Cinnamon Baked French Toast

Today I'm sharing what has become one of our favorite weekend breakfast meals. One of the things I love most about it, is that I can get it completely prepared the night before, then all I need to do in the morning is pop it in the oven! This works especially great if your hubby wakes up earlier than you, and can handle getting it into the oven while you're still snoozing. ;) The boys love this dish, and hubby and I gobble it up, too. Accompanied by some fruit, or breakfast meat, it makes a great, easy meal when you have visitors, too!

I love making it for the 4 of us when I have leftover French bread on hand. We recently discovered that it is also delicious when made with sourdough bread. Fortunately, it's easy to grab a loaf from the store when I don't have any extra. I found this recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Two Peas & Their Pod, but it originated from the Pioneer Woman. It makes a huge batch, so I cut the recipe in half for just the 4 of us, and we still have leftovers.

Cinnamon Baked French Toast

(serves 8-10)

Ingredients:

French Toast:

• 1 loaf French, or sourdough, bread
• 8 large eggs
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp vanilla extract

Streusel Topping:

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup cold butter, cut into pieces

Directions:

Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. I use an 8 x 8-inch square dish when I cut the recipe in half. Tear the bread into chunks, or cut it into cubes, and place evenly in the dish.

In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, milk, cream, sugar and vanilla extract. Pour this mixture evenly over the bread. Cover the pan with saran wrap and store it in the refrigerator for several hours, or overnight.

In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add the butter pieces and cut into the dry mixture using a fork, or pastry cutter. Combine until the mixture resembles sand with some pea-sized chunks. Cover and store mixture in the refrigerator.

When you're ready to bake it, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Remove the casserole from the refrigerator and sprinkle the streusel topping over the top. Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until the French toast is set and golden brown. Enjoy!