Baked French Toast for Easter Sunday

• April 01, 2015  |
• by Kirstin Uhrenholdt

It is almost Easter Sunday! Time for Easter egg hunts, brunch tables set with daffodils, branches with budding leaves and a quick and easy baked French toast. The night before, you just pull the ingredients together (while everyone else is doing the dishes). Easter morning you finish the topping, then just stick it in the oven and while you help find the last Easter eggs, your house will fill with the scent of maple syrup, apples and cinnamon.

However, if you would rather hold forth at the stove, belting your favorite morning song while flipping french toast slices through the air, bless you, I have included a recipe for regular French Toast for Saints below too.

Baked French Toast for Sundays:

YOU NEED

3 eggs
4 cups whole milk
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 thick slices of challah bread cut into half (preferably slightly stale)

TO MAKE 4-6 SERVINGS

Crack the eggs into a bowl and add the milk, maple syrup, vanilla extract, cinnamon, orange zest and salt. Whisk until well combined. Fan out the challah slices in a greased 9 x 13 ovenproof dish, pour the egg mixture all over the bread. Refrigerate over night. The next morning make the topping and pour it over the top. Bake in the middle of the oven, at 325 degrees for one hour or until browned and set. Dust with powdered sugar and serve with warm maple syrup and fruit preserves.

Baked French Toast topping:

YOU NEED

4 tablespoons butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 apples, peeled, cored and cubed
1 cup pecans

In the morning, melt the butter with the sugar and let it gently simmer, stirring constantly, until the sugar has melted and lightly caramelized, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in the cream. Fold in the apples and pecans. Pour over the French toast dish and bake as directed.

Toast tip: the drier the bread the better, as that gives it more room to soak up the custardy goodness. So if you can, either leave the bread slices out the night before, or throw them in a warm oven and dry them out a bit before adding them to the egg mixture.

French Toast for Saints:

YOU NEED

8 1-inch slices of challah bread (preferably slightly stale)
1 1/2 cups whole milk
3 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons maple syrup or brown sugar
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
A pinch of cinnamon
A pinch of salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Vegetable oil or butter for frying
Powdered sugar (optional)

TO MAKE 6 SERVINGS

In a shallow mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, syrup, vanilla, orange zest and cinnamon. Dip the bread slices into the egg mixture until saturated but not falling apart. Using a slotted spatula lift the bread out of the bowl letting the extra egg mixture drip off.

Heat a large non stick pan with a drizzle of oil or melted butter, turn down the heat to medium, gently place 2 or three slices in the pan, cooking them until they are golden brown, about 3-4 minutes on each side. Serve right away with with powdered sugar, raspberry preserves and warm maple syrup.