This EASY Berry Walnut French Toast Casserole recipe is made with brioche bread and topped with a sugared walnut and berry mixture for extra flavor! Bake it immediately, or make it ahead and refrigerate overnight.
If French toast is your favorite way to start the day, try this Pumpkin French Toast, which is perfect for cozy fall weekends. Eggnog French Toast Casserole is always a hit for the holidays, too!
Why You’ll Love This Berry French Toast Casserole
Nothing gives me more joy than waking up on a holiday morning with all my children home! While several are grown and have homes of their own, I always make an easy breakfast casserole recipe to serve when we’re all together.
I love that this Berry French Toast Casserole has berries and nuts, which gives it delicious sweetness and crunch! But also, this casserole can be made ahead of time, which is quite a lifesaver during these visits.
Here’s why it’s a favorite:
- I used my tried-and-true French Toast Casserole recipe as a base, which means you already know it’s going to be a winner!
- The nuts add crunchy texture and flavor, making this breakfast casserole irresistible! (If you love nuts for breakfast, be sure to try my Healthy Banana Nut Pancake and Caramel Bread Pudding too.)
- This berry French toast casserole is quick and easy to assemble, which is always a plus in the lead up to a holiday!
- It effortlessly goes from breakfast to dessert! (I mean, French toast casserole is basically bread pudding, right?!) Serve it warm with a scoop of our berry ice cream or berry crumble.
Important Ingredient Notes
- Unsalted butter – Using unsalted butter keeps your French toast casserole from being overly salted.
- Light brown sugar – This has a milder flavor than dark brown sugar so it won’t over-power the berries.
- Brioche bread – Brioche is my favorite for French toast since it’s tender, rich, and a little bit sweet. You could swap it out for texas toast or cinnamon raisin bread too.
- Eggs – The liquid mixture for French toast is custard, so eggs are a key component!
- Milk – Whole milk will give you the richest berry French toast casserole, but whatever you have on hand is just fine.
- Flavorings – Cinnamon adds cozy flavor, then you’ll also use vanilla and maple extracts. You can swap the maple extract for almond extract if you’d prefer.
- Frozen triple berry blend – Or any frozen berries you like.
- Walnut pieces – For crunch and nutty flavor!
- Maple syrup – Or another topping you like. Whipped cream would also be delicious!
How to Make Berry French Toast Casserole
Prepare: Preheat your oven to 350ºF and spray a 13×9 baking dish with non-stick baking spray.
Make the Topping: In a small bowl, mix together the walnut pieces with the softened butter and brown sugar.
Make the Brown Sugar Layer: In a small saucepan, melt the butter with brown sugar, whisking until the sugar dissolves. Pour this into the bottom of the greased baking dish.
Add the Bread: Arrange the bread cubes over the butter mixture.
Make the Custard: In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, cinnamon, vanilla, maple extract, and salt. Pour the custard over the bread.
Bake: Add the berries and walnut mixture over the bread, then cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 20 minutes, then serve warm with maple syrup.
Tips and Tricks
- Use a good quality sweet bread as your base. I love to use a soft brioche bread, but Hawaiian bread or cinnamon raisin bread would also be delicious.
- I topped the casserole with frozen mixed berries. No need to thaw them. You can also use 2 cups of fresh berries.
- It’s easiest to use your hands when combining the sugared walnut mixture. You want to make sure there are no loose crumbs as it all comes together to coat the walnuts completely.
- Sprinkle with powdered sugar instead of maple syrup—or in addition to it! The sugar makes a beautiful presentation as well.
Recipe FAQs
If your French toast casserole is soggy, you’ll need to bake it longer. The custard should be set when you pull the casserole out of the oven.
If you’d like the bread to be a little bit firmer after baking, you can start with stale bread or toast the bread first. This isn’t necessary, though—it simply depends on your desired results!
I don’t recommend letting the assembled casserole sit in the refrigerator longer than overnight. I usually put it together the night before and then bake it in the morning.
More Nutty Recipes
- Coconut Almond Bars
- Pecan Pie Bundt Cake
- Strawberry Almond Bars
- Nutty Caramel Snack Mix
- Strawberry Cheesecake Napoleons
- Almond Pesto Salmon
- Blueberry Cheesecake
Berry French Toast Casserole
Ingredients
For the french toast:
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- 16 ounce loaf Brioche bread cubed
- 6 large eggs
- 1 ¾ cup milk
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon maple extract
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups frozen triple berry blend
For the topping
- ¾ cup walnut pieces
- ¼ cup light brown sugar packed
- 2 Tablespoons butter softened
- ¼ cup maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 13×9 baking dish with non-stick baking spray. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the topping ingredients. Mix together the walnut pieces with the softened butter and brown sugar until combined. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan, melt butter with brown sugar. Whisk until fully combined and the sugar has dissolved.
- Pour into the bottom of the greased baking dish.
- Lay bread cubes over the butter mixture.
- In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, cinnamon, vanilla, maple extract, and salt. Pour over bread.
- Top with berries and the walnut mixture.
- Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 20 minutes.
- Serve warm with maple syrup. ENJOY.
Notes
- Use a good quality sweet bread as your base. I found a soft brioche bread, that I cubed for today’s casserole. Cinnamon Swirl (Raisin) bread would also make a great option, as would a Hawaiian bread.
- I topped the casserole with frozen mixed berries. No need to thaw them. You can also use 2 cups of fresh berries, and variety.
- It’s easiest to use your hands when combining the sugared walnut mixture. You want to make sure there are no loose crumbs as it all comes together to coat the walnuts completely.
- Sprinkle with powdered sugar instead of maple syrup. The sugar makes a beautiful presentation as well!
- Store leftovers in airtight container in refrigerator. Warm in microwave.
- See blog post for more recipe tips and tricks.
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This EASY Berry Walnut French Toast Casserole recipe is made with Brioche Bread and topped with a sugared walnut and berry mixture for extra flavor! Bake it immediately, or make it ahead and refrigerate overnight.
What a great way to start my day! This looks worthy of a bakery, indeed! Delish!
I followed your recommendation to make this ahead of time and boy, was it so easy to wake up and pop it right into the oven with no work. Such an great way to get breakfast on the table. Everyone loved it!