Red White and Blue French Toast Bake

This Red White and Blue French Toast Bake is the perfect way to start your Memorial Day weekend, Fourth of July or any other patriotic holiday celebration.  It’s an easy overnight breakfast casserole made with French bread soaked in a yummy egg custard and topped with blueberries, strawberries, cream cheese and a cinnamon brown sugar streusel just before baking.

Jump to:

• Easy Overnight Baked French Toast Casserole
• Ingredients for Red White and Blue French Toast Bake
• How to Make Red White and Blue French Toast Bake
• Tips and Tricks for Overnight French Toast Bake 
• Storing and Reheating
• Red White and Blue French Toast Bake Recipe

Easy Overnight Baked French Toast Casserole

Easy overnight breakfast casseroles like this Red White and Blue French Toast Bake are a perfect way to celebrate the occasion without having to wake up at the crack of dawn and spend the entire morning in the kitchen.  You can prep everything the day before so that all you need to do the morning of is preheat your oven and bake.

We’ve given you the recipe for a simple cinnamon and brown sugar streusel to top your French toast bake, but it’s completely optional and will taste great with or without it.  I will say, though, that the streusel topping combined with the colorful fruit gives this an almost Fruity Pebbles French Toast flavor.

For a seriously heavenly treat, serve this with freshly whipped cream, berries, Strawberries, and Strawberry Sauce, like our homemade Lemon Syrup, Coconut Syrup, or Mixed Berry Syrup. 

Ingredients for Red White and Blue French Toast Bake

• French Bread - use day-old French bread from any local bakery or grocery store, or you can even make your own French Bread!  
• Eggs -  any kind of large whole eggs will work.
• Milk - we prefer whole milk, but you can substitute 2% if you’d like.
• Maple Syrup - you can use all maple syrup, or else substitute a touch of honey for some of the maple syrup.
• Vanilla Extract - pure vanilla extract tastes best.
• Strawberries and Blueberries - we like using fresh because the colors end up bleeding less, but in a pinch frozen will work.
• Cream Cheese - use either lite or full-fat cream cheese, cut into ½” pieces.
• Butter - this will taste best with unsalted butter.  You can use either room temperature butter or else cut cold butter into small cubes.
• Brown Sugar - we use light brown sugar but you can use dark brown sugar if you want a little more molasses flavor.
• Flour - we use all-purpose flour for this recipe.
• Cinnamon - any kind of ground cinnamon will work.  You can also omit this if you prefer.

Be sure to check out more of our Memorial Day Recipes and our Red White and Blue Recipes.

How to Make Red White and Blue French Toast Bake

The Day Before Serving

1. Add bread.  Spray a 9" by 13" baking dish with non-stick cooking spray, then place your cut or torn pieces of French bread evenly in the bottom of your baking dish.  The bread should be about even with the top of the baking dish.
2. Make egg mixture.  In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs and whisk to break them up.  Then, add the milk, maple syrup, and vanilla and whisk again until all the ingredients are well-combined.  Pour your egg mixture over the bread, covering as much of it as possible.  Use a fork to gently stir your bread and egg mixture together.  Sprinkle the strawberries and blueberries evenly on top and gently mix in, then either cut or scoop 1" pieces of cream cheese and place evenly over the top.
3. Refrigerate overnight.  Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight, or for at least 4 hours, to allow time for the bread to soak up all of the liquid.

How to Bake Red White and Blue French Toast Bake

1. Make streusel.  In a medium-size mixing bowl, add the butter, brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon.  Stir or mix with a fork until the streusel has ¼" pieces.  You can also use a standing mixer with the paddle attachment on low speed, making sure to stop the mixer once you have ¼" pieces.  (Note: Either use immediately, or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate overnight, or until you are ready to bake.)
2. Let come to room temperature.  When you're ready to bake, pull your baking dish from the fridge and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Allow coming to room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
3. Add streusel and bake.  Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the bread and egg mixture and put it into your preheated oven.  Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the top and edges are light golden brown. 
4. Serve.  Remove from the oven and let cool slightly, then cut into 12 portions.  Serve with whipped cream, chopped pecans, berries or your favorite syrup.  Enjoy!

How to Make French Toast Casserole with White Bread

For French Toast Casserole, white bread isn't ideal but you can absolutely still make it. Take your sliced bread and cut into large 1" pieces. Lay in a single layer on baking sheets. Heat your oven to 250 degrees F and add the trays of bread. Turn off the oven and let the bread dry out overnight.

Tips and Tricks for Overnight French Toast Bake 

• Using day-old bread is better than using freshly baked bread because it will soak up the egg mixture more readily.  If you only have fresh bread, you can cut or tear it into 1” pieces and set it in a very low 250-degree oven for about 20 minutes to dry it out.
• For something a little sweeter, try using leftover cinnamon rolls in place of French bread!
• If you like lemon, try tossing your strawberries in the zest of 1 lemon before sprinkling over the top.

Storing and Reheating

• Refrigerator: store leftovers covered with plastic wrap or aluminum foil in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
• Freezer: freeze the unbaked Red White and Blue French Toast Bake by wrapping well with both plastic wrap and aluminum foil and storing frozen for up to 1 month.  Pull the casserole from the freezer the day before you plan to serve and let it defrost in the fridge overnight.  The next morning, pull out to room temperature and bake as directed.
• Reheating: reheat in a 320-degree oven, covered with aluminum foil, for about 15 minutes or until warmed through.

More Overnight French Toast Bake Recipes

• Blueberry French Toast Bake
• Apple Cinnamon French Toast Bake
• Mixed Berry French Toast Bake
• Classic French Toast Bake
• Coconut French Toast Bake
• Strawberry French Toast Bake
• Coconut French toast Bake
• More Breakfast Casseroles
• More Red White and Blue Recipes

If you’ve tried this recipe, please rate it and leave a comment on this post. I love hearing feedback from you helps me and other readers too! If you love Pinterest,  feel free to leave a comment and photo there too.  Also, if you like to share, use the hashtag #thecarefreekitchen on Instagram and tag me @thecarefreekitchen so I can find you and give your post some love. You can also find me on Facebook at The Carefree Kitchen. Thank you!!

This Red White and Blue French Toast Bake is the perfect way to celebrate the occasion without having to wake up at the crack of dawn and spend the entire morning in the kitchen.  It's a classic breakfast casserole topped with blueberries, strawberries and cream cheese for a beautiful and patriotic presentation.

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