Boozy Caramel French Toast Casserole
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This boozy French toast casserole with a caramel bottom makes the perfect company-for-brunch dish.
Part booze, part French toast, part bread pudding — how could you go wrong? In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if you already had the recipe because such things (i.e., amazingly good, crowd pleasing, make-ahead, easy recipes) tend to get around. I got it from my friend Gayle, who got it from her friend Karen, who got it from…you get the idea.
This French toast casserole makes a perfect company-for-brunch dish because you can assemble it the night before, let it sit in the fridge overnight, and then just pop it in the oven in the morning when you’re ready to eat. Don’t worry if you forget to plan ahead; it can be baked soon after assembling if need be.
Ingredients For Boozy Caramel French Toast Casserole
I use broiche bread to make my French toast casserole. Brioche is a lightly sweetened yeast bread enriched with lots of butter and eggs. You can find it in the bakery of most large supermarkets; if, for some reason, you can’t find it, challah makes an excellent substitute.
Grand Marnier is an orange-flavored liqueur. It adds depth of flavor and subtle orange flavor that pairs nicely with the orange zest and caramel. If you’d like to omit the booze, go ahead and replace it with more half and half.
How To Make Boozy Caramel French Toast Casserole
Begin with the caramel. In a small saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and one tablespoon of water. Melt over medium heat, stirring until smooth.
Pour the caramel into a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
Remove the crust from the brioche and cut it into 1½-inch slices. Arrange the bread on top of the caramel, making sure the entire base is well covered.
In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, half-and-half, vanilla, Grand Marnier, orange zest and salt until well combined.
Pour the mixture evenly over the bread, and let it sit for at least 15 minutes or cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator overnight.
When you’re ready to eat, bake the French toast casserole, uncovered, until puffed and golden, 40 to 50 minutes.
Let cool for a few minutes (it will deflate) and then serve immediately. The caramel will harden up as it cools, so it’s important to serve this dish hot.
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Boozy Caramel French Toast Casserole
Ingredients
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pan
- ¾ cup (packed) light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
- 1⅓ lbs brioche (you'll likely need two loaves but you won't use it all)
- 5 large eggs
- 1½ cups half-and-half
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons Grand Marnier
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Grease a 9 x 13-inch (23 x 33-cm) baking dish with butter.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter with the brown sugar, corn syrup, and one tablespoon of water, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Pour into the prepared pan.
- Slice off the crusts from the brioche (it doesn't need to be perfect). Cut the bread into 1½-inch (3.75-cm) thick slices. Arrange the bread slices on top of the caramel, making sure the entire base of the pan is covered.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, half-and-half, vanilla, Grand Marnier, orange zest and salt until well combined. Pour evenly over bread. Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 20 minutes or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position.
- Bake, uncovered, in the middle of the oven until puffed and golden, 40 to 50 minutes. Let cool a few minutes (it will deflate), then serve immediately. The caramel base hardens up as it cools, so it's important to serve it hot.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Comments
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Hi Jenn! I’m planning on making this for Christmas brunch. I already have a bottle of dark corn syrup that I’d like to make use of if at all possible. Do you think it would work, or be too overpowering?
Hi Caroline, I think it’d work. Please lmk how it turns out!
Jenn, thank you so much for your quick reply! It came out great. The caramel was somewhat chewy, not sure if that was because of the dark syrup or if yours is like that as well. Either way, it was a huge hit! I’ll be making it again for sure. Thanks again!
I am serving a very flavorful savory sausage/cheddar strata for Christmas breakfast. Do you think this would pair well with that? Sweet vs. savory?
Yes, definitely. Enjoy!
This was a hit with my family. I substituted the challah with brioche which is all my store carried. Tasted wonderful. Served with bacon/ sausage and maple syrup. An easy recipe to make. Thank you Jen for sharing this one. You are an amazing chef.
Hi Jenn,
I’ve made this several times and everyone loves it. I follow the recipe exactly and it’s perfect every time. No need to change it!
Hi Jenn,
Can’t wait to try this. I make my own Challah, do you think a 1 1/2 lb loaf will suffice here ? Would it be better to use day old or freshly baked? Thanks so much for all of your fabulous, dependable recipes, all are clearly written and always excellent! 😄
Hi Chrissy, A standard challah is about 1 lb so you should have plenty (and you probably won’t need all of it). Day-old will work well, but it honestly doesn’t make much of a difference here. Glad you’re enjoying the recipes!
I made this Thanksgiving morning and it was divine. Everyone else thought so because it didn’t last very long. I loved the orange flavor in the dish, it was just enough and not overpowering at all. And let’s not forget that buttery caramel bottom that added the right amount of sweetness. Heaven! As always, Thank you Jenn for your amazing recipes.
This has become a go-to recipe for my family. Depending on what we have on hand, we have substituted brioche for challah, and orange juice for Grand Marnier, both with excellent results. Serve with bacon and fresh fruit for an irresistible Sunday brunch!
The recipe does not include the amount of caramel or instructions showing placing the bread on caramel.
Hi Patricia, you may be confused because the recipe doesn’t require packaged caramel, but rather you’re making it with the butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup. Hope that clarifies!
Hi, Can this be made without corn syrup?
Hi Lora, you’d need to substitute the corn syrup with something else; Lyle’s Golden Syrup would work well.
absolutely delicious! A crowd pleaser.