When I was planning on what recipe I wanted to post this week, I knew it had to be something warm! My cousins in Boston are freezing. My parents and sisters in New York are freezing. My daughter in Dallas is freezing. I am in LA and when I arrived to teach at someone’s house yesterday morning, we both shivered because it was “freezing” out. Yeah, yeah, I know 59 degrees is not freezing, but it’s all relative. My point is that we’re all feeling chilly! The best way to warm up is with warming foods and drinks and breakfast is a good place to start.
Even though Southern California doesn’t experience really cold temps, I still like to start my day with warm water and lemon and I prefer to leave the cold smoothies to the truly warm (i.e. summer) weather. I am a huge fan of a proper breakfast, especially for the kids. It’s honestly more important to me than what we eat for dinner. Breakfast jump-starts your brain and your metabolism and sets the tone for the day, in more ways than one. So many people tell me they have no time in the morning and that cereal with milk is about all they can manage. I get it. Mornings are tough for me too, especially since I also have to make school lunches and they’re even crazier on days when I have to leave the house at 7:00 am to go to work! My ace in the hole is the do-ahead breakfast. I cannot get enough of recipes that can be assembled the night before and eaten as is or simply baked the next day. This sprouted french toast casserole is just that.
I love using sprouted bread for this because sprouted grains are much better for you than non-sprouted. Simply, they are more digestible and more nutritious. My favorite for this recipe is Food For Life’s sprouted cinnamon raisin bread. It’s naturally sweet and perfect for French toast. My kids don’t love sprouted breads plain or untoasted because they can be a little dry. But here they have no idea since the bread soaks up the almond milk/egg/vanilla mixture and is just like French toast — moist on the inside and crispy on the outside. But you can make this with absolutely any kind of bread you want, including your favorite gluten-free bread, and it would actually be the perfect way to use up different ends of bread you have languishing in the freezer that you know no one is ever going to eat.
Same goes for the fruit. I taught and photographed this a while back in a class that took place when blueberries were in season. You can definitely use frozen blueberries here, but bananas or apples would be fantastic as well.
I always eat this plain, straight up, but my kids love to add a drizzle of maple syrup. I think a dollop of plain yogurt would be delicious, too. However you eat it, this is a well-balanced breakfast with lots of protein, complex carbs and good fats — all the things I’m looking for to start the day. And it’s warm and toasty, too!
Sprouted French Toast Casserole
Ingredients
- Unrefined coconut oil or unsalted butter to grease pan
- 8 slices sprouted bread, thawed if frozen, cut into 1-inch pieces (cinnamon-raisin is a great option), about 6 cups
- 6 large eggs
- 1 ½ cups unsweetened almond milk or milk of choice
- 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup sliced almonds, chopped walnuts, or chopped pecans
- optional: 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries, diced apples or bananas
- accompaniments: pure maple syrup or fruit sauce, sautéed banana or apple slices
Instructions
- The night before you plan to serve this, grease an 8 x8 or 9 x 9 glass baking dish with a little coconut oil or unsalted butter.
- Place the bread cubes in the baking dish.
- In a large bowl, beat together the eggs, almond milk, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Pour over the bread cubes, pressing on the bread to make sure it all soaks up the egg mixture.
- Cover and refrigerate the dish overnight.
- The next morning, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Scatter the fruit and nuts on top and bake uncovered for 45-50 minutes or until set.
- Serve warm with desired accompaniments.
Notes
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
How many days ahead of time can this be prepped (max)? I am hoping to have it ready to go in the fridge 2 days before…will it still be good/work?
I haven’t done it two days in advance, but I do think it would work just fine. Let me know if you try it.
I made this over the weekend, it was delicious! Will make again soon for sure.
great to hear, thanks!
Hi Pamela, going to make this french toast recipe for the family but one of my boys has a tree nut allergy. Are there any substitutions for the tree nut topping that will give the dish some additional protein and healthy fats? I was thinking about drizzling organic peanut butter? What do you think?
You can absolutely omit the nuts altogether since I just added them for texture. There’s plenty of protein from the eggs and even more if you use dairy or hemp milk. But, I think big flakes of coconut would be very nice on top instead of the nuts. And I have drizzled my portion after coming out of the oven with a thin nut butter and it was awesome.
Thanks for another easy winner, Pamela! I made this with leftover Challah from shabbat and it was quite a hit at brunch today. Thanks for sharing your gems!
You are welcome, Pamela! Love challah in French toast! xoxo
Do you buy your sliced almonds sprouted or raw? If so what kind and from where? Do you only use sprouted and organic nuts?
I don’t only use sprouted and organic nuts. Sometimes I use non-organic if that’s all I can find in a certain variety. Baking does help eliminate some of the phytic acid in nuts, and that’s why you would soak/sprout. I like livingnutz.com
Definitely a WINNER! How convenient to be able to prepare the recipe the night before and then just pop it in the oven the next day. Although I used a whole grain cranberry/walnut loaf and added pecans and raisins, it was truly yummy (especially with a topping of sautéed apples). Thanks again for yet another great recipe!
Isn’t that the best part?? Love a good do-ahead breakfast! Thanks, Mia. 🙂
Looks wonderful!! I’m going to try this with the gluten free cinnamon raisin bread from Canyon Bakehouse. The only thing their bread has in it that is a little on the iffy side is the organic agave syrup. But with just 5 grams of sugar per serving and EVOO instead of Canola Oil, its a healthier option than some of the other gluten-free choices out there. Canola oil is one of the ingredients that I usually try to stay away from.
It would definitely work with Canyon Bakehouse bread. 🙂 Canola oil is a disaster. You are smart to avoid it.
Hi Pamela! Love you and your fabulous recipes! What would you recommend as a healthful gluten free bread?? So many have no nutrients in them and just empty calories…the food for life gluten free one? Thank you so much! Keep up the great work!
Thanks, Taylor! I love the Food for Life rice and pecan bread. The slices are smaller than the sprouted, so cube it up and measure 6 cups-worth. I’m sure it will be delicious.
This looks wonderful, I will have to try this, looks like a fun treat for a holiday.
It is! Let me know if you make it. 🙂
I always buy the cinnamon raisin bread from Ezekiel so this is a no brainier. Thanks for this idea!
That’s the one! xoxo