Barefoot Contessa baked French toast casserole is a popular easy breakfast dish, especially for weekend mornings. It’s rich in nutrients and has honey as a sweetener. While this recipe may seem complicated at a glance, it’s quite simple, and you’ll want to make it again and again.
This delicious recipe teaches you how to make a nutritious dish everyone loves. It’s easy and fast to make, and the ingredients are easily available.
Contents
How to Prepare Barefoot Contessa French Toast Casserole
Preparing this French toast casserole is easy. With challah bread as the basic ingredient, you’ll have this dish ready for your breakfast, lunch, or dinner within a short time.
- Course: Breakfast
- Cuisine: American
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 1 hour
- Wait time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Ingredients
Yield: 8 servings
- 1 loaf of challah bread
- 8 eggs (large in size)
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 5 cups of milk
- 3 tbsp. of honey
- 1 tbsp. orange zest (grated)
- ¼ tsp. salt
For serving
- Maple syrup
- Confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
- Ensure you have all the ingredients, then preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Slice the challah loaf into slices of ¾ inch thickness. Arrange the sliced pieces in a 9 by 13 by 2 inches baking dish. Make sure to arrange the challah slices in two layers.
- Whisk together the milk, eggs, vanilla extract, honey, salt, and orange zest. Pour the mixture over the bread and leave to soak for about 10 minutes.
- Take a large roasting pan and fill it with enough water. Place the baking dish that has the bread mixture in the roasting pan and cover it firmly with aluminum foil. Make a few slashes into the aluminum foil, where steam will come out as you cook.
- Put in the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes. Remove from the oven and set it aside to cool slightly.
- After cooling, dust lightly with confectioners’ sugar and serve with maple syrup.
Notes
Everyone years for their French toast to have a crunchy crust but a soft and yummy inside. For your convenience, below are a few tips we’ve gathered while making this dish to help you get an enticing French toast casserole every time.
- If using fresh bread, allow it to harden first. Leave it in open air to dry for at least a whole day, if not more. Dry bread holds up the egg mixture better than a soft, fresh slice, thus giving you a more flavorful and crunchy French toast.
- Always allow the bread slices to sit in the egg mixture for enough time. The more time you give it, the better the results. You can even leave it overnight in the fridge for a frothy and smooth mix.
- You can use a crunchy topping like breadcrumbs or shredded coconut to make a nice crust on your toast. Press the topping on both sides of the bread to imitate a breading and cook into a chewy, crispy, and golden brown exterior.
- Use challah bread for the best results. It is the most reliable bread that guarantees a perfectly crisp exterior and soft inside.
- If you have more time and energy, use both the stove and oven. Toast the ducked bread slices in a skillet until both sides a golden brown, then put on a baking sheet and bake in the oven until the bread puffs. The egg mixture will continue to cook and penetrate the bread giving it a sweet and soft interior.
- Cover the skillet with a lid after flipping the bread if you don’t want to transfer it into the oven. Doing this will cause the bread to puff up and get amazing French toast.
- You can use either orange zest or lime zest. Both add an amazing fruity flavor to your French toast. Make sure to rinse the fruit first before grating off the zest.
- Device other options of toppings you can use. Top it up with mascarpone, brie, caramelized pears or peaches, fresh raspberries, strawberry, or bananas. Make cooking your French toast fun by experimenting with these and more.
Nutritional Information
Per 1 serving
- Calories: 437 kcal
- Calories from fat: 177 kcal
- Total fat: 20 grams
- Saturated fat: 11 grams
- Trans fat: 0.6 grams
- Polyunsaturated fat: 1.7 grams
- Monounsaturated fat: 5.6 grams
- Cholesterol: 217 milligrams
- Sodium: 410 milligrams
- Potassium: 266 milligrams
- Carbohydrates: 54 grams
- Fiber: 0.7 grams
- Sugars: 34 grams
- Protein: 12 grams
- Vitamin A: 1.7 IU
- Vitamin C: 0.8 IU
- Calcium: 11 grams
Barefoot Contessa Baked French Toast Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 loaf of challah bread
- 8 eggs large in size
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 5 cups of milk
- 3 tbsp. of honey
- 1 tbsp. orange zest grated
- ¼ tsp. salt
For serving
- Maple syrup
- Confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
- Ensure you have all the ingredients, then preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Slice the challah loaf into slices of ¾ inch thickness. Arrange the sliced pieces in a 9 by 13 by 2 inches baking dish. Make sure to arrange the challah slices in two layers.
- Whisk together the milk, eggs, vanilla extract, honey, salt, and orange zest. Pour the mixture over the bread and leave to soak for about 10 minutes.
- Take a large roasting pan and fill it with enough water. Place the baking dish that has the bread mixture in the roasting pan and cover it firmly with aluminum foil. Make a few slashes into the aluminum foil, where steam will come out as you cook.
- Put in the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes. Remove from the oven and set it aside to cool slightly.
- After cooling, dust lightly with confectioners’ sugar and serve with maple syrup.
Conclusion
You do need a whole day to prepare a barefoot French toast casserole. With the right ingredients, you can have this deliciousness ready within an hour. This French toast casserole is nutritious, filling, and has tons of flavors. And since it’s easy and fast to prepare, you’ll want to make it almost every time.
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