Skip the griddle and make your French toast casserole-style in a 9x13 pan. With fresh bananas and a pecan crumble, Banana French Toast Casserole is a crowd-pleasing, make-ahead breakfast.
French Toast Casserole might be the best thing to happen to celebratory breakfast and brunch. There are few things as satisfying as knowing that all those slices of bread are soaking in sweet custard overnight and that breakfast for a crowd is ready to slide into the oven in the morning. I first shared this banana and pecan twist on the dish back in 2014 but I'm updating the post today with all new photos and a few tips and tricks. Get your maple syrup ready friends, let's dive right in!
What is French Toast Casserole / Baked French Toast?
Just like classic French Toast, this dish is made with slices of bread topped with an egg and milk custard. But instead of cooked individually on a skillet, the bread is lined up in a casserole dish and the custard is poured over top. The casserole version is often sweetened and can include a variety of fillings and toppings. If you are looking for a more traditional French Toast, but with a twist, check out Croissant French Toast.
How to Make it
- Prepare bread base - Slice a baguette and line the slices up in a buttered 9x13 baking dish. Place slices of ripe banana between the bread slices.
- Add custard - Make a custard with whisked eggs, milk, and some heavy cream. Pour it over the bread.
- Refrigerate - Cover the dish and refrigerate it for at least 2 hours and up to a day. This will give the bread time to soak up the custard.
- Bake - Bake, covered, at 350°F / 177°C for 40 minutes until the center is nearly set.
- Add crumble - Add a simple crumble with chopped pecans, butter, flour, and sugar.
- Bake until golden - Continue baking until the top is golden and the center is set, about 10 minutes more.
- Serve warm.
FAQs
Let it cool slightly before cutting into slices. Top individual slices the same way you would classic French toast - with butter, syrup, fresh fruit, or a dusting of powdered sugar.
Refrigerate the baked casserole for up to 3 days. Reheat individual slices in the microwave or cover the entire dish with foil and reheat in a 350 F degree oven.
Yes. Bake it according to directions and then cool completely before covering tightly. Freeze for up to 3 months. To make it easy to remove and reheat individual servings, slice it first and freeze individual portions on a sheet pan until solid before transferring them to a freezer-safe bag.
Absolutely! You can skip it entirely or just skip the pecans in it. Add a few dots of butter to the top of the dish instead of the crumble so that you still get that nice golden top.
Definitely yes. If you want the casserole to be unsweetened, feel free to skip the sugar in the filling. The dish will be savory, but everyone can opt to sweeten individual servings with a dusting of powdered sugar or syrup.
More Baked Breakfast Recipes
- Spicy Breakfast Strata
- Raspberry and Cream Cheese French Toast Bake
- Croque Madame Casserole
- Try making breakfast in the slow cooker! I love this Bagel-based casserole and this low-carb version.
Favorite Tools
- Glass Mixing Bowls
- Half Sheet Pans
- OXO Silicon Spatula Set
- Parchment Paper
- KitchenAid Stand Mixer
- Wire Cooling Rack
- Set of Cookie Scoops (1 Tbsp, 2 Tbsp, 3 Tbsp)
Banana French Toast Casserole Recipe
Equipment
- 9 x 13 Baking Dish
- Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
For the French Toast:
- 3 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, sliced into small cubes
- 1 large Baguette, sliced into rounds
- 2 Bananas, sliced
- 8 Eggs
- 3 cups Milk any type will work
- ½ cup Heavy Cream
- ⅓ cup Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
- ½ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher Salt
- Powdered Sugar and / or Syrup, for serving
For the Crumble:
- 4 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, chilled and cut into cubes
- 3 Tablespoons packed Light Brown Sugar
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ¾ cups Pecan Halves, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
- Spray the baking dish lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Scatter cubed butter over the bottom of the dish. Arrange bread slices in rows in the pan, with slices slightly overlapping. Slide banana slices between the slices of bread.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the eggs until well combined. Whisk in the milk, heavy cream, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and ¼ teaspoon salt. Pour the liquids over the bread.
- Cover with foil and refrigerate for 2 hours to overnight.
- About 20 minutes before baking, remove the pan from the refrigerator and preheat the oven to 350°F / 177°C.
- Place the casserole dish on a sheet pan to bake (this will help catch any drips that might bubble over as it cooks). Bake the French toast, covered with foil, for 40 minutes.
- While French toast bakes, blend together 4 Tablespoons chilled butter, brown sugar, and ¼ teaspoon salt with a pastry cutter or with your fingers. Add pecans and blend them in until evenly combined.
- When French toast has been baking for 40 minutes, remove it from the oven and remove foil. Scatter pecan crumble over top.
- Return pan to oven and continue baking until the center is set and the pecans are lightly toasted, 10 to 15 minutes more.
- Slice and serve with a dusting of powdered sugar and / or syrup.
Ashley
I was wondering how you were doing! And if the babies had made their entrance yet : ) I hope you are getting in plenty of relaxing! And this french toast sounds fantastic - I love any sort of baked french toast!
Katie (The Muffin Myth)
This looks great! The perfect make-ahead breakfast. We've got an expats brunch club and our turn to host is coming up, so I'll file this away for such an occasion. Glad you've started your mat leave and can start relaxing and enjoy some quiet before the chaos 🙂
Eileen
I run a B&B and this looks like a great dish to serve my guests. I might try it in individual dishes for easy serving. Thanks for sharing!
Holly Botner
This looks amazing and very original. Can't quite remember how I found you, but I'm glad I did!
Gabrielle
I made these this morning, well technically last night, but it was delicious. The perfect amount of sweetness and not soggy at all, as I've found most french toast bakes to be. The only thing I did different was (since I only had 1/4c pecans) use almonds and cashews along with whatever pecans I had for the crumble. Turned out great, thank you for sharing.
Dina
Made this for New Years breakfast. Didn't have pecans so I substituted sliced almonds and used 3 bananas and it came out amazing. Thank you! It was a huge hit.
Jess
Thanks so much for letting me know Dina!!! Happy New Year!
francesca
Breakfast high five. seriously.
Randy
Wow this wonderful for breakfast, brunch or dessert. Thanks chef for posting this. ????????????????
Jess
Thanks so much, Randy - hope you enjoy it!
Kiki
Excited to try this recipe. What kind of milk did you use? I'm thinking whole milk, or even heavy whipping cream?
Jess Smith
Any milk will work, but will just affect the richness of the dish. I think it's too rich to use all heavy whipping cream, but I have tried it with 25% heavy whipping cream and 75% milk (I usually use 2%) and it is great that way.