Baked French Toast With Oat Crumble Topping Recipe (2024)

Made this as directed for breakfast Thanksgiving morning with 14 family members. It was amazing, not dry at all and gone! Everyone loved stand requested a repeat next year.I also made a sausage and egg casserole as a second choice.I made the recipe as written, using the almonds alternative and adding 1/4 cup cream over the top before putting on the topping. Since I used my convection oven there was no need to broil the top as it was nicely browned and a bit crunchy.

Made this for Christmas morning and it was a crowd favorite! Every last bite was consumed and many asked for the recipe. Used cinnamon brioche and it was delicious! Omitted the honey on top and used maple syrup instead—perfect. Accidentally used skim milk instead of whole milk and then made it a second time with whole milk and couldn’t tell the difference!

In-demand breakfast dish here. Have learned:1. Use any old leftover white bread.2. Don't need to toast.3. Can halve or whatever fraction recipe to go with amount of bread using grams. 4. If don't have whole milk, compensate with more cream.5. Pulse together topping ingredients in mini-prep. 6. Overnight in refrigerator is optimal.

I increased the amount of brioche by 1/3, increased the eggs used by 2 and adjusted the other spices accordingly; I also increased the topping by 1/4. I baked it in an oval 9X13 and it was magnificent. I did not expect it to rise as much as it did, a real show stopper. I served pure maple syrup and it was just fine, delicious. I made it the day before and put it in the frig, covered with plastic wrap and placed to cake plates on top to fully submerge the bread. I'll make this again!

We made this with day old challah, a bit of extra liquid in the custard, and subbed pecans for oats. Cut sugar in the custard to about 1/3 c. Used apples since we didn’t have pear handy. We left it to soak overnight and brought to room temp before popping in the oven. Result was spectacular! It’s rises and puffs up beautifully and was delicious for a crowd at brunch.

Made this for a family brunch. Realized that there wasn't enough custard for amount of Challah, so made another 1/2 recipe of custard. It cooked up moist and delicious and was enjoyed by 9 of us.

Fantastic. This is a bread pudding really, I think it is the topping that makes it great. I use 1 c. pecans instead of oatmeal, and up the ginger a little.

I followed all of the instructions and it turned out dry. Perhaps more liquid next time?

I skipped the first step about toasting the bread and had none of the dryness problems others noticed. I used day-old challah and it was perfect. Omitted pears because I didn't have any but would definitely use them next time. It's extremely sweet without the honey-vanilla syrup. Didn't even notice it was forgotten until just now. My guests were all but licking the pan clean.

Exceptional. I made without the pears and syrup. I didn’t have cardamom so I used a bit of cinnamon and upped the amount of nutmeg. For those who had a dry result, remember that the loaf of Challah bread is 1 pound. 9 cups of bread cubes is 3/4ths or so of a loaf. It helps to mix the bread with the liquid really well. Next time I will pour the bread cubes into the mixture making sure it’s all soaked, prior to putting into the casserole dish. I let soak overnight and baked uncovered for 43 min.

Have made this twice, once as written and once modified to be dairy free. For those who might need a dairy free option, just wanted to note that subbing almond milk for milk, coconut cream for heavy cream, and coconut oil for butter worked really well. (I made the crumble topping with the coconut oil in advance and chilled it, which made crumbling on top easy.) Came out GREAT with the dairy free options— was very pleasantly surprised.

Learned not to use convection oven, too much browning. Could have used more liquid, milk and/or eggs. Next time add lots of pear. Fantastic taste.

My cautionary tale: I didn't let the challah soak in the custard but cooked it immediately, and some of the bread is a little dry. Otherwise this is delicious! It could use a bit more topping (which is the best part)--perhaps 1.5x the topping recipe. Pears are a nice addition and help with my moisture issue (no need to peel). 14 WW points/slice, if serving 12.

Call me crazy but I made this with leftover sour cream and chive dinner rolls. Surprisingly delicious! I would suggest melting the butter and mixing it with the rest of the crumble ingredients to avoid dryness.

Made this at Christmastime but used leftover Panettone as the bread…quite literally delicious!

I made this for my husband's birthday brunch. I did need to cook it longer - put it together night before and next time I'll take it out of fridge earlier to bring to room temp and check it after 50 min. Loved by all from my 4yr old grandson to my 95yr old mother alike! It will definitely be kept in special occasion rotation for make ahead ease to delicious enjoyment! Maybe Christmas breakfast...

Successfully made this vegan using whisked silken tofu, maple syrup and plant-based oleo sticks. One-third was whole wheat bread after running out of sourdough so added more maple syrup. A big hit with the guests who had enjoyed the regular recipe in the past.

made it with day old brioche, everyone loved it. we put syrup on the table, but the french toast was sweet enough that no one used the syrup.

This came out great! I did need to use about 1/2 cup more liquid in the recipe then it called for. I used a whole loaf of cinnamon crunch bread from great harvest bakery.

After a dozen Christmas morning breakfast casseroles, this one takes the cake! It is a perfect combination of coffeecake and yummy fluffiness. Mine rose to a beautiful height and rated a wow from the whole family both in appearance and taste. I was instructed to NEVER make anything else ever again on Christmas morning. We fought over the leftovers. Thank you Melissa, again....

I made this for Christmas Eve and used cinnamon brioche. It was perfect! I added blueberries to the pears and loved every bite. I’d make vanilla sauce next time for serving instead of the vanilla honey, but otherwise it was perfect.

This is a very good, easy baked French toast recipe (Paula Dean published a more delicious one years ago, but it is also, as one might expect, WAY more rich and caloric). Will keep this in my easy-brunch toolbox, for sure.

My cautionary tale: I didn't let the challah soak in the custard but cooked it immediately, and some of the bread is a little dry. Otherwise this is delicious! It could use a bit more topping (which is the best part)--perhaps 1.5x the topping recipe. Pears are a nice addition and help with my moisture issue (no need to peel). 14 WW points/slice, if serving 12.

Learned not to use convection oven, too much browning. Could have used more liquid, milk and/or eggs. Next time add lots of pear. Fantastic taste.

This was fantastic! I followed the recipe exactly, using oats and serving with maple syrup (next time I'll make honey syrup). The brioche did not turn to ash at 450, as another commenter was sure it would. I worried about it being too dry. The custard filled the dish just halfway, but as the recipe suggests, I pressed the bread into the custard til it was completely wet. I think that step is essential. I let it sit overnight.

The best overnight French toast recipe, hands down. It was a huge hit at our Christmas brunch. Thank you, Melissa!

Fantastic. This is a bread pudding really, I think it is the topping that makes it great. I use 1 c. pecans instead of oatmeal, and up the ginger a little.

Have made this twice, once as written and once modified to be dairy free. For those who might need a dairy free option, just wanted to note that subbing almond milk for milk, coconut cream for heavy cream, and coconut oil for butter worked really well. (I made the crumble topping with the coconut oil in advance and chilled it, which made crumbling on top easy.) Came out GREAT with the dairy free options— was very pleasantly surprised.

OMG - this is SO good! Very rich, served small pieces at an Easter brunch. I won’t bother with the vanilla honey next time - I actually preferred it with maple syrup but I’ll follow everything else to a T. Prepped 2 days ahead and then baked just before serving. Makes entertaining so easy!