Overnight Eggnog French Toast Casserole
An easy casserole that you can throw together to have ready to bake first thing in the morning. The hypnotizing scent is sure to lure everyone into the kitchen!
I love to sleep almost as much as I love to eat.
The feeling that I get when I’m cocooned under a warm blanket with my head rested on a fluffy pillow and my skin against soft cotton sheets makes everything right in the world. If it were up to me, I would sleep-in everyday until the sun was shining and the birds were chirping. Meaning I would pretty much sleep the entire winter. :)
We’ve had nothing but dark and rainy days recently and it’s made it sooooo hard to get up in the morning. But as much as I love sleeping, there will always be a short list of things that do the trick for me:
1. Work. Because bills.
2. If Coco has to use the potty.
3. BREAKFAST!
Breakfast is my absolute favorite meal of the day and, for me, there’s not much that’s better than waking up to the scent of something wonderful cooking in the kitchen.
This rarely happens seeing how I do the majority of the cooking around here but recipes like this give me the best of both worlds.
With just 15 minutes of prep time, it’s ready to be baked as soon as you wake up. All you have to do is tell your loved one to preheat the oven and pop it in for 45 minutes while you relax in bed, enjoying the toasty warmth underneath the blankets and the smell of eggnog, cinnamon, and nutmeg creeping into your nose.
I went for indulgence with this recipe, using plenty of eggs and full fat eggnog. It’s not something I would eat every day but it’s perfect for a special occasion. Filling and flavorful, and it leaves you with extra time to spend with family and friends.
If you want to make it fancy, you could even dress up a little by preparing some cranberry syrup to go with. That syrup is just so pretty! Pure maple syrup works just fine too though.
I hope you all get some extra rest and indulge in plenty of delicious food for the holidays!
Ingredients
1 large baguette of whole grain bread (preferably a day old)
6 whole eggs
1 cup milk (I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk)
2 cups eggnog (use light for less fat, if desired)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Slice the baguette into small pieces and then grease a large (9x13”) casserole dish. Arrange the pieces of bread in the dish so that they are covering the bottom.
- Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and then beat on high using a mixer for 30 seconds. Pour the mixture on top of the bread and cover the dish with foil. Refrigerate overnight.
- The next morning, preheat the oven to 350°F and remove the casserole from the refrigerator. Flip each piece of bread over so that the opposite side is facing up then bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes then serve warm with maple syrup and enjoy!
I was JUST looking on Pinterest for an Eggnog French Toast Casserole. Bonus that this one can be made the night ahead! Cannot wait to make this for Christmas breakfast!
Laaaaaawdy laaaw that looks amazing!! Some of my most cherished memories from childhood are waking up to the smell of something warm and sweet baking in the oven. There’s just nothing like it! Not gonna lie, if I got one taste of this eggnog french toast, I’d probably want to eat it every day. Self-control and I have a torrid relationship ;) Have a great weekend, girly!
I don’t think I could wait that long. I like to eat like RIGHT after I get up. This sounds yummy though!
I’m not an eggnog fan but I could see it being delicious soaked on bread and baked.
It has been dark and gloomy here for over a week- I am going insane! I am definitely pinning this for the next time we have guests in town- yum!!
THIS would make me soo soo soo excited to get up in the AM lol! I don’t think I would sleep!
Oh man, this looks good! I’ve never done a french toast casserole, but I totally want to. I love eggnog, but sadly, Riley does not. Guess I could make a non-eggnog version, or just make this all for myself ;-)
Gah! This is like the perfect holiday breakfast! I don’t like drinking eggnog but love to cook / bake with it. So want to come deliver me some of this?? haha Guess I should probably just make it myself!
Just reading the first paragraph of this post makes me want to jump into bed right now and sleep for days! I really love my sleep too, but I might just love eggnog more than sleep! It is one of my favorite holiday drinks and I wish it was sold all year long! This french toast sounds amazing and it would definitely get me out of bed in the morning!