Cinnamon French Toast Casserole

Total Time: 10 hrs 30 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 10 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1 (1 lb) cinnamon-swirl bread (*, for appx 16 cups cubed)
• 6 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups half-and-half
• 1 1/2 cups reduced-fat milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 5 tablespoons butter or 5 tablespoons margarine
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts (3 oz) or 3/4 cup pecans (3 oz)
• maple syrup, for serving
• sliced fresh berries, for serving (optional)

Recipe

• 1 spray a 9x13" baking dish or glass pan that is safe to go into a hot oven when its cold (such as pyrex or corningware).
• 2 cut bread into bite-sized cubes; place 1 1/2 c of cubes into quart sized ziploc bag and remaining cubes into baking dish. set aside.
• 3 whisk eggs well in a 2qt bowl; whisk in half-and-half, milk, and vanilla and pour over bread cubes in casserole dish.
• 4 press the bread cubes down into the egg mixture to make sure they are all moistened.
• 5 cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours up to 24 hours.
• 6 when ready to bake, preheat oven to 375*.
• 7 place butter in a microwave-safe dish; cover with a paper towel and nuke for 30-45 seconds until almost melted. remove and stir until completely melted.
• 8 add nuts to bag of reserved bread cubes, then pour melted butter into bag. seal and shake until the bread and nuts are coated w/ butter.
• 9 uncover the casserole dish and press the bread cubes down w/ the back of a spoon to remoisten.
• 10 scatter the bread cubes/nut mixture over the top, using a spoon to evenly distribute.
• 11 bake, uncovered, for 45-50 minutes until lightly browned on top and puffed. (baking time will vary depending on how cold the dish is.).
• 12 let casserole sit for 5-10 minutes before serving. the casserole will settle and deflate a bit as it stands.
• 13 to serve:.
• 14 cut into squares, place on individual plates, and pass maple syrup to drizzle on top. serve with sliced strawberries or other berries or a mixture of berries, if desired.
• 15 *note: pepperidge farm cinnamon-swirl bread with or without raisins works well in this recipe.