Berry French Toast Casserole
Make this Berry French Toast Casserole for your weekend brunch!
Prepare the night before, pop into the oven when you wake up in the morning, and you’ll get yourself a moist on the inside, slightly crispy on the top French toast bake with loads of fresh strawberries and blueberries.
Then you drizzle that maple syrup all over it, because truly, YOU MUST.
If you love Berry French Toast Casserole, don’t forget to also check out my Apple French Toast Casserole recipe! For a savory breakfast casserole, these are my favorites: Crescent Roll Breakfast Casserole and Ham and Cheese Croissant Casserole.
Why Berry French Toast Casserole?
Friends, are you a brunch person? Well, I am.
I love waking up slowly on Saturday morning and indulge in some hearty brunch food while I sip coffee, all in my pajamas… Ah, gotta love a nice and slow weekend.
Every now and then, on the menu for weekend brunch is french toast. I would wake up in the morning and cut up bread and dip them into the egg mixture and pan fry these bread.
That is, until I was introduced to the concept of french toast casserole.
Then it all happened – my weekend brunch changed for the better…
See, with French Toast Casserole you make everything ahead the night before, let the bread soak in that egg mixture combined with cinnamon, brown sugar and vanilla extract, then the next morning you pop in the oven and viola. BREAKFAST IS SERVED.
With all the fresh berry action going on during the summer, it will be a shame to not top this custard-y bread with loads of fresh, sweet-as-candy berries. The fruity goodness pairs so well with it.
So there you go – Berry French Toast Casserole. The berry best kind of french toast casserole. Pun absolutely intended.
Ingredients
One of the many reasons why I love Berry French Toast Casserole is because it is made with easy, pantry-friendly ingredients!
- French bread – dryer bread works the best because they soak up the egg mixture better. You can also use sourdough, challah, croissants, regular white bread, or even healthier breads such as whole wheat.
- Eggs
- Milk – I like to use 2% milk, but you can use any kind of milk, even almond milk and oat milk for non-dairy options.
- Vanilla extract – use good quality vanilla extract for the best flavors. It really takes the flavor of the egg mixture to the next level.
- Cinnamon powder
- Brown sugar
- Berries – I use strawberries and blueberries but use whatever you have at hand or your favorite! Fresh or frozen would be just fine
- Powdered sugar – optional, for dusting the top
- Maple syrup – A must in my books! 😉 Use high quality maple syrup for the best taste!
How to make Berry French Toast Casserole
As mentioned, when making Berry French Toast Casserole, a lot of the real work happen the night before.
First, you will want to cut french bread into cubes and fill ~3/4 of a greased 9″ x 13″ casserole with the bread.
You can use other breads such as regular white bread, brioche, croissant etc as well.
Next, in a large mixing bowl, mix together 8 large eggs (yes, lots of eggs!), 2% milk, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and brown sugar. Then pour the mixture onto the casserole.
Top with sliced strawberries, blueberries, or other berries you like!
Cover casserole with a saran wrap, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to overnight. We are letting the bread soak up the egg mixture during this time.
Then (typically this is the next morning for me in my pajamas) bake at 350 for 35-50 minutes.
I check at the 35 minute mark, and bake for longer if needed.
Sprinkle berry French toast casserole bake with powdered sugar, because, come on, it’s powdered sugar. Life’s necessary pleasure.
I MEAN. Talk about kicking off your day RIGHT.
The bread is flavorful and moist after being soaked in the egg mixture. The edges and the top is slightly crispy. The juicy, sweet berries is a great compliment to the custardy dish. SO DELISH.
This berry French toast bake feeds a crowd or you’ll have plenty of leftovers.
NOT A BAD DEAL AT ALL.
In my most humble opinion, the best way to serve this yummy goodness that is this berry French toast bake is to drizzle maple syrup (especially the good kind!) on it. And maybe pair it with a few slices of bacon.
BREAKFAST DREAMS DO COME TRUE.
Tips and Tricks
A few things to note when making Berry French Toast Casserole:
- Use a few days old or dryer bread so that it soaks up the egg mixture better.
- Grease casserole dish with oil or butter prior to adding bread for easy removal after it bakes.
- Make this at least a few hours before so that the bread can soak up the egg/milk mixture before baking. I like to make this the night before and pop it into the oven in the morning. It really makes an easy, no fuss, YUMMY breakfast. Perfect for when you are feeding a lot of people – I do this a lot for the holidays as well.
- Due to multiple variability (actual oven temperature, how dry the bread is and how much egg/milk mixture it soaks up overnight, temperature of the casserole itself prior to baking, etc), bake time can differ slightly, so check at the 35 minute mark to see if French Toast Casserole is cooked, and bake for longer if needed. There were many times where I have to bake this longer than 35 minutes.
Variations and Substitutions
Berry French toast bake is seriously versatile and there are so many ways to make it your own!
- Instead of strawberries and blueberries, use blackberries, raspberries.
- Instead of French bread, use other breads such as challah, white bread, wheat bread, or even croissants for a luxurious (slight higher calorie) brunch! 🙂
- Want a dairy free option? Use almond milk or oatmilk instead of regular milk.
- Want to make this even fancier? Check out my Apple French Toast Casserole recipe. It is my attempt to make a fancier French toast casserole with crumbles on top and apple pieces sandwiched all over. So good!
Have more variation and substitution ideas? Share by commenting below and let us know!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Substitute fresh berries with frozen berries if fresh berries are not available.
Yes! That works great. Oat milk works great as well.
Absolutely! Any bread works great with this. Try to use dryer bread that are a few days old so that it soaks up the egg mixture better.
Keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for a few days. Store maple syrup separately. When ready to serve, heat in microwave and serve with maple syrup. This recipe actually heats up in the microwave really well!
Other breakfast dreams…
A.k.a. some of my other favorite breakfast and brunch recipes!
- Sausage Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole
- Ham and Cheese Croissant Casserole
- Strawberry Banana Nutella Crepes
- Cinnamon Raisin Rolls
- Caramelized Banana French Toast
- Apple Cinnamon Bread
- Banana and Date Muffin
- Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Pancake
- Pumpkin French Toast (by Well-Plated)
DID YOU ENJOY THIS RECIPE? Please comment below and give us a 5-star rating! This will help others find this recipe on Google and Pinterest. We very much appreciate your help! 🤍
Berry French Toast Casserole
Ingredients
- 12-14 cups French bread
- 8 large eggs
- 2 cups 2% milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup strawberries sliced
- 1/2 cup blueberries
- 1-2 tbsp powdered sugar
- maple syrup as much as you want!
Instructions
- Grease a 9″x13″ casserole with vegetable oil or butter. Cut up French bread into cubes and add to casserole (fill up to ~3/4).
- In a large bowl, combine eggs, milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and brown sugar. Whisk mixture and mix well. Pour mixture into casserole.
- Slice strawberries. Top casserole with strawberries and blueberries.
- Wrap the casserole with saran wrap and refrigerate for four hours, or up to overnight.
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for 35-50 minutes. Check at the 35-minute mark, and if it is not done bake for longer.
- Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
- Serve with maple syrup and enjoy!
Can this be made using muffin tins instead of a big pan? If so, how long would you bake it?
I have not done it before but you can definitely give it a try! Maybe try checking at the 15 minute mark and see if it needs to be cooked longer? Let me know how it goes!
I’ve made this seven or eight times, including Christmas morning. It is a really good recipe that my kids will actually eat!
Yay, that’s awesome! Thanks for sharing!
This looks Great. Do you think it would work without the added sugar?
You mean the powdered sugar, right? Totally ok to omit the powdered sugar!
Can this be frozen ahead of time?
Yes! Defrost it in the refrigerator the day before reheating it!
Can you substitute 2% milk for almond milk?
Yes!
Is oat milk an ok substitute as well?
I’ve known of people who have used almond milk so I imagine oat milk should be just fine!
Amazing! Kids and adults loved it and it made the house smell amazing!!!!
Yay! So glad!! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Would this be good without the fruit added before baking and have it fresh to top after cooked?
You can add the fruit after baking if you prefer !
Is it supposed to be slightly gooey in the center?
If it’s still gooey in the center go ahead and bake it for a little bit longer!
Is There a substitute for the maple syrup?
You can try honey, jelly, or just sprinkle with more powdered sugar!
I have tried other recipes and I was nervous about this being too soggy or eggy, more like bread pudding, but it was amazing! I made this for our first anniversary brunch and everyone loved it! Even my husband, who doesn’t like sweet things, had a second helping! Thank you for an awesome recipe. I will definitely be making this one again!
Aw thank you! I love hearing that you all loved it! So glad it worked out for you! 🙂
About how many loaves of bread does it take?
Usually one large long French loaf!
My guests and I all thoroughly enjoyed this…when it finally got done! I might have cubed my bread too big or my loaf was too big… so when I took it out at the 45 min mark, it was still ‘eggy’ in the middle. So we proceeded to eat the rest of the brunch while I baked it in the microwave for 15 more minutes. ( I checked it every 5 minutes or so to make sure it didn’t dry out). And even though we didn’t have it with the rest of the brunch, we all agreed it was like dessert! It actually was nice because it drew out our time together for our Mother’s Day brunch! This recipe is a keeper, I’ll just have to remember what happened!!!
Thank you so much! So glad you all enjoyed it. And thanks for sharing your modifications! That is super helpful!
Would it ruin it if I made this head of time and had it sit in the fridge for a couple of days?
I think that would be fine!
Do u have to let this sit?
Yes! Let it sit before baking if you can!
I have been making a version of this recipe for years as our Christmas morning breakfast. I now make 2 flavours at the request of my grandsons. One is blueberry the other is diced ham and cheddar cheese. I pop it in the oven when I get up and everyone can help themselves between opening and playing with their presents. We also took it a step further by having Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve so everyone enjoys the meal without distractions. Christmas Day is completely relaxing with no demands on Grandma or Mom
That is great! Love hearing that this has become a staple. Thank you so much for sharing!
Can the french toast sit in the fridge for 12 hours before you cook it, or is that too long?
That should be fine!
Can this be made gluten free?
I have not tried it but I imagine it would be just fine using gluten free bread! Would love to hear how it goes for you!
Second time making this, I refrigerated it overnight and baked it uncovered in the morning. The top bread was dry and the bottom was mushy/ eggy. Baked for 40 mins and the center and bottom was raw. Continued to bake it longer, took over an hour and it just dried up the top and the bottom was still slightly mushy and cooked parts were eggy. Maybe next time I’ll try mixing the bread with the egg mixture so all bread is coated evenly instead of pouring it over the bread but I don’t think I’ll be making this again…
Hi Rose! I am sorry it turned out the way it did! My suggestion is to up the temperature in your oven and cover the casserole with aluminum foil for most of the bake time, this way we can cook the insides without drying out the top. Sometimes the actual oven temperature can be lower/higher from the temperature it is set on, and it sounds like your oven needs to be hotter in order to fully cook the casserole. And your idea to mix the bread in the egg mixture could work as well. Hope this helps!
Could I use homemade bread in place of the French bread?
That should be fine!
Could you use frozen berries in this recipe?
Yes!