French Toast Casserole With Apples

For a long while now, I’ve been making a French Toast Casserole with mixed berries that my family loves, and I recently discovered it’s similarly delicious with apples as the fruit. This is one of my favorite holiday breakfasts, but it’s also easy enough to make on a regular weekend—or even to make ahead and enjoy throughout the week. You can really use any kind of bread you prefer here, including sourdough, brioche, challah, or even bread left over from making kids sandwiches. And once it’s baked, you can top it with plain yogurt and maple syrup, just yogurt, or even whipped cream. This is a great option to make ahead and serve the next morning, you can share with guests for Mother’s Day brunch or as a make-ahead Christmas Breakfast, or just as a make-ahead toddler breakfast. (You may also like Cranberry Apple Pie, French Toast Sticks, Banana Baked French Toast, Sweet Potato Waffles, and Yogurt Waffles.)

Ingredients You Need

Here’s a look at the ingredients you need to have on hand to make this easy French toast casserole with apples to share with your family. Sign up for our email updates to get tips and ideas sent to your inbox.

Bread (sandwich or artisanal, stale is better): You can use any type of bread you like here, whether whole grain, sour dough, white bread, or another type. Both sandwich bread and more artisanal bread types both work. If the bread is a little stale, that’s a bit better. You can use a cinnamon raisin bread if you want more flavor. Apple: I used Jazz apples in the recipe when I photographed it here, but you can use almost any type of apple including Granny Smith. Honeycrisp, Fuji, Gala, and Cosmic Crisp. I leave the skin of the apples on since they soften nicely as the casserole bakes. Eggs: Eggs are essential to adding richness to this recipe and for helping the casserole to adhere together. Milk or heavy cream: You can use regular whole milk or heavy cream. Or if needed, you can use canned full-fat coconut milk or another thicker dairy-free milk your family prefers. Vanilla extract: I like to add vanilla extract to add more flavor to this baked French Toast. Cinnamon: Apple and ground cinnamon is a classic flavor combination, so we add it here.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Here’s a look at how to make this baked French Toast casserole with apples recipe so you know what to expect from the process. Scroll down to the end of this post for the full recipe including the amounts and the timing.

How to Store

Store the leftover baked French Toast casserole (or you can make the whole thing ahead of time) wrapped in foil or transferred to an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days. Warm to serve.

Best Tips for Success

Serve warm, topped with maple syrup, yogurt, or whipped cream. Use sandwich bread, artisanal bread, or French bread. It’s a little better texture-wise if the bread is somewhat stale. Save crusts cut off from the kids’ sandwiches in a freezer bag until you have enough to make this recipe. Use fresh or frozen apple slices as you like. Double the recipe to bake in a 9×13-inch pan. It may need 4-6 minutes longer to bake through in the center. Dairy-free: Use nondairy milk or canned coconut milk instead of the milk or cream. Egg-free: Use 1 ¼ cups ripe bananas pureed in the blender instead of eggs. Gluten-free: Use a favorite gluten-free bread in this breakfast casserole.

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