A Breakfast You Make the Night Before

I love having special breakfasts in the morning. It just starts the day off on a different note. But cooking pancakes, eggs, and bacon requires time and energy that I usually don’t have in the morning, so I usually end up eating cereal. This recipe for blueberry cream cheese French toast casserole solves that problem because you make everything ahead of time. All you have to do is pop it in the oven in the morning!

This “casserole” gives you all the fluffy goodness of French toast without all the work. Usually, when you make French toast, you have to go through the laborious process of individually dipping each slice in an egg and milk mixture. Then, you have to fry each piece of French toast while simultaneously making sides. With the casserole, you simply combine everything in a pan, and it all cooks together. It’s the perfect way to start your day!

Blueberry Cream Cheese French Toast Casserole Recipe

Ingredients

For the French toast:

• 12 slices of any kind of bread or a loaf of French bread
• 2 8-oz packages of cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup of blueberries, either fresh or frozen
• 12 large eggs
• 1 cup of milk
• ⅓ cup of maple syrup or honey

For the blueberry sauce:

• 1 cup of sugar
• 2 tablespoons of corn starch
• 1 cup of water
• 1 cup of blueberries, either fresh or frozen
• 1 tablespoon of butter

Directions

For the blueberry sauce:

1. The blueberry sauce can be made up to a week ahead of time and refrigerated. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir together the cup of sugar and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Add a cup of water. Stir the mixture until it’s smooth. Heat the sauce to boiling. Stir it for 2 to 3 minutes until it thickens. Lower the heat so the sauce comes to a simmer. Add the cup of blueberries. Simmer for 8 to 10 minutes. Stir the sauce occasionally until the blueberries break down into the sauce. Remove the saucepan from heat and stir in 1 tablespoon of butter. Allow it to cool before storing it in an airtight container in the fridge. Heat the sauce before serving.

For the French toast:

1. Grease a 9 x 13-inch dish. Cut or tear the bread into small cubes. Spread them out in the bottom of the dish.
2. Cut the packages of cream cheese into 1-inch cubes. Place the cream cheese cubes on top of the bread cubes. Sprinkle the cup of blueberries on top of the bread and cream cheese.
3. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the 12 eggs, cup of milk, and ⅓ cup of maple syrup until they’re fully combined. Gradually pour this mixture over the ingredients in the pan. The bread should soak up the liquids but not get soggy. You may have extra liquid mixture left over. Cover the pan and refrigerate it overnight.
4. In the morning, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake the French toast casserole covered for 30 minutes.
5. Uncover the casserole and bake it for another 25 to 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Make sure the center is set by inserting a butter knife. If it comes out clean, the casserole is done.
6. Warm up the blueberry sauce in the microwave or on the stove. Drizzle it over the top of the French toast casserole.
7. Cut the French toast casserole into squares. Serve warm. Cover the leftovers to refrigerate.