Apple Pie French Toast Casserole has soft, cinnamon-soaked bread, sweet apple filling, and a crumbly brown-sugar top. It’s a make-ahead breakfast for a holiday morning or a brunch when you’d rather do the mixing the night before.
How to make apple pie French toast casserole: Layer bread, custard, apple pie filling, and streusel, then refrigerate for at least 8 hours. Put the cold dish in the oven, turn it to 350°F, and bake for approximately 50 to 60 minutes, checking the center before serving.
Why You’ll Love It
- The morning work is light. You assemble the casserole before bed, so baking is the main job left when you wake up.
- There’s texture in every scoop. The bread sits beneath soft apples and a crumbly cinnamon topping.
- It serves a group. The casserole makes 12 servings without cooking individual pieces of French toast.
- You can use pantry-friendly filling. A can of apple pie filling gives you an apple layer without preparing apples that morning.
Ingredient Notes
Bread: Buy a 1-pound loaf that you can cut into 1-inch cubes. Sourdough is a good choice when you want the bread’s flavor to come through alongside the sweet filling. I like to cut the loaf before I start whisking, so the bread is ready when the custard is mixed.
Custard: Use the whole milk and sour cream called for here, and whisk them with the eggs until incorporated. The sour cream belongs in the custard, not on top of the baked casserole. Vanilla, cinnamon, and salt go into that mixture before you pour it over the bread.
Apple filling: Get a 21-ounce can of apple pie filling for the quantity in the ingredient list. Spread it across the bread rather than dropping it in a mound; that gives you apples throughout the dish when you scoop it.
Streusel: The flour, room-temperature butter, light brown sugar, and remaining cinnamon make the topping. I use my fingertips to check for visible dry flour while cutting them together; what goes onto the casserole should look crumbly, not like separate piles of ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 loaf bread (1 pound), sourdough, brioche, or challah, cut into 1-inch cubes; stale bread also works
- 8 large eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon, for the custard
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 1 can apple pie filling (21 ounces); homemade apple pie filling also works
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, for the topping
- 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature, for the topping
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, for the topping
- 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon, for the topping
How to Make Apple Pie French Toast Casserole
1. Add the bread. Cut the loaf into 1-inch cubes and put them in a well-greased baking dish. Spread the cubes across the dish rather than leaving a tall pile in the middle, so you have room to pour the custard over them.
2. Mix the custard. Whisk the eggs, whole milk, and sour cream until incorporated. Mix in the vanilla, 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon, and salt. You’re pouring this over bread, so take a moment to bring the egg and sour cream into the liquid before you move on.
3. Layer the apples. Pour the custard over the bread. Press down any cubes that need help making contact with the custard, then spread the apple pie filling evenly over the top. I pay attention to the corners here; they deserve apples too.
4. Add the topping. Cut the flour, room-temperature butter, brown sugar, and remaining 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon together until the mixture is crumbly. Scatter it evenly over the apple layer. You want crumbs across the surface rather than a thick patch in one spot.
5. Refrigerate. Cover the dish and refrigerate it overnight or for at least 8 hours. Keep the assembled casserole in the refrigerator during the soak, not on the counter.
6. Bake and check the center. Remove the dish from the refrigerator and put the cold casserole in the oven. Turn the oven to 350°F and bake for approximately 50 to 60 minutes, until the top is golden, the middle is firm, and a food thermometer inserted in the center reads 165°F. If it needs longer, continue in 5-minute increments; loosely add foil if the top browns too quickly.
7. Serve. Scoop out portions and serve with jam or maple syrup if you like. The apples and brown-sugar topping bring sweetness of their own, so you can put either accompaniment on the table and let everyone choose.
When the Top Browns Before the Center Sets
A golden streusel top is inviting, but it can get ahead of the bread and custard underneath. Look at the middle of the casserole: it should be firm, not loose when you check it. Then insert a food thermometer into the center; for a casserole, USDA FSIS specifies 165°F.
If the top looks ready while the middle is still soft or the thermometer has not reached 165°F, lay foil loosely over the dish and keep baking. Check again in 5-minute increments. I’d rather protect the browned crumbs with foil than pull out a casserole because the surface looks finished.
That contrast is what you’re aiming for when you serve it: a golden, crumbly top over soft custard-soaked bread and apple filling. Don’t use the color of the topping as your only cue. The middle is where you need to check before you bring the dish to the table.
Tips for Success
Why are there pale, dry-looking pieces of bread?
Look for cubes that missed the custard as you pour it, especially near the edges. Press those pieces down while assembling so they make contact with the liquid. You don’t need to mash the bread; just make sure the exposed cubes get a chance to soak.
Why does the topping have patches of dry flour?
The butter and dry ingredients haven’t been cut together far enough. Keep working the room-temperature butter into the flour, sugar, and cinnamon until you have a crumbly mixture before you scatter it over the apples. I stop and check the bottom of the bowl, where loose flour can hide.
Why are the apples concentrated in one serving?
The filling may have landed mostly in one area of the dish. Before covering the casserole, spread it over the bread so each part has some apple filling. It’s a small job now and much harder to correct once the topping is in place.
Make-Ahead Planning
Allow for the covered casserole to spend at least 8 hours in the refrigerator before baking. If breakfast has a set start time, work backward from when you want to bake it, not just from when you plan to serve it.
You can also mix the streusel the night before. Keep it covered in the refrigerator and sprinkle it over the apples just before baking.
Variations
- Use homemade filling. If you already have homemade apple pie filling, use it instead of the canned filling.
Storage & Reheating
USDA FSIS says to refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in covered, shallow containers; keep them in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days or freeze them for 3 to 4 months. Thaw frozen leftovers in the refrigerator, cold water, or microwave, and reheat leftovers until a food thermometer reads 165°F. The streusel softens after freezing.
What to Serve With It
For a brunch with more than one breakfast bake, pair it with overnight crème brûlée French toast. You could also put out cinnamon roll French toast rolls or cinnamon sugar French toast muffins for guests who want something they can pick up. If you’re planning an apple-themed spread, add 3-ingredient apple pie cake, apple slab pie, or slow cooker caramel apple dump cake for dessert.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does French toast casserole have to soak overnight?
This one does. Give the covered dish at least 8 hours in the refrigerator so the custard soaks all the way through the bread cubes before it bakes.
What is the best bread to use in a French toast casserole?
A sturdy loaf. Sourdough, brioche and challah all work, and somewhat stale French or Italian bread is fine too. Cut it into 1-inch cubes so every piece takes up the custard.
Does the apple filling need to be cooked before assembly?
No. Use prepared apple pie filling, either from the can or homemade, and spread it over the bread before you add the streusel.
Final Notes
Keep your food thermometer handy when you take the dish out of the oven. If you make it, leave a question or tell me how it turned out in the comments.
Apple Pie French Toast Casserole
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Ingredients
- 1 loaf bread 1 pound; sourdough, brioche, or challah, cut into 1-inch cubes; stale bread also works
- 8 eggs large
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon for the custard
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 1 can apple pie filling 21 ounces; homemade apple pie filling also works
- 1 cup all-purpose flour for the topping
- 1/2 cup butter at room temperature, for the topping
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar for the topping
- 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon for the topping
Instructions
- Cut the bread into 1-inch cubes and put it in a well-greased baking dish.
- Whisk the eggs, milk, and sour cream until incorporated. Mix in the vanilla, 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon, and salt.
- Pour the custard over the bread, pressing the cubes down as needed so they contact the custard. Spread the apple pie filling evenly over the bread.
- Cut the flour, butter, brown sugar, and remaining 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon together until crumbly. Spread the topping evenly over the casserole.
- Cover the dish and refrigerate overnight or for at least 8 hours.
- Remove the dish from the refrigerator. Put the cold casserole in the oven, then turn the oven to 350°F. Bake approximately 50 to 60 minutes, until the top is golden, the middle is firm, and a food thermometer inserted in the center reads 165°F. If needed, continue baking in 5-minute increments; loosely add foil if the top browns too quickly.
- Serve with jam or maple syrup if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
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