Every bite of blueberry French toast casserole is full of texture and flavor… from the cinnamon-spiced bread and juicy blueberries to the crisp brown sugar streusel on top. This make-ahead breakfast casserole benefits from an overnight rest in the refrigerator, so all you need to do in the morning is pop it in the oven. The smell of it baking will certainly lure your family out of bed and straight to the breakfast table!
I always thought nothing could beat the smell of homemade cinnamon rolls coming from the kitchen. Until I made a pan of this blueberry French toast casserole.
It’s one of my most frequently made breakfast recipes—whether I’m hosting a holiday brunch or just want to treat my family to a little something special. Not only because of the fantastic cinnamon-spiced aromas, but because everyone always appreciates a big serving of this brown sugary blueberry French toast casserole. And good news for me (and you!!): it could not be easier to throw together.
This make-ahead recipe is best made a day in advance. Do all your slicing, whisking, and combining the day before. Then top with a crumb streusel before baking it the next morning. Much more appealing than standing over your griddle making individual slices of French toast!
Tell Me About This Blueberry French Toast Casserole
- Taste: What’s not to love about the combined flavors of blueberries, brown sugar streusel, and a cinnamon-spiced egg custard? And with hints of vanilla throughout, this recipe is the perfect opportunity to use your homemade vanilla extract.
- Texture: If you crave a variety of texture in your baked goods, blueberry French toast casserole should definitely be on your menu. Chewy bread, creamy egg custard, crisp streusel topping, and juicy blueberries shine equally in each bite. The type of bread you choose here is important, so be sure to read through “FAQ: What Kind of Bread Should I Use?” before getting started.
- Ease: Besides the taste and texture, the beauty of this breakfast bread pudding (because that’s essentially what this is!) is how easy it is. It’s equally as impressive as a blueberry cream cheese pastry braid or this giant cinnamon roll cake, but takes a fraction of the prepwork. It’s wonderful for bridal or baby showers, Christmas morning, Mother’s Day or Father’s Day, Easter brunch, or really any morning that could use an extra dose of this comfort food.
What Kind of Bread Should I Use for Blueberry French Toast Casserole?
For absolute best taste and texture, make sure you’re using bread that is thick and hearty—not flimsy sliced sandwich bread. The bulk of the casserole is your bread, so you don’t want to cut corners here. I find challah bread makes for wonderful French toast, whether as slices or as a casserole. It’s my top choice when making apple cider French toast also. You could also use sourdough bread or French bread as I do for mini French toast. If you want to make your own bread, try my artisan bread, honey oat bread, or even croissant bread.
Whatever type of bread you choose, make sure it’s slightly staled and crusty. Simply slice it into cubes and let it sit for about a day before using. Bread that’s a little stale will lose some of its moisture and absorb more of the egg custard… just what you want!
Here’s a shortcut for creating “stale” crusty bread for French toast casserole. Spread the bread chunks on a lined baking sheet and toast in a 300°F (149°C) oven for 10 minutes. Your bread is now slightly dried out and ready to soak up all that egg custard. P.S. This trick works for my sausage & herb stuffing, too.
Yes. In place of the blueberries, try strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries. Or try a medley of berries as I do for berries & cream French toast casserole. In the fall, try it with cranberries or thinly sliced apples or pears.
You don’t need to prepare the casserole in advance, but I highly recommend you do. It will need to rest for at least 3 hours, but overnight is best. This allows the bread to really soak up that cinnamon-spiced egg custard. Both you and your blueberry French toast casserole can go ahead and get a good night’s rest… it’ll see you in the morning. 😉
A Note on the Streusel Topping
Prepare the streusel topping and add to the casserole right before baking. It’s pretty easy, and similar to how I make the crumb topping for coffee cake. Use a pastry blender (or two forks) to cut the cold butter into the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon, and then sprinkle on top of the casserole. This is the same topping I use for baked cream cheese French toast casserole. You’ll love the slight crunchy/crisp texture it adds.
What to Serve With Blueberry French Toast Casserole
Serve your blueberry French toast casserole with maple syrup, more fresh berries, homemade blueberry sauce topping, or a generous dusting of confectioners’ sugar. If you’re serving this at brunch, don’t forget a little something savory, too! Here are some other crowd-pleasing favorites:
- Easy Breakfast Casserole (another make-ahead recipe)
- Ham & Cheese Scones
- Ham & Potato Casserole
- Breakfast Strata
- Quiche
- Frittata or Breakfast Egg Muffins (individual-sized frittatas!)
More of a pancake person? Try my whole wheat blueberry pancakes instead.
More Breakfast Recipes
Unbelievable Blueberry French Toast Casserole
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes (plus overnight time)
- Yield: serves 12
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
There’s not one word more perfect than “unbelievable” to describe this overnight blueberry French toast casserole. The casserole benefits from sitting in the refrigerator overnight before baking, so this is an excellent make-ahead brunch recipe!
Ingredients
- 1 (12–14-ounce/340–400g) loaf French bread, sourdough bread, or challah*
- 1 cup (140g) fresh or frozen blueberries*
- 8 large eggs
- 2 and 1/4 cups (540ml) whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) pure vanilla extract
Streusel Topping
- 1/3 cup (69g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/3 cup (41g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 6 Tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- optional: extra blueberries, maple syrup, and/or confectioners’ sugar for topping
Instructions
- Grease a 9×13-inch pan with butter or nonstick spray. Slice, then cut the bread into cubes, about 1 inch in size. Spread cubes into the prepared baking pan and top evenly with blueberries. Set aside.
- Whisk the eggs, milk, cinnamon, brown sugar, and vanilla together until no brown sugar lumps remain. Pour over the bread. Cover the pan tightly and refrigerate for 3–24 hours. Overnight is best.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Remove pan from the refrigerator.
- Prepare the topping: Whisk the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Cut in the cubed butter with a pastry blender or two forks. Sprinkle the topping over the soaked bread.
- Bake for 45–55 minutes or until golden-brown on top. I usually bake it for 45 minutes because I like it softer.
- Serve warm. Cover leftovers tightly and store in the refrigerator for 2–3 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare the topping in advance, cover tightly, and store in the refrigerator. Sprinkle over the soaked bread before baking. For freezing, prepare the recipe through step 4 (without preheating the oven), and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bake as directed. Baked casserole can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and warm up in a 350°F (177°C) oven for 35 minutes or until warm in the center.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9×13-inch Baking Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk
- Half Batch: This recipe can easily be halved in an 8-inch baking pan or 9-inch baking pan. The bake time will be slightly less, around 30–35 minutes.
- Bread: Day-old, crusty bread is perfect for French toast casseroles so it can soak up the egg custard. I typically use a loaf of challah bread that I slice and let sit out overnight. You’ll wind up with about 12 cups of cubed bread. A little more or less is OK. Here’s a shortcut for creating “stale” crusty bread: Spread the bread chunks on a lined baking sheet and toast in a 300°F (149°C) oven for 10 minutes.
- Fruit: Instead of blueberries, try strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries. In the fall, try cranberries or thinly sliced apples or pears. So many options!
Hi Sally, I want to use a challah bread that is 20 oz. Should I add another 50% to existing recipe amounts? So 12 eggs etc? Made this for Easter and it was amazing so back on the menu for Christmas brunch. Thank you!
Hi Rachel! 1.5x the other ingredients may be a little too much with the 20 oz loaf, but the recipe will still turn out just fine– it may need a bit longer in the oven to set up.
Discovered this recipe about 3 years ago While frantically searching for an overnight blueberry breakfast casserole for Christmas morning. It was a hit and now I make it whenever I have left over bread and blueberries. Thank you for this great easy recipe.
I made this today for my kids they loved it will be making it again
I made this recently when we visited some friends who live in the ‘blueberry capital’. I assembled it in her kitchen, left it overnight and baked it in the morning. Everyone loved it. I had bought some delicious blueberry syrup to serve with it. We made some eggs and bacon to complete our breakfast, and our friends are still talking about It! I am making it again tonight. I especially love the addition of the streusal topping. Thanks for a fantastic recipe!
Dear Sally,
I’ve been a silent fan of your page for a long time but while I’m waiting for this to finish bake I thought I would use this time to say thank you for all the wonderful recipes. I’ve always been able to rely on your well thought through recipes – they always turn out great and I get tons of compliments!
(Oh thanks for adding the extra infos on the ingredient lists for non-US followers )
Hi Sally! This was so incredibly delicious! Thank you!
I want to try using apples this time instead of blueberries. You say to use thinly sliced apples, but I was wondering if using chopped apples instead. I’m thinking of keeping the size similar to the blueberries. Do you think that would work? Or would the apples get mushy? I am making it for my mother in law who is visiting and don’t want to ruin a good thing, but since it is fall…
I think apple chunks would work also! Please let me know if you try it – apple would be so perfect for the fall!
I have made this once before and everyone at work loved it. I will making again for tomorrow but this time instead of milk I have Kerry gold Irish Irish cream and I need to use up.
Hi Sally! I just wanted to thank you for always providing so many extra details with your recipes! I am always wondering about freezing something and baking it at a later time and your instructions are so descriptive! I am going to make this tonight and freeze it to bring to the cabin with family next weekend and I know everyone will love it!
Has anyone ever added a banana(s)? I’m afraid it will mess it up but my family said they think it will work.
I think the addition of bananas would be delicious!
Hi can I prepare this and leave overnight for 2 nights? Or is that too long?
Thank you.
Rita
Hi Rita! For best taste and texture, I recommend only about 1 night.
Hi! A friend made this a few days ago, and I just had to have more! I’ve been baking it for over an hour, and the custard hasn’t set…It’s still very wet, but the top is done. I put foil over it and have the heat cranked up to 375. I originally baked it on the middle rack, but I’ve since moved it down to the bottom rack. Where should I have placed this casserole in the first place?
So glad you enjoy this French toast casserole! I recommend baking closer to the top heat element, so the center rack would be best. The casserole will bake more evenly this way.
Unbelievable is an understatement. I doubled the recipe for a family getaway for 20 people. Everyone was begging for the recipe even though I forgot the flour for the crumb topping. I ended up using half and half and a mixture of water on top of the dried out brioche. People who don’t enjoy breakfast or sweets fell in love. I’ve been baking off of your blog since 2012 and this is the first review I’ve posted and I’m so sorry for not saying anything sooner. This will be a family recipe from here on out and I will definitely start posting more reviews of your recipes because I’ve tried A LOT of them and they’re always a huge hit. Thank you sooooooo much for all of your incredible recipes!
Hi Kelly! Thank you so much for saying hi 🙂 Thrilled that your family enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for your loyal readership over all of these years! xo
I made this for Sunday brunch today, it was absolutely delicious ! I used the Challah bread and it was phenomenal. One suggestion, add blueberries just before baking and I added chopped toasted pecans to the topping. SOOOO good !
Can I bake it the day before and reheat in the morning?
Absolutely! I usually reheat covered at 300F for 15 minutes.
Hello. I’ve made this 3 times in 2 weeks and absolutely love it. A friend recommended pecans instead of blueberries. Do you think that would work? Would I need to make any changes? Every recipe of yours that I have tried have been incredible. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Tina! Pecans are a wonderful substitution for the blueberries. No changes to the recipe necessary.
Can you add cream cheese?
Yes! You can make a cross between this recipe and this one: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/baked-cream-cheese-french-toast-casserole/
I love your recipes! I’m making the Bisucit Breakfast Casserole and Unbelievable Blueberry French Toast for New Years Day brunch. I only have one oven and want to make them at the same time – how would you suggest adjusting the temperatures (one is at 350 and the other at 375) and baking time? Thank you!!
Hi Ann! I recommend baking both at 350F. The bake time will be a little longer regardless because the oven is a little more crowded. 🙂
I made this for Christmas morning and it was AMAZING!!!! Thank you!!!
Just wanna say I’ve made this before, several times now. It is just sooooo good, that streusel topping takes it to a whole other level (though it is good without too, which I’ve done!). I love that you can make it ahead, and it’s very easy to make too. Thanks for giving me a recipe for my collection!
I find I need more egg/custard mixture in order to cover the bread… I’ve done it with less, but it seems pretty crusty on top for those bread pieces that didn’t really get soaked. Thoughts?
Can I use brioche bread ?
Absolutely!
Either should be just fine.