French Toast Bake
Serves 8 – 10Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour 15 Minutes (plus several
hours or overnight to soak)
Ingredients
8 whole eggs½ cup sugar
2 Tablespoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg
¼ teaspoon salt
1½ cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 loaf sourdough bread, sliced (preferably stale)
Topping:
1 cup pecans, chopped¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
¼ cup brown sugar, packed
¼ cup cold butter, cut into pieces
Preparation
Generously butter the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13 baking dish. Set it aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, milk, and heavy cream until they’re well combined.
Dip each slice of bread into the egg mixture and place it in the prepared baking dish, overlapping each slice. Pour the remaining egg mixture over the top of the bread slices. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours, or overnight.
In a small bowl, mix all of the ingredients for the topping, except for the butter. Once they’re combined, cut the cold butter pieces into the nut mixture until it resembles small pebbles. Cover and reserve the topping to be added just before the French toast is baked.
Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C.
After the French toast is done soaking, remove the casserole from the refrigerator and sprinkle the nut mixture evenly over the top of the bread slices. For a texture that’s more like bread pudding, bake for 45 minutes. For a firmer, less custardy, texture that’s more like baked French toast, bake for 1 hour.Serve topped with maple syrup and fresh fruit.
