Overnight French Toast Casserole

I’ve been meaning to post this since Christmas. That was only two weeks ago. Not bad. Better late than never right? We ended up having this for Christmas “brunch”.. because no one wanted to get up early enough to have it for Christmas breakfast. I loved that I prepared it the night before and then the next morning I set it out for 10 minutes and baked it for 35 minutes. Pretty awesome. It was so delicious. Everyone loved it. For those in my family who aren’t a fan of nuts, I only sprinkled them on half, so everyone was happy!

Source: Tablespoon (featuring The Girl Who Ate Everything)

1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) butter, melted
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 loaf brioche or challah (French toast can also be sliced 1 1/2 inches thick)
8 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup whole milk
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup pecans, measured then chopped
1/8 teaspoon salt
(optional) maple syrup and powdered sugar for topping
Directions

In a small bowl combine brown sugar and melted butter and pour on the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Arrange slices of bread in the baking dish overlapping if necessary. Combine milk, eggs, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, and ginger in a bowl and pour evenly over bread slices. Sprinkle chopped pecans over bread slices. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 4-12 hours. In the morning, take the casserole out of the fridge for at least 10 minutes while you are preheating your oven to 350 degrees. Bake casserole for 30-35 minutes. If top starts browning too quickly place a foil loosely over the top of the casserole for the last 10 minutes or so. You want it to cook long enough to make sure the bottom part is cooked but don’t dry it out completely. Remove casserole from oven and let it cool slightly before serving. Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar and a drizzle of maple syrup.