DISCLAIMER: This post was developed in sponsored partnership with Inspired Organics. As always, all opinions are my own and genuine.
This baked Brioche French Toast is the perfect way to wake up on a slow morning. Featuring cubes of buttery brioche bread, supple dried cranberries, and crunchy walnuts. What’s not to love!?
Why this recipe works
While we love a good french toast recipe, some days you don’t want to do all the flipping and dipping – but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a delicious piece of french toast!
Enter in this super easy, super flavorful baked Brioche French Toast. There is no flipping (and no dipping) required! You get all of the delicious goodness of french toast, with about half of the work. And you know what? I might even venture to say it’s better too. That’s because it’s absolutely loaded with goodies like dried cranberries, walnuts, and the winning flavor combo of brown sugar and cinnamon.
Everything is baked together in one dish, meaning you can mix it up, pop it in the oven, and come back later to a delicious weekend-style breakfast. Once it’s cooled down a bit, just slice and serve with powdered sugar and maple syrup for instant luxury.
Ingredients
- Brioche bread: You will need one half of a standard loaf cut into cubes, which works out to about 6 cups.
- Eggs: A super important part of french toast, you’ll need 4 large eggs to make this recipe.
- Milk: This combines with the eggs for soaking the bread. I like to use whole milk, but you can use whatever you have on hand.
- Brown sugar: Adds the perfect sweetness with a well-rounded flavor that compliments buttery brioche perfectly.
- Cinnamon: French toast and cinnamon really are the perfect match!
- Flour: This helps make a crinkly, crumbly topping that is just pure perfection.
- Butter: You’ll need some unsalted melted butter for making the streusel-like topping.
- Walnuts: For a touch of nutty goodness, you’ll need 1 cup of roughly chopped walnuts. Inspired Organics is my go-to source for all things nuts and seeds! They have the beeeeest quality at an affordable price.
- Dried cranberries: Another ingredient that I like to pick up from Inspired Organics – they have the best flavor and are perfect for baking. I’d highly recommend checking out their store locator on their website and seeing where you can get their products near you- they’re a household staple for me!
- Salt: Just 1/4 teaspoon helps amplify the flavors that are already in the recipe.
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How to Make Brioche French Toast
Before you get started, make sure to spray and line an 8X8 baking dish with parchment paper and cut your brioche bread into 1″ cubes. Set both aside and we’re ready to get started!
Step one: Add your milk, eggs, 1/4 cup of brown sugar, vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, and eggs to a bowl.
Step two: Whisk everything together very well and set it aside.
Step three: Grab another bowl and add the remaining 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, flour, salt, walnuts, cranberries, and melted butter.
Step four: Mix it all together until crumbly and everything is coated with the melted butter.
Step five: Grab the baking pan you prepared earlier and add about half of the bread cubes (roughly 3 cups). Spread them into an even layer.
Step six: Add half of the crumbly topping mixture with the cranberries and walnuts and spread it out evenly over the surface.
Step seven: Add the remaining half of the brioche bread cubes to the baking pan and pour the egg mixture over the top, aiming to coat as much of the bread cubes as possible.
Then add the remaining topping, cover with foil, and slide it into an oven that has been preheated to 350ºF
Step eight: Bake your brioche french toast casserole for about 20 minutes with the foil on top, and then remove the foil and bake for an additional 30 minutes.
Once your baked french toast is all warm, toasty, and perfectly browned, remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
Then serve with powdered sugar and maple syrup, or with your favorite French toast toppings! I used Inspired Organics maple syrup, too. I find that theirs is the absolute best consistency- likely due to how high quality it is (yet still affordable- I dig it!) It’s nice and drippy and not overly sticky. Plus the true maple flavor is to dieeeee for!
Recipe FAQ’S
While most typical french toast recipes use some sort of crusty bread (like French or sourdough), brioche french toast uses slices (or cubes) of buttery brioche. This type of bread is much softer and makes for a luscious texture that is a great alternative to typical french toast.
French toast can be made with a variety of bread types based on what you enjoy best. Standard recipes often use crusty French bread or even sandwich bread, while some versions may use bakery-style bread like brioche or sourdough. Brioche makes for a luxury experience with a soft and buttery texture – perfect for pairing with maple syrup!
Your baked french toast may be soggy if you allowed the bread to soak in the milk and egg mixture for too long, or if you baked the casserole completely covered. For the best results, soak your bread only briefly, and then bake the casserole covered for the first 20 minutes of baking, then remove the foil or lid for the remaining baking time.
Expert Tips
- Make sure to do a really great job of lining the baking dish with parchment paper. This prevents your brioche french toast slices from sticking to the bottom. I like to spray the pan, line it with parchment, and spray the parchment too. Works like a charm!
- Just before you’re ready to stick it in the oven, make sure to cover the dish with aluminum foil. This will keep the moisture in for the first part of baking, and prevent the top from getting super crispy. Then remove the foil for the final 30 minutes.
- Since this recipe just calls for half of a loaf of brioche, what should you do with the rest? I highly recommend making up a batch of my air fryer french toast sticks or my homestyle french toast recipe. They are both totally delicious!
If you love this recipe, be sure to leave a star rating on the recipe card and leave a comment below!
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Brioche French Toast Bake
Ingredients
- ½ of a 14-16 oz. loaf brioche bread ~ 6 cups
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp whole milk
- ¾ cup brown sugar divided
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup Inspired Organics walnuts roughly chopped
- 1 cup Inspired Organics cranberries
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 4 tbs unsalted butter melted
Instructions
- Spray an 8×8 baking dish with cooking spray, add a piece of parchment paper cut to fit the pan, if desired, and spray again. Be sure to coat the pan well so it doesn’t stick! Set aside.
- Cut bread into 1” cubes, set aside.
- In a medium sized bowl combine eggs, milk, ¼ cup of brown sugar, 1 tsp vanilla extract, and ½ tsp cinnamon. Whisk together well and set aside.
- In a second medium sized bowl combine remaining ½ cup brown sugar, flour, walnuts, cranberries, remaining 1 tsp cinnamon, ¼ tsp salt and melted butter. Combine well, it’ll turn into a crumbly mixture. Set aside.
- Now add ½ of your bread cubes to your prepared pan to cover the entire bottom. Then add ½ of your cranberry walnut mixture on top, followed by remaining bread cubes over that.
- Pour your egg mixture over top of the bread cubes aiming to evenly disperse it throughout the pan and get all pieces wet.
- Add remaining ½ of cranberry walnut mixture on top and gently press down to get it to settle into the bread pieces.
- Cover your brioche french toast bake with aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake covered for 20 minutes and then remove the aluminum foil and bake uncovered for an additional 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let it cool slightly for 5-10 minutes before serving. Top with a dust of powdered sugar and a drizzle of maple syrup and enjoy!
Notes
Recipe Tips
- Parchment: This prevents your brioche french toast slices from sticking to the bottom. I recommend that you spray the pan, line it with parchment, and then spray the parchment itself.
- Foil: Just before you’re ready to stick it in the oven, make sure to cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the foil for the final 30 minutes. This will keep the moisture in for the first part of baking, and then allow the top to crisp up during the second part of baking.
- Leftover brioche: Since this recipe just calls for half of a loaf of brioche, you will have some leftovers. You can make any of your favorite recipes using leftover bread like croutons or strata, but I highly recommend my recipes for air fryer french toast sticks and homestyle french toast.
- And be sure to check out the Inspired Organics website to find where you can snag some of their products near you!
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