The BEST Croissant French Toast Casserole
Posted: 10/20/22
Updated: 10/28/23
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This croissant French toast casserole is absolutely delicious! It makes me weak in the knees every time I have a bite, and the (optional) bourbon-vanilla maple syrup that goes with it just seals the deal. It’s perfectly rich and sweet and fluffy and simply divine. I make this every Christmas morning – if I didn’t, there would be a revolt!
What Makes This Recipe So Good
- Do you like French toast? Ok. Imagine your French toast made with soft, buttery, flaky croissants. NOW, imagine your croissant French toast layered into a casserole, topped with sliced strawberries, fresh blueberries, and fresh raspberries, and then lightly dusted with sweet powdered sugar. Right? RIGHT?! Believe me, as incredible as it sounds, it tastes EVEN. BETTER.
- I paired my croissant casserole with the most mind-blowing, out-of-this-world, pour-it-on-everything, incredible homemade bourbon-vanilla maple syrup. Read that again – homemade. bourbon. vanilla. maple. syrup. Don’t worry, I included the recipe for you down below. It’s totally optional, though. Feel free to use pure maple syrup or honey or blueberry syrup or whatever you prefer, or just enjoy the overnight French toast as-is. There’s lots of flavor in the dish already.
- Want to really experience some Christmas magic? Croissant French toast casserole is a GREAT make-ahead option for the holidays. It needs to be chilled before baking so the bread can really soak up all the egg wash, and it can be chilled a full 24 hours before baking. Throw everything together on Christmas Eve, pop the dish in the fridge, then in the morning surprise everyone with a warm, gooey, sweet, rich, fresh-baked breakfast casserole. Not a bad present if you ask me.
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Chef’s Tips
- There’s a lot to love about French toast anyway, but one of my favorite things about this casserole (and French toast in general) is how versatile it is! Lean in hard to the sweet side of things with maple syrup and powdered sugar and fresh fruit and whipped cream. Pivot back to savory with crumbled bacon, chives, and parmesan cheese. Top it with fresh fruit or chocolate chips or chopped nuts or a drizzle of caramel. Get creative and have some fun with it!
- Really get the croissants good and submerged in the egg wash – you want them to soak up a lot of liquid! That’s what gives the French toast casserole all of its flavor, not to mention that delectable, tender texture.
- For the best overnight French toast, use day-old croissants rather than fresh ones. The dryer croissants will absorb more of the egg wash and give you much better results.
- Let the casserole dish stand at room temperature 30 minutes or so before baking the casserole. That’ll help everything bake nice and evenly, ensuring every piece is warmed through and toasty.
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- Tonga Toast French Toast Casserole
- Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole with Eggs and Sausage (Whole30, Dairy Free, Gluten Free)
- Paleo Gingerbread Pancakes (Gluten Free, Grain Free)
- Gluten-Free Waffles
- Mom’s Favorite Cheesy Scrambled Eggs
- Copycat Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole
- Keto Breakfast Casserole
- Breakfast Pizza with Sausage, Bacon, and Scrambled Eggs
The BEST Croissant French Toast Casserole
Rich and sweet and fluffy French toast made with croissants, layered into a gorgeous casserole, and topped with strawberries and blueberries. Seal the deal with an optional but unbelievable bourbon-vanilla maple syrup.
servings
Ingredients
For the Bourbon-Vanilla Maple Syrup (Optional)
- 1 cup pure maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons bourbon
- 1 ounce salted butter 2 tablespoons
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the Croissant French Toast Casserole
- 8-10 croissants see Notes
- 6 large eggs
- 1 ½ cups half and half or milk of choice, or heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 large pinch sea salt
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup plus more to serve if not making bourbon-vanilla syrup
Suggested Toppings (All Optional)
- powdered sugar for dusting
- whipped cream
- fresh berries
- bourbon-vanilla maple syrup from recipe above
Equipment
- Small saucepan optional
- 2 whisks 1 optional
- small airtight bottle or jar optional
- 9×13 baking dish
- Cooking spray
- Sharp knife
- Cutting board
- large mixing bowl with lid or plastic wrap to cover
- Refrigerator
- Oven
- flour duster, dredge, or fine mesh sifter optional, for powdered sugar
Instructions
For the Bourbon-Vanilla Maple Syrup (Optional)
- Warm small saucepan over high heat. When saucepan is warm, add maple syrup, bourbon, and butter, and whisk until ingredients are incorporate. Bring mixture to boil.
- When mixture begins to just boil, immediately reduce heat to low. Simmer mixture uncovered 3 minutes.
- After simmering 3 minutes, add pure vanilla extract and whisk to incorporate.
- Transfer prepared syrup to bottle or jar. Serve immediately, or cover container, let syrup cool, then refrigerate syrup up to 3 days. Reheat in microwave or on stovetop when ready to serve.
For the Croissant French Toast Casserole
- Lightly spray 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray. Set dish aside.
- Slice croissants in half, cutting through middle of croissants to create croissant buns. Detach halves completely and set aside.
- Add eggs, half and half, vanilla extract, cinnamon, salt, and maple syrup to large mixing bowl. Whisk ingredients together until fully combined.
- Submerge one croissant half in egg wash until completely soaked, then place croissant half cut-side down in greased casserole dish. Repeat until all croissant halves have been dipped in egg wash and placed in casserole dish. Overlap croissant halves slightly as needed to fit in dish.
- Cover baking dish tightly with lid or food-safe plastic wrap. Place covered baking dish in refrigerator and chill at least 2 hours, but no more than 24 hours.
- Remove baking dish from refrigerator 30 minutes prior to baking and let stand at room temperature. While casserole comes to temperature, preheat oven to 375° Fahrenheit.
- When oven is preheated, discard plastic wrap and place baking dish in oven. Bake casserole, uncovered, 25 to 35 minutes, or until croissants are golden brown and heated through completely.
- Remove casserole from oven. Let stand 5 minutes, then dust top with powdered sugar and add fresh fruit and whipped cream if desired. Serve immediately with pure maple syrup or bourbon-vanilla maple syrup.
Notes
- Croissants: For best results, the croissants should be a day old. I like to use 10 croissants because they layer nicely, but 8 would work fine.
Optional Egg Wash Mix-Ins
I kept the recipe simple, but you can add any number of things to the egg wash, to give your casserole a little more flavor. Here are just a few suggestions:- Orange zest
- Grand Marnier
- Bourbon
- Lemon zest
- Honey
- Bailey’s Irish Cream
- Brown sugar
- Banana extract
- Chopped walnuts
- Pumpkin pie spice
- Nutmeg
- Blueberry syrup
Nutrition Information
Serving Size: 1serving, Calories: 333kcal, Protein: 10g, Fat: 18g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Trans Fat: 0.01g, Cholesterol: 172mg, Sodium: 272mg, Potassium: 181mg, Total Carbs: 31g, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 13g, Net Carbs: 30g, Vitamin A: 700IU, Vitamin C: 0.5mg, Calcium: 92mg, Iron: 2mg
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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