Strawberries French Toast Bake

Strawberry Cream Cheese French Toast

This stuffed strawberry French toast is so pretty, so impressive, and so delicious that no one will ever believe it only took about 20 minutes of prep.  We take a classic French toast egg custard and fresh strawberries, pour it over pieces of French bread where it makes magic as it soaks overnight (or as little as 20 minutes if you’re in a rush). 

Just before baking, we top with a brown sugar cinnamon streusel, and pieces of cream cheese for a creamy, dreamy dessert-for-breakfast casserole.  Serve with Whipped Cream, Berries, Macerated Strawberries, syrup, or however you like to eat your French toast.

Key Ingredients

• French Bread – use day-old French bread from any local bakery or grocery store, Brioche bread works great too. You can even make your own!  
• 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.
• Strawberries – 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 salted 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.

How to Make Strawberry 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 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.  Add the fresh strawberries and use a fork to gently stir your bread and egg mixture together.  Cut or scoop 1/2″ pieces of cream cheese and place evenly over the top.
3. Refrigerate overnight.  Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least four hours, or overnight, to allow time for the bread to soak up all of the liquid.

How to 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 1/4″ pieces.  You can also use a standing mixer with the paddle attachment on low speed, making sure to stop the mixer once you have 1/4″ 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 the baking dish to come 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 uncovered 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!

Frequently Asked Questions