Breakfast. They say it is the most important meal of the day. I, sadly, am never talented enough to pull off a big breakfast, and there are lots of people who need something on the table quickly. That is where this Overnight Baked Blueberry French Toast comes it. With a little planning, you can actually have this on the table in a little over half an hour. Basically, you just have to spend 10 minutes the evening before whisking the milk and eggs together and cutting bread, and in the morning, just place it in the oven (you don’t even need to preheat, though I preheated to about 200F before I put it in — my oven is from 1954; it needs to “think about things” before moving). Voila, on the table 35 minutes later.
A note: the recipe is for a full 9 x 13 inch (like the size of a brownie pan), but the picture is actually of a much smaller version (I halved the recipe). I’m single and didn’t want to be eating French Toast for three days.
Ingredients
1 loaf brioche or challah bread*
4 eggs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups milk
1 pint fresh blueberries
Directions
The day before you want to eat, slice the bread into thick-ish pieces, and arrange them in a shallow baking dish. Whisk together the eggs, sugar, vanilla and milk in a large bowl and pour evenly over the bread. Scatter over the blueberries and then cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.
The next morning, turn the oven on to 350F, no need to preheat. Remove the plastic from the French toast, and place in the oven. Bake for 35 minutes, or until golden brown and puffed up, with no liquid in the center (stab a knife in to check if you need to).
Serve the bake with a drizzle of maple syrup (and yogurt, if you want to be healthy) and some more fresh fruit on the side.
* If you don’t have brioche or challah, you can use a hearty white bread that is thick sliced (like “Texas toast” style).
