Blueberry French Toast Casserole
One of the best-loved dishes breakfast and brunch dishes! Blueberry French Toast Casserole is an overnight recipe sweetened with classic New England flavors—maple syrup and fresh blueberries.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 443kcal
Ingredients
- 16 ounces sweet bread, like challah, brioche, or Portuguese sweet bread
- Butter, to grease the pan
- 1 medium naval orange (you will use the zest and juice)
- 8 large eggs
- 1 cup half-and-half
- ½ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 pinch ground or grated nutmeg
- 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon pure Vermont maple syrup, divided
- 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
Instructions
Layer ingredients in the pan:
- Preheat the oven to 350° F.
- Tear the sweet bread into small pieces, roughly 1½ to 2 inches in size. Spread the pieces on a large baking sheet. Bake the bread for 10 minutes; take the pan out, stir the bread pieces around, then pop them back in the oven for 5 more minutes. Remove the bread and let it cool a little.
- Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish, bottoms and side with the butter. Spread the toasted bread pieces out in the pan.
- Use a zester to to zest the orange peel over the bread in the pan. (This will yield about 1½ tablespoons of zest.) Save the orange - you will need the juice for after the dish is baked.
- NOTE: If you are using fresh blueberries you can sprinkle them over the bread pieces now. Using frozen berries? Save these, we'll add them after the overnight chill.
Make the egg batter:
- Beat the eggs together in a large bowl. Stir in the half-and-half and the milk. Then whisk in the brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, cardamom and nutmeg, and be sure the spices are well distributed. Finally, stir 1 cup of the Vermont maple syrup into the batter.
Assemble then refrigerate the dish:
- Pour the egg batter slowly over the bread pieces in the pan - slowly so that you can get every piece of bread throughout the dish soaked with the batter. If any pieces get missed use a spoon to push them down into the liquid. When all of the batter is added, cover the dish tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate it overnight. (Or for at least 8 hours.)
Bake the dish:
- Preheat the oven to 325° F.
- Remove the plastic wrap. NOTE: if you're using frozen blueberries, sprinkle them evenly over the bread pieces now. Then cover the pan with foil.
- Bake the dish for 40 minutes. Then, remove the foil and return the pan to the oven. Bake it for 15-20 minutes longer until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the pan to a cooling rack.
- Get the orange you saved and squeeze 2 tablespoons of the juice into a small dish. Add the 1 remaining tablespoon of maple syrup into this juice. Drizzle the mixture evenly over the hot French toast bake.
- Serve the French Toast Bake while it's hot! Any leftovers can be wrapped and refrigerated for up to 3 days. Reheat portions in the microwave, or wrap the pan in foil and rewarm it in the oven.
Notes
- The overnight rest is important for this recipe, as it lets the bread soak up the batter and creates a creamy texture. Be sure to plan for this time when you get ready to make the recipe.
- If you're using fresh blueberries you can add them before the dish gets refrigerated. However, frozen blueberries should be added right before baking - otherwise they'll thaw and release juice into the dish turning everything purple!
Nutrition
Serving: 1portion | Calories: 443kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 256mg | Sodium: 478mg | Potassium: 338mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 32g | Vitamin A: 639IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 187mg | Iron: 3mg
