boozy baked french toast
“Jocelyn, come over. I’m making baked French toast for Dave and I.”
“I’m too hung over. I’m dying.”
“Bailey’s French toast will cure anything.”
“I can’t do it. I can’t handle daylight and outdoors yet.”
“Just call a car service. You’ll be here in 30 minutes. Come on, you know you want to.”
“I’ll never make it. It’s too far.”
“Do you want me to call for you?”
“No, I’ll have Jacqui make me French toast instead. How do you make it?”
“Milk, eggs, bread, sugar…”
“Oh my god! Jacquelyn!” Jocelyn starts banging on her sleeping roommate’s door. “We have eggs! We have milk! We have bread! Why aren’t you making me French toast? Debbie’s making Dave French toast!”
Jacquelyn locked the door and hid under the covers.
“You people are terrible friends,” said Jocelyn. “And you both owe me French toast.”
In her quintessential Jocelyn manner, seven years later the girl still likes to remind me that I owe her the French toast she was too hungover to cross the East River to get, so when she invited us over for champagne and tree-trimming this afternoon, I finally caved to her ridiculousness and baked some up. I mean, it’s not like I was complaining or anything; this stuff is the best.
And the easiest! Seriously, take one loaf of your choice of bread — I’ve made it with everything from Balthazar buttery brioche to Wonder bread and it’s always delicious — lay it out in one, two or three layers a well-buttered baking dish, pour an egg/milk custard over, flavored with your favorite blend of booze, extracts, zests, nuts, dried fruit — you name it — and then bake it for about half an hour. That’s it. That’s all there is. More bread pudding than classic French toast, you can even cut back the calories with lower fat milk or jack up the richness by buttering each slice of bread before arranging them in the pan.
Yet, the absolute best thing about this approach to French toast, and the reason I was drawn to it in the first place is that in making it the night before, it’s the perfect guests-for-brunch food as you have none of that standing over a pan cooking individual portions mess while people wonder where their host is, and really no work to do at all on the day of. Except, say, get your butt to where you’re going or risk waiting seven years to get your fill. That part’s all you.
Boozy Baked French Toast
1 loaf supermarket Challah bread in 1-inch slices, no need for the super-fancy stuff here
3 cups whole milk
3 eggs
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Your choice of flavorings: I use 3 tablespoons Bailey’s and 3 tablespoons Cointreau, but Frangelico (hazelnut), Chambord (raspberry), Creme de Cassis (black currant) Grand Marnier or just a teaspoon or two of vanilla or almond extract can do the trick. You can bump up a citrus flavor with a teaspoon of zest, add a half-cup of chopped nuts such as almond slivers or pecans between layers or on top or a similar amount of raisins or other dried fruits.
1. Generously grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with salted (my choice) or unsalted butter.
2. Arrange bread in two tightly-packed layers in the pan. I always cut one slice into smaller pieces to fill in gaps, especially when using braided Challah. If using a thinner-sliced bread, you might wish for more layers, though I find that over three, even baking can be difficult. If you are using any fillings of fruit or nuts, this is the time to get them between the layers or sprinkled atop.
3. Whisk milk, eggs, sugar, salt and booze or flavorings of your choice and pour over the bread. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.
4. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. The bread will absorb all of the milk custard while you sleep.
5. Bake at 425 for 30 minutes, or until puffed and golden. This will take longer if you have additional layers.
6. Cut into generous squares and serve with maple syrup, fresh fruit, powdered sugar or all of the above.
Serves 6 as main course.












Hahaha! I’ve heard that story so many times. It reminds me of another Jocelyn story. One morning when Jocelyn was living with us between her California and NYC years, our dad accidentally set something on the stove on fire. OK, that “something” were dog bones fried up with bacon (we spoil our dog a lot) and I screamed up the stairs “Someone help! The kitchen is filled with smoke and there’s a fire!” To which Jocelyn replied “I’m sleeping! Why are you being so loud??” I guess we all have our priorities.
Thank you, thank you! Printed and will save on file. This is so great, exactly what you said the no standing over the stove part.
Wow, that looks heavenly! Standing by the stove and cooking all the individual portions is exactly why I almost never make French toast.
This looks yummy, only problem in my house (well, there’s two really) is that I don’t know that feeding my 12 yo booze laden breakfast would really be very responsible, and my hubby a) doesn’t eat eggs or anything ‘eggy’ and b) doesn’t drink a drop of alcohol
So IF i ever make it, and that’s a big ‘IF’ it would be like normal baked french toast and then I would just say to hubby ‘make your own breakfast, me and G are chowin’ down!”
i love the jocelyn story and i don’t even know her, but in college had a few experiences like that
I’m sure it was well worth the wait! Great story.
I just love your blog!
This looks like another keeper of a recipe! I have a French Toast recipe that my friends beg me to make, but it’s the “stand over the stove and your friends wonder where your host is” version. This way I can participate in the fun too instead of slaving over a the stove the entire time.
Thanks for sharing this recipe and the funny story!
Kristen
Aha ha aha hahahah OMG. Finally. I mean honestly, who calls a hung over person and tells them they are making French Toast on the Upper East Side? That is just mean. And the Upper East Side? Seriously, you may as well have been calling me from Wyoming. Thats far! Thanks for the toast. I actually ate a pice off the kitchen counter this morning. I know, I am disgusting, but hey it was still good! Yum.
Oh and I almost forgot. I ended up calling a car service that day–requesting a car only with tinted windows. To take me through the Drive-Thru at McDonalds. I even bought the driver a Happy Meal. aha ah aha h a
Lauren – That’s beautiful. We need to have a dual roast of Joc next year for her next 29th birthday.
Kate – You can totally cut out the booze, though it bakes off, I know when I was a kid I couldn’t stand even the hint of a taste of alcohol. Oh, how the mighty have fallen…
Jocelyn – I lived on Avenue B at the time, which was a $7 cab ride back in the day to Williamsburg. You actually made it to the UES ones. I almost forgot the McD’s part, only the best part of the story. What ever happened to Vinnie?
Looks yummy and perfect to try on Christmas morning!
You must mean F-R-A-N-K-I-E. Oh frankie, I miss him where-ever he is.
And I lived in Greenpoint back then.
Ok, I was having the most delicious deja vu when I began to read this, then I’m all, “I knew it!…this was one of my favorite archive entries and the one that made me love Joc’s rock star persona, when later she orders a car for mickie d’s and the buys the driver a sammy.Y’all are fun, and funny, and great “city” girlz! Just let me know when you need me to chip in for the therapy, you earned every penny entertaining me! lolz.
Hahahahahahah. Too great. Love the follow up comment by Jocelyn too. This sounds easy enough- thanks!!!!
French toast is our nemesis – the hubby likes it soft and I like it toasty, so no one is ever satisfied, lol.
We’re making your german pancake recipe this weekend, I’m very excited!
I love this story – Joc is my hero (particularly for the McD part, which is still my favorite part of the story). I have fond memories of this story from the first time you ever posted about it. Glad she finally got her french toast, though I don’t think I’ll make it. The dutch pancakes put me off eggs for a while.
Hey, are you still in a sling, or is that over with now? How are you feeling?
I just might have to make that for your Mom this Sunday morning … if she behaves herself, that is.
This is a recipe I’ll have to prepare during the holidays – I love having a very lazy breakfast on those days!
I like the idea of it being baked, so I can put the dish in the oven and watch TV in the meantime – very lazy indeed!
Nothing is better than having it all together the day before.
Looks really good Deb. Waiting 7 years is a testament!!
Ok, I’ve never thought of adding booze to my bread and butter pudding, but I’ve got some half-empty bottles of cream liqueur in my cupboard, so this might just be the dessert for this weekend:)
Another thing to do to this is add a layer of apples braised in butter underneath – or even just applesauce if you’re lazy. Then you could use Calvados or dark rum for the booze. Something like this is usually our Christmas breakfast.
I love to make a brown sugar/maple or corn syrup/butter mixture and put it on the bottom of the baking dish before layering the bread on top. Voila! No syrup necessary!
Ha!
Here in the hinterlands of the northern Midwest, we don’t have “supermarket Challah”. But we do have lefse! Perhaps if I soaked that with a little aquavit and eggs, then baked it and drizzled it with lingonberry jam, I could call it Norwegian Toast?
Okay, maybe not…
Hey Deb. Just wanted to tell you my family made this last night (sans liquor) and we devoured it this morning. Even me, only five days post tonsillectomy! Everyone loved it, and my mom is excited to invite friends over and make it for a brunch in their newly remodeled house.
Thanks for sharing!
I made this recipe over the holidays and my hubby thought it was the mutt’s nuts (his words). The only thing changed was the liquor (I used amaretto). Delicious! Thank you.
I’m not sure what I did wrong here, but I had 2 or 3 possible deviations that could have caused this to fail for me. I only had an 8 by 11 pan, so I used that, and I only had enough bread for a complete bottom layer and an almost-but-not-quite-complete top layer. (Used an entire loaf of challah.) Also I wound up soaking the bread in the fridge for about 15 hours — could that have been too much? The result was soggy on the bottom and a bit burned on the top and I had to pitch it. This was just a backup dish for me at a brunch I was hosting so it wasn’t the end of the world, but I do wonder what I did wrong. It sounded and looked yummy here!
Huzzah!! Thanks for opening the comments again. I prepared this last night and baked it this morning for breakfast. I only had 1 cup of whole milk, so I used what I had left. Which, as I mentioned in my other post, was 1 cup of cream and 1 cup of buttermilk. I’ve always been wanting more uses for buttermilk, because I love the scent like crazy and the tart flavor it adds to all my family’s traditional foods (biscuits, fried chicken). I am checking out the buttermilk ice cream this summer for sure.
Anyway, I had half a loaf of vienna bread that I actually had to saw into pieces it was so hard. After soaking overnight though it was soft as warm butter and baked like a charm. It was a little wet, but I am pretty sure that’s because I had less bread than the recipe called for–but I didn’t mind. I liked to gooey. The best part though is that that cup of buttermilk in the mix really made it taste like it had cream cheese in the mixture. It was fabulous! I am so making this again, and definitely with the buttermilk, though I want to try it without the buttermilk too.
Thanks for this recipe!!
We tried this a few weekends ago and, sadly, it didn’t go so well. In other ‘overnight’ french toast recipes I’ve tried,there are many more eggs/a higher ratio of eggs to milk. After making Paula Deans’ heart-attack-on-a-plate recipe, I was glad to try one with less eggs and no cream. But the result for me was a horribly soggy french toast– we kept popping back in the oven for more time, but it never seemed to develop that ‘set’ cooked custard center. We ate the edges and had to throw the rest. I also used Portuguese sweet bread instead of the challah, because that’s easier to find in these parts, so perhaps that was part of the problem? Sigh.
Tasted great-but I have a question. . .was this supposed to be baked covered? I knew to take off the plastic wrap before baking (pretty obvious!), but the top layer came out very dry. . .I wonder if it is supposed to be covered with foil?
Otherwise delicious! We served it with macerated strawberries and powdered sugar this am, and my kiddos gobbled it up!
I made a “starving-student” version with 1/3 of a leftover loaf of Whole Wheat Challah from The Laurel’s Kitchen Bread Book (http://www.amazon.ca/Laurels-Kitchen-Bread-Book-Whole-Grain/dp/0812969677); ~ cup of skim milk; 2 eggs, sugar, cinnamon, and ~ 1 cup blueberries. It was delicious! Thanks for another great inspirational recipe…..even my “not a big fan of french toast” husband loved it.
So excited to make this for a Halloween brunchy gathering this weekend. Here in Mexico City this is the season of pan de muerto, made for the Mexican rough equivalent of All Saints and All Souls days (bread of the dead…creepy sounding but mighty tasty) and I am going to try it with that. It’s a slightly sweet bread with a hint of anise and/or orange flavor. I’ll let you know how it turns out…
I made this using pan de muerto and it turned out quite well topped with my dad’s version of cranberry orange relish. And the little bit of leftovers have been even better in the past coupla days (like Jendorf’s above, mine came out of the oven with the top a little on the dry side, too)…or maybe I’m partial to being able to grab a slab of french toast for my breakfast on a work day.
Deb, I am new to this blog and absolutely love it. I am interested in making this for Christmas day brunch. The recipe I have used in the past never quite sets up and is soggy. I think adding the flavorings is great – and I do love Baileys! Do you recommend using old, stale bread? Or do you use fresh bread?
You can use either. Stale bread absorbs better. If you are concerned about sogginess, spreading it thinner (perhaps over two pans instead of one) would create more edges, less thickness that needs to be cooked through.
I just made this for a breakfast-for-dinner party and it was DELICIOUS! I substituted coconut milk because of a dairy allergy but no one noticed because it was still rich and yummy! Thanks for the recipe!
Mom and I just made this for breakfast yesterday, delicious! I even took a piece of the leftovers to work with me and heated it up in the microwave, it’s just as good the second time around!
I need something for Christmas morning and have an excess of panettone (hostess gifts for snowed-out parties). I’ll bet that would work with this recipe but Grand Marnier would probably be better than Baileys with the fruity bread. Thanks, as always, for a great idea, Deb!
I have never taken very well to bread pudding. But this french toast totally rocks!
I made this for Christmas breakfast today and it was delicious and easy. I used 3 Tbsp Baileys and 1 tsp vanilla and the Bailey’s flavor wasn’t very strong. So I would definitely buy another liquor next time or just add more Bailey’s. The loaf of challah I had wasn’t enough for 2 full layers but the bread still absorbed all of the milk mixture and baked fine. Will definitely make again
I made this last night to bake up for lunch today but I have the stomach flu and can’t deal with it. Anyone know if I can freeze it (‘raw’) to bake at a future time? Thanks!
Hello Deb! I’ve been snooping around your blog for months now, and it’s seriously one of my favorite things to read, both because I love your writing and because I love your photographs (good pictures of food get me every time). However. If you can believe it, this French toast is the FIRST of your recipes that I’ve ever made. (Wouldn’t you think someone who obsesses over food blogs would occasionally try out a recipe?) Despite slight modifications and a burned bottom and the limitations of my toaster oven (I don’t have a real oven!!,) this was wonderful. Thanks so much. I’m getting ambitious now, and eyeing a couple other recipes for tomorrow…
Made this for our family for Christmas morning! I put slivered almonds and golden raisins in between the layers. It is just as good microwaved 3 days later!
if anyone was curious I flash froze my french toast for a day, let it defrost and it was great this morning. Additionally, I only had Splenda on my hands, no sugar and that didn’t seem to affect it at all.
I made this for Christmas brunch because I have two small children and Christmas morning does not allow time for cooking and OH MY GOODNESS it was soo good. I made it with amaretto and vanilla extract and it was fabulous served up with some fruit and a side of bacon. I will definately be adding this to my breakfast go-to list.
It did not work for me. Should I have cooked it covered? I had extremely fluffy bread, that was way undercooked beneath the top layer, and that top layer was close to burning. Suggestions?
Yes, some foil next time if the top browns before the insides are baked. It happens in some ovens.
We made this last night for dinner and it was such a hit!! My 4 year old son helped me make it and was SO proud of how yummy it was. So easy and so versitile. Thank you!!
It didn’t work for us either and I was so sure it would! The bottom was still under-cooked and top was nice and brown. I placed some foil over it and put it back in the oven and it dried out but not nearly like what I think it should be. Of course that did not stop us from eating it. I used shredded coconut, baileys and vanilla extract and it was good just wished it wasn’t so wet. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi Deb (: I just finished making this but didn’t put refrigerate it yet because I was wondering what was the maximum amount of hours for refrigeration was? Thanks!
Hi Andrea — I am not an expert in food safety but I wouldn’t do it more than a day in advance.
This is a phenomenally fail safe and delicious recipe. On both occasions, I’ve cubed my challah in large squares, but thanks to the delicious custard, it all comes back together with a perfect crisp exterior. Definitely more of a bread pudding, which works for me. And it looks beautiful dusted with confectioner’s sugar. Thanks so much for sharing the yumminess!
Deb, this is really the best. Thanks for such an awesome recipe! My sister and I host an after-Christmas breakfast-for-dinner party every year and we’re always looking for something delicious that can feed a crowd, and impress, and be done ahead! This was a total winner. With the fridge too full, I set the pans out on my balcony (40 degrees!) to set and they baked to perfection. Two giant pans were quickly finished off by our guests… I will make this again and again! Thanks for making us look good by the way. We served this with Bon Appetit’s Spinach, Sausage and Roasted Red Pepper Torta Rustica, homemade bloody marys and orange juice and a green salad. Delicious!
This was great. i made for some college friends who cam into town and they asked me to make for dinner too. It is so much easier than my favorite french toast casserole recipe. As much as I am not a fan of the butter queen Paula Dean, she has an amazing french toast recipe with a praline topping. It is a combination of bread pudding and french toast. It is a must try.
this smells delicious baking in my oven- only wish there was more bread in my house- only had 5 pieces! my husband got to it before me. now anticipation is killing me.
I cooked this again yesterday, and it was even better the second time around. I was generous with the cinnamon & sugar between layers, and I think that was key. I also used a smaller pan so the mixture really covered the bread before I put it in the fridge… this was especially key in the top layer not drying out when I cooked it (which I felt happened last time).
I had leftovers and it was even wonderful reheated the next day.
I think the cinnamon & sugar were the extra something it needed for me.
Made this for a birthday brunch. It was awesome — everyone loved it. Thanks again for a foolproof crowd-pleaser!
Made a great Mother’s Day brunch! Substituted two cups of skim & 1 cup half-and-half for the whole milk. Seemed a bit moister than yours, but still excellent.
Lets not forget, all the “booze” will be baked out so I have no problems making this for my kids. Vanilla and other extracts are also “booze” and we give them to our kids all the time in cookies, cakes, etc. I cant wait to try this one out tomarrow morning!
Deb (or anyone who has made this), how big was your loaf of challah?
Making this tomorrow morning for my Big Gay Brunch. Happy Pride, everyone! Hope it goes well. Either way, mimosas and Bloody Marys…
@Beth Beth, I’m doing the same thing — although, admittedly, I’m not heading into the city tomorrow for the festival. Still, Happy Pride!
I made this over the weekend for my visiting friend. I actually had leftover challah bread that I’d made earlier in the week, it made the dish even more delish. I did have to cut the recipe in half (only 2 of us), but it worked out beautifully as I had medium eggs on hand (79 cents for a dozen – I couldn’t say no). I still used 2 tbsp baileys + 1 tsp almond extract w some crushed almond in the bread. It baked in about 22 minutes in the middle of the oven, but was goldenly scrumptious. Thank you for this recipe and helping me give my friend a beautiful meal.
I made this for a reunion weekend get together. It was such a smashing hit! I used grangala and vanilla. This will be a go-to recipe for any special function. Thank you for all of the lovely recipes.
This was excellent. I used skim milk, egg beaters and 3T of Grand Marnier and put cinnamon, sugar and crushed walnuts in between the layers and on top. My husband who is not easily impressed by food (“It’s all just food…”) and not a huge fan of french toast or bread pudding exclaimed “Best thing ever!” got seconds and insisted that I make this next time people stay the night at our house. I could taste the Grand Marnier a perfect amount, not too strong just a hint in the background. I would have no problem serving this to children as it did not have a strong alcohol taste at all, just sort of citrus-y, and I am sure any potency it might have had is baked out. Thanks for the great recipe, will be printing this one out for my collection!
PS. I used a loaf of crusty Ciabatta bread for the bread, cut the slices about 3/4 inch thick and used 2 layers so the pan was filled almost to the top. I think using a crusty bread (or letting regular bread dry out a little before using), and using enough of it, might be a good key to not ending up with too-soggy toast.
I made this today and it was incredible. I used bolillos from the local Mexican market instead of challah (cheaper!) and sprinkled muscovado sugar and dried Montmorency cherries between the layers. I added 3 TBS of thick cut marmalade to the egg mixture, used 4 TBS 12 year old single malt whiskey and 2 tsp of bourbon vanilla. Delicious. The only problem is that it did come out pretty moist – I think I may bake it longer and a bit cooler, like 375 for 45 minutes, will have to play with that. The whiskey set against the cherries and orange was just… wow.
This, we will have again.
I am new here and so inspired by your site that my husband is starting to become a “smitten kitchen widow”. So sad for him, but I will not be moved!! You truly have a gift and I am so glad that you are brave enough to share your culinary adventures with everyone by having this site.
Had this for breakfast this morning, and made it with Bailey’s and Cointreau as suggested. I used a loaf of Whole Wheat Walnut Cranberry bread, and added a tsp or two of fine orange zest to the egg mixture. Garnished with fresh mint sprigs, slices of supremed oranges, and a hint of powdered sugar. It was…so…good….THANK YOU!! Christmas morning breakfast plans are taking shape as we speak!
Our Thanksgiving starts early as we have family visiting from other states – We stay up all evening playing catch up and everyone is cooking (it’s a good thing); while I play board games with the children (no sugar please). It was decided prior to their arrival breakfast would be dinner. The Boozy Baked French Toast was a hit! The Challah bread did not make a two layer (one must be flexible), two loaves next time. The toast started to burn the top (oh well let’s put some loose foil on top for damage control). I decided on the kid friendly version and it was delish~ Even my son tried to snob it (of course I said nothing when he had a second helping (smile). Life is good when everyone is happy eating. I served it with a fruit salad with a choice of your “Baked Eggs” as well and yes it was all delish. Thanks Deb! You are my new “Rock Star” and yes I refer many to your site. HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!
This was a smash hit for our post-holiday party brunch today! I used Kahlua and Irish Creme, it was great. Next time I’ll cover it with some foil about halfway through cooking. Thanks for the recipe!
Do you or others think I can use rendered bacon fat instead butter to grease baking dish? It’s what I use for a griddle or pan.
No reason why not.
I made this recipe with leftovers from making the challah recipe and it was great! Thanks for providing a use for the leftovers!
I’ve made this several times, and it has always turned out amazing, but my boyfriend doesn’t like the texture, so I’ve started flipping it halfway through the soaking process and it bakes a lot more evenly, in my experience. The way I did it was to make it early afternoon, flip it before bed (I literally place another dish the same size on top and then flip it upside down), and then bake the next morning per the recipe. I’ve also had problems with the center not cooking fully while the top is crusty even while covered, like other comments have noted, and I’ve noticed that this method also helps balance out any inconsistencies with oven heat.
hi. one question… do u toast the bread before adding the egg-milk mixture? it seems like it is in the pic.
No need to toast. You can if you wish.
I love french toast and I love adding booze to my breakfast yummies – however, I learned the hard way that when you mix Kahlua or any other booze into french toast, it becomes a sticky, smokey mess when it meets the pan. I just made this to bring to a friend’s Valentine’s Day Brunch and it was a huge hit. My oven is small and temperamental so I baked it covered for 25 min and uncovered for 10 and it came out perfectly! I also took someone else’s advice to do some sort of build in syrup at the bottom of the pan – I decided on a butter/brown sugar/maple syrup caramel sauce that I poured in the dish before layering the challah – genius!
I just made this with your Sally Lunn bread. It was divine!
I’m probably being paranoid, but…is this fine to serve to a pregnant woman? I mean, does the booze cook off and leave just the flavor? (I know some people say that minimal alcohol is all right during pregnancy, but I believe this person is abstaining from all alcohol and I want to respect that…at her baby shower.) Thanks!
Hmm…not as tasty as I thought (or at least not as to my liking as other recipes).
I was dead wrong to think supermarket challah bread is going to have any resemblance to freshly homemade challah bread, so I used this recipe to use the bread up. One loaf of bread was barely enough to produce 2 layers of 1/2-1in thick on a 9 by 13 pan. The top taste like toast and bottom bread pudding. hmm….well, at least it makes the supposedly not stale supermarket challah edible. Guess I will put in the hard work and make challah from your recipe next time I want to eat challah.
Nearly five years after you post this and it turns into the perfect Fathers’ Day breakfast. I actually did not fully read the recipe until the morning of, however, and it soaked for about 12 minutes instead of 12 hours, but it was delicious nonetheless. Next time I will do the full overnight. I am looking forward to having people over for brunch now, this takes away all of the morning stress!
This recipe is amazing and totally foolproof. I made two pans this past weekend for 20+ and it was plenty (among other dishes). I used vanilla for flavoring and sprinkled slivered almonds on top and cinnamon and sugar between the layers. And served with my favorite maple butter recipe from Clinton Street. It is super easy and delicious and the leftovers (if you have any) are tasty too. My new favorite!
OK, so I’m a bit late on this, but wanted to add that this is AMAZING! Granted, we only made it about one hour before it went into the oven, but it was perfect! Also, I added (per other reviews) some cinnamon and sugar to both layers in addition to about three tbsps of Bailey’s. Deeeeeeeeelicious, thanks!
Made this for six for brunch this morning. Used vanilla soy milk and Earth Balance for the lactards (me), and a mix of Desarrono (amaretto liquor) and Grand Marnier for the liquor— the requisite 6 tablespoons, but felt like I could definitely have ramped up the booze since the taste was hard to detect. Added an extra egg since the original batter with the soy milk looked thin, two different types of bread— a cinnamon apple loaf as a solid bottom layer and a rustic raisin loaf on the top, and the result was absolutely beautiful, perfect, and delicious. Really freaking good. Garnished with fresh berries, side of bacon, and peach nectar bellinis for a festive meal. Thanks for the recipe— perfect for hosting!
I made this for a group of friends coming over for brunch– delicious! I packed it full of raisins and sliced almonds, and everyone fell in love with how flavorful and creative it was. Huge hit, going to make it again for my family this weekend.
I have two of these puppies in the fridge right now, waiting to be baked up for Christmas Eve brunch and the Bronco game. The first is an egg nog and Baileys and the second is cranberries and orange zest with Frangelico. I cannot tell you how excited I am try them out!
it’s “I’m making baked French toast for Dave and *me,” not “I’m making baked French toast for Dave and I.” you wouldn’t say “I’m making baked French toast for I,” right?
This was great! I used challah. Because my bread was still fresh, I sliced it and put it into a 200 degree oven until it dried out. I then buttered the top side of the bottom layer and dipped it in cinnamon & sugar (and put less sugar in the egg batter). I had about a half cup of extra egg whites, so threw those in too. I baked mine for a longer time at a lower temperature, because I had something else in the oven that needed to be cooked at a lower temp. It was perfect, and looked pretty much like the photo the top wasn’t dried out or burned. Best of all, everyone loved it. Thanks for another great recipe!
Prepared this last night and left a note for my early rising husband to bake. Not a perfect collaboration because it came out too cooked on the top, edges and bottom. He is not one to adjust the instructions so my advice to others is to cut the time on the kitchen timer significantly and check to make sure the dish is not cooking too quickly. No worries, the kids ate the insides and the crusts will go to my neighbor’s hens. Breakfast innovation accomplished!
Baked french toast is definitely far superior to the individual pan style. My Banana French Toast version consists of making a butter/cinnamon/brown sugar mix and thickly coating the bottom of the baking dish, and then covering it in sliced bananas. The custard soaked bread goes on top and then usually a sprinkle of nuts. As it cooks, the bananas will actually caramalize and depending on how much butter/sugar mix you put on, you have a built in syrup! Tastes great with bacon and I have received rave reviews from everyone! Love the blog and loved meeting you in Vancouver! (PS: I figured out my yeast question that I asked you)
We just made this with the small amount that was left from last night’s fig, olive oil honey challah….I have dreamed of making overnight soaked French toast for years and it was perfect!!! Thank you!
Just made this today for New Year’s brunch and it was fantastic! Thank you for the yummy recipe. Cheers to 2013!
How do you think this would be with bourbon? Or does it have to be a liqueur?
made this for brunch for 15 people! i was generous with the cinnamon/sugar between the layers and i think that made a difference. i only used vanilla for flavor. i baked 2 pans (9×13) — first covered with foil for 15 minutes, then i turned and switched the pans and baked for another 20 minutes or so uncovered. it was delicious–one person said it was the best french toast they’d ever had. thanks!