Spring Brunch Strawberry French Toast (Printable)

A baked French toast dish with fresh strawberries, creamy custard, and a crunchy cinnamon topping.

# Ingredient List:

→ Bread & Dairy

01 - 1 loaf brioche or challah bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
02 - 6 large eggs
03 - 2 cups whole milk
04 - 1/2 cup heavy cream
05 - 1/2 cup granulated sugar
06 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
07 - 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
08 - 1/4 teaspoon salt

→ Fruit

09 - 2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced

→ Topping

10 - 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
11 - 1/4 cup brown sugar
12 - 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
13 - 1/4 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed

→ Finish

14 - Powdered sugar for dusting, optional
15 - Maple syrup for serving

# How-To Steps:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish and arrange bread cubes evenly across the bottom. Scatter sliced strawberries over bread.
02 - In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, heavy cream, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt until well combined.
03 - Pour custard mixture evenly over bread and strawberries. Gently press down with the back of a spoon to ensure all bread pieces absorb the custard.
04 - In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Add cold butter cubes and work the mixture with a pastry cutter or fingertips until it resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle evenly over casserole.
05 - Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until the custard is set and the top is golden brown.
06 - Allow casserole to cool for 10 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar if desired and serve warm with maple syrup.

# Expert Hints:

01 -
  • It's the kind of make-ahead breakfast that lets you actually enjoy your guests instead of standing at the stove flipping individual French toast pieces.
  • That buttery streusel topping stays crunchy while the custard underneath stays creamy—it's the textural contrast that makes your morning feel fancy without the fuss.
02 -
  • Resist the urge to skip the cooling time or you'll end up with a casserole that falls apart when you serve it—those 10 minutes make an enormous difference in how it holds together.
  • If your bread is very fresh and soft, you can use day-old bread instead, or let fresh bread sit out uncovered for a few hours to dry slightly so it doesn't turn into mush.
03 -
  • Use a kitchen scale for the flour and sugar in the streusel—this ensures your topping turns out consistently crispy and crumbly instead of dense, which happens when you pack ingredients into measuring cups.
  • The moment your butter comes out of the fridge, start working it into the flour mixture right away, because even a few minutes of warming softens it enough to ruin the texture of your crumble.
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