserole Recipe
Orange Maple French Toast Casseroles
Eggs Benedict Strata
Sausage, Mushroom and Green Chile Breakfast Casserole
Apple Raisin French Toast Breakfast Bake

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