Baked Apple French Toast
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Part French toast, part apple pie, this baked apple French toast is the ultimate holiday brunch dish.
A lovely mash-up of French toast and apple pie, this prep-ahead baked apple french toast has all the makings of a special holiday breakfast casserole—the kind that becomes a beloved family tradition. You can prepare it the night before, let it chill in the fridge overnight, and pop it in the oven when you’re ready to eat. I like to add a splash of bourbon to the custard mixture for extra depth, but feel free to substitute apple cider or more half & half if you prefer. Serve it with a sprinkle of confectioners’ sugar, a drizzle of maple syrup, and crispy bacon on the side.
“This was amazing and worked perfectly as a make-ahead casserole for brunch the next day. I followed the recipe exactly and got rave reviews.”
What You’ll Need To Make Baked Apple French Toast
- Challah: Absorbs the custard mixture well and provides a rich, slightly sweet base. A raisin challah would also work nicely.
- Eggs: Bind the custard mixture and help create a creamy texture.
- Half & Half: Adds richness and creaminess to the custard mixture.
- Maple Syrup: Sweetens the custard mixture and adds a distinctive maple flavor.
- Bourbon: Adds depth and complexity to the dish; it can be replaced with apple cider or more half & half.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the flavor of the custard mixture with its aromatic richness.
- Butter: Adds richness and helps cook the apples.
- Granny Smith Apples: Provide a tart contrast to the sweet custard and topping.
- Dark Brown Sugar and Maple Syrup: Sweeten the apples and create a caramel-like sauce.
- Cinnamon: Adds warmth and spice to the apple topping.
- Confectioners’ Sugar and/or Maple Syrup: Optional toppings that add extra sweetness and flavor.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin with the custard: in a large bowl, combine the eggs, half & half, maple syrup, bourbon, vanilla, and salt.
Whisk to combine.
Dip each slice of challah into the custard mixture for about 5 seconds, then arrange in an overlapping pattern in the prepared baking dish.
Be sure the entire bottom of the dish is covered with the bread. Pour any remaining custard over the bread. Set aside.
In a large sauté pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat.
Add the apples, brown sugar, maple syrup, and cinnamon.
Bring to a gentle boil.
Cook, stirring frequently, until the apples are softened and the sugar-syrup is thickened, about 8 minutes.
Spoon the apples and sugar-syrup evenly over the bread, making sure not to leave any of the syrup behind. If not baking immediately, cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Otherwise, proceed with the recipe.
When you’re getting ready to eat, cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until puffed and golden, about 20 minutes more.
Remove from the oven and, using a fine sieve, dust with the confectioners’ sugar. Serve with maple syrup.
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Baked Apple French Toast
Part French toast, part apple pie, this baked apple French toast is the ultimate holiday brunch dish.
Ingredients
For the French Toast
- One 1-lb challah or raisin challah
- 5 large eggs
- 1½ cups half & half
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons bourbon (optional; replace with apple cider or half-&-half if desired)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Heaping ¼ teaspoon salt
For the Apple Topping
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and thinly sliced
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
- 6 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
For Serving
- Confectioners' sugar and/or maple syrup
Instructions
For the French Toast
- Butter a 9 x 13-inch or 3-QT baking dish. Slice the bread into ¾-inch-thick slices.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, half & half, maple syrup, bourbon, vanilla, and salt.
- Dip each slice of challah into the custard mixture for about 5 seconds, then arrange in an overlapping pattern in the prepared baking dish. Be sure the entire bottom of the dish is covered with the bread. Pour any remaining custard over the bread. Set aside.
For the Apple Topping
- In a large sauté pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the apples, brown sugar, maple syrup, and cinnamon. Cook, stirring frequently, until the apples are softened and the sugar-syrup is thickened, about 8 minutes. Spoon the apples and sugar-syrup evenly over the bread, making sure not to leave any of the syrup behind. If not baking immediately, cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Otherwise, proceed with the recipe.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position.
- Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until puffed and golden, about 20 minutes more. Remove from the oven and, using a fine sieve, dust with the confectioners' sugar. Serve with maple syrup.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Calories: 473
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated fat: 9 g
- Carbohydrates: 65 g
- Sugar: 33 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 11 g
- Sodium: 358 mg
- Cholesterol: 177 mg
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.
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I don’t like to try a new recipe on a group so I did a 1/2 recipe test run today, a week before my brunch. I assembled last night and baked this morning, following the recipe closely but adding some pecans to the saucy apple mixture (I’m a texture person). My brunch is an open house, buffet style so I’m contemplating cutting the bread slices in a bit more buffet friendly size but also wonder if anyone has tried it in a crockpot. I’m worried that serving at room temp won’t be as good as if served warm. Didn’t see any references to it so I’m assuming not but thought I’d ask. . Thanks 😊
I found your website recently and used it to fix 3 dishes for my book club tomorrow. I made this French toast, apple challah bread recipe and, even though all of my steps looked identical to your pictures, it looks pretty dry. I will cook it before people arrive tomorrow but I feel like I need to add something before I bake it. Should I add syrup before putting in the oven? I’d appreciate any advice if you can before tomorrow morning, but I even if you answer after, I’ll know for the future. Clearly it is my issue since everyone else here is raving…,
Hi Christy, Based on my timing, you’ve obviously already served this so I’m weighing in a bit too late – sorry! Did you use a 9 x 13-inch/3-quart baking dish and the amount of bread the recipe called for? If you did and still felt it was dry, for future reference, you could make 1.25 times the custard to give it a little more moisture. Please let me know how it turned out though!
Delish… even with the following modifications to lighten it up a bit: used skim milk instead of half and half in the batter. For the apple mixture, I used only 2T of butter, 1/4 c. of brown sugar and 1/4 c of maple syrup. I also added a little extra cinnamon and some ground nutmeg.This was a well received addition to our Yom Kippur breakfast menu that I’ll make again.
Can we freeze this?
Hi D, I haven’t frozen it, but I think it would freeze nicely.
Simply fantastic. Loved every sweet taste and just perfectly as you wrote it. A 5 star recipe to share with company and or holiday time.
Here in southwest rural France, I couldn’t locate either challah or bourbon. So I used (gluten-free) brioche for the bread, and Calvados (apple brandy) for the liquor. Terrific! I think this will become a “special breakfast” regular.
This was delicious! I cubed the apples instead of sliced but otherwise followed the recipe to the letter. Don’t hesitate to use the 2T of bourbon. In my opinion, it is what makes this recipe extra special. I appreciated that this dish wasn’t too sweet. It was perfect.
Hi!
I put a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in before I realized you may have meant regular apple cider… will this ruin the casserole?
Oops! If the French toast isn’t already assembled, you can add some apple cider to the soaking liquid. If it’s already in the fridge (which I assume it is at this point), I wouldn’t worry about it too much. You may just need to serve it with a little extra maple syrup. 🙂
Thank you!! It’s already assembled. I stopped after one tablespoon so hopefully it’ll be good. It certainly smells amazing. I was more concerned about making it unsafe to eat by doing that. As long as it’s safe to eat, I know it’ll be terrific. I’m making your strawberry cake tonight for my Dad’s birthday and incorporating rhubarb in it. Yum!!
Yes, it’s perfectly safe to eat. Hope you enjoy both the French toast and the strawberry cake!
Hi! Could you use brioche bread for this? It is hard to find challah bread in my area. Thanks!
Sure – enjoy!
My dad made this for our Easter brunch and it was a crowd favorite! So delicious and easy to make!