Published 3/20/2023
Carrot Cake French Toast: A Perfect Breakfast
Level up your next Mother’s Day brunch, Easter morning, or typical weekday breakfast with this easy carrot cake overnight French toast casserole! I gotta tell ya, I’m an inner texture-freak, and this morning delight does NOT disappoint. With a French toast mixture made up of French bread, freshly shredded carrots, raisins, walnuts, maple syrup, and warm spices, how could you not fall in love? And to make things even better, we topped things off with a deliciously rich cream cheese frosting that compliments the carrot cake flavors beautifully. It’s simply the BEST.
Ingredients You’ll Need
French baguette: French baguettes are our bread of choice for French toast, so we just had to put it in this French toast casserole. Carrots: we grated carrots from fresh for this recipe for the best results. Raisins & walnuts: you can’t have a carrot cake casserole without raisins and walnuts! If you have picky eaters, though, you can omit. Eggs: find the freshest eggs possible for your french toast casserole, and make sure you whisk the eggs thoroughly. There is nothing worse than a breakfast casserole with thick clumps of egg whites. Almond milk: feel free to use whatever milk you would like! We prefer unsweetened almond milk or oat milk for this specific recipe. Maple syrup: this liquid sweetener tastes great with the carrot cake flavors. Honey or agave work just as well, too. Spices: we used a warm and tasty spice blend of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and kosher salt. Cream cheese: a rich and creamy frosting that tastes amazing with this carrot cake French toast casserole. Greek yogurt: greek yogurt is mixed with cream cheese to create a flavorful and fluffy frosting.
How to Make Carrot Cake French Toast Casserole
PREPARE FILLING
Grease a 9×13-inch casserole dish and add the french baguette pieces, grated carrot, raisins, and chopped walnuts to the dish and toss. Set aside. It makes for an easy holiday meal. Make it ahead of time, so you are ready before your guests arrive. It tastes FANTASTIC. Just like carrot cake! Next, crack the eggs into a large bowl and whisk them together. Add the milk, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt to the eggs and whisk to combine. Then pour the egg mixture over the bread, mixing well. Use a spatula or your hands to push all the ingredients down into the egg mixture.
REST OVERNIGHT
Cover the casserole dish and place it in the refrigerator overnight.
BAKE
Preheat the oven to 350ºF and remove the French toast bake from the refrigerator. Use your hands to submerge the bread in the egg mixture one more time before baking. Cover with tin foil and bake at 350ºF for 30 minutes, covered. Remove the tin foil and bake for another 15-20 minutes.
PREPARE FROSTING
While the French toast bake is baking, prepare the cream cheese frosting. Place all of the ingredients for the cream cheese frosting into a bowl and use an electric mixer to whip all the ingredients together until the frosting is smooth. Pro Tip: If you like your cake frosting on the sweeter side, feel free to add more maple syrup to the frosting.
FROST, SERVE, + ENJOY
Let the bake sit for 10 minutes before serving. Then, top your delicious French toast casserole with a spread of cream cheese frosting. Enjoy!
Let’s Go to Brunch!
While this carrot cake French toast casserole is filling enough on its own, it also tastes great paired with other classic brunch flavors. Next time you and your friends or family want to get together for a satisfying brunch, consider these great side options:
The Best Frittata Recipe Sweet Potato Hash with Baked Eggs Spinach Smoothie Iced London Fog Latte Crispy Air Fryer Bacon The Best Breakfast Potatoes
Storage
Store your carrot cake French toast casserole in an airtight container (or in the casserole dish covered in plastic wrap) in the fridge for up to 3 days. To freeze your French toast casserole, prepare and bake the french toast bake according to the recipe card. After your french toast bake has cooled completely, cover it with plastic wrap and aluminum foil. Place it in the freezer for up to 3 months. To reheat: When you are ready to reheat your casserole, remove it from the freezer and take off the plastic wrap and tin foil. Bake at 350ºF for 15-25 minutes.
Casserole Recipes
Spicy Italian Sausage Breakfast Casserole English Muffin Breakfast Bake Chicken Fajita Breakfast Casserole Peanut Butter Banana French Toast Bake Instant Pot French Toast Casserole Healthy Breakfast Casserole with Sweet Potato Hash Browns
