Pumpkin French Toast Bake

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Easy Pumpkin French Toast Casserole

This pumpkin french toast bake is perfect in all ways : delicious, healthy, quick, simple, convenient, great as a make ahead, for leftovers to feed you for days or even freeze for later enjoyment.  This recipe is great for a crowd and will certainly be a hit!

If you are a lover of both things French toast and pumpkin spice this is going to be a new favorite recipe for you!  You will fall in love with this bread pudding like texture.  This breakfast reminds me of the special days after a big holiday when you get to eat dessert for breakfast. 

Making a French toast bake is similar to making bread pudding, which if you have never made either, you will be happy to know it is very simple and easy.

Have an extra-sweet tooth? You can make a sweet streusel pecan topping.  I decided not to add this because it already is covered with sweet maple syrup and sweetened whipped cream and that was enough sweet for me but I have added the streusel recipe below as well.  I opted to omit the sugar low to make this a healthy pumpkin French toast casserole.

This pumpkin French toast bake is often called a casserole.  That gives away that it is baked in a casserole dish but it is also possible to use small ramekins and make Individual servings.  Keep in mind if you make small individual sized portions using ramekins or mugs, it will cook for a lot less time.  Watch for the start of browning and then use a butter knife to test the center – if it comes back clean and not wet or messy it is done. 

This is a very leftover friendly dish – when sealed properly this will last 2-3 days refrigerated.  This recipe can also be frozen and when sealed properly will last for a few months.  This meal is also a great make ahead dish because it is only enhanced by being put together the day before allowing the bread to soak up a maximal amount of the liquid, then cooked the morning of serving.  Overnight pumpkin french toast bake is a quick and convenient breakfast that will change your early work morning drastically!  If you bake the recipe you can also just heat up your individual portion in a toaster oven for 5 minutes.  Add the maple syrup and whipped cream after it comes out of the oven hot.

Here is a new recipe that will help you celebrate the iconic pumpkin pie spice season. Pumpkin pie French toast bake is the perfect recipe for a healthy breakfast option. But it’s so good you will want to make it all year round.

Yields: 6-8 servings 

Ingredients for French Toast Casserole Bake:

• 6-8 cups of cubed bread (I used gf dinner rolls from )
• 7 large eggs
• 1 cup of creamer 
• 1 cup of water
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup pumpkin pure (take note whether it has sugar and spices already added)
• Optional: nuts, brown sugar for the top

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Cut your bread of choice into 1 inch cubes. I recommend these millet and brown rice flour dinner rolls (gluten-free) from Abigails bakery. You can use any bread you like. Suggestions in notes.
3. In a large bowl mix the water, cream, vanilla extract, eggs, pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice. 
4. Add the cubed bread to a casserole dish and pour the liquid mixture over it. Press down to help the bread absorb the liquid. Allow it to soak over night or at least 1-2 hours minimum. 
5. Cook in the oven for 35-45 minutes.  If you want a golden brown crispy top for a contrast in texture, cook for longer or place under broiler for 30 seconds. * Watch carefully under the broiler, if you walk away it might just burn the top (done this way too many times!)
6. Optional: add brown sugar or coconut sugar on top to make a sweet topping.
7. Drizzle with maple syrup and a spoonful of whipped cream.  I used a coconut whipped cream.
8. Cover or seal the leftovers with a lid or saran wrap and enjoy for a few days.

Optional sweet streusel topping with pecans:

• Light brown sugar or coconut sugar, flour(cassava flour for gluten-free), butter, pecans.

Notes:

-Best bread to use for pumpkin French toast bake: hard bread like French bread or dinner rolls that are stale, brioche, challah, homemade artisan bread, croissant bread, Italian, sour dough or muesli bread. If you use stale bread or dry it out in the oven before use it will help it to absorb more of the liquid.  

-Success tips for making the best pumpkin French toast casserole- You can use milk – somewhere around 2% for the correct consistency or if you are doing a dairy-free version I would use a plant-based cream and mixing it with equal amount of water to loosen it up.  Many non-dairy milks have things like gums or flours that adjust the consistency and disallow separation but these are too thick for this recipe.  My ideal was using Nut Pod’s creamer (orginal) and mixing it with water. 1:1 ratio. 

-Does this work as a day before French toast casserole recipe? Yes, you can make this a day ahead and allow it to sit in the fridge overnight or you can make it the day of cooking and it and serving. 

-Can I make pumpkin French toast casserole in the slow cooker? Yes, the texture won’t be exactly the same but it will still work and taste good.  Check the center with a butter knife for doneness, it should come back clean(not wet or messy).

-To get an end result that resembles pumpkin French toast sticks, simply slice into rectangles instead of one large square. 

-Can I use pumpkin bread for this recipe? Pumpkin bread French toast bake works great for this recipe – you can omit the pumpkin purée and spice, unless you want it to have an extra pumpkin and spice flavor.

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Breakfast recipes French toast variations:

Apple pie French toast

Blueberry French toast 

Meyers lemon French toast

Banana Fosters French Toast

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Thanks for checking out one of my favorite recipes – easy pumpkin French toast bake. If you liked this one, you may love some of my other favorite recipes such as baked oatmeal (apricot & ginger) or homemade granola bars.

Please rate or comment below and if you made any additions or alterations and want to let me in on your French toast bake recipe ideas– I would love to hear about it!  If you would like to share or pin on Pinterest, I am always thankful.  Check out my food journey on Pinterest at Molé in the Wall.

Now you know how to make an A+ pumpkin French toast recipe.  I hope you do try this recipe and thoroughly enjoy it as much as we have.  I’m pretty sure this will become a family favorite and become a house hold staples.