Strawberry Cream Cheese French Toast Bake

Deliciously sweet pockets of roasted strawberries paired with tangy cream cheese elevates this strawberry cream cheese French toast bake to more than just your run of the mill baked French toast casserole! Make it the night before, and you can sleep in on Saturday morning. Win.

I love make-ahead meals. Anything that saves me time later and shortens my time commitment now is a win for me. And that’s probably why I so often gravitate towards overnight baked French toast dishes like this Strawberry Cream Cheese French Toast Bake.

Also. It tastes flippity dippity good.

Strawberry Cream Cheese French Toast, a weekend favourite

What’s not to like? 20 mins of prep the night before followed by baking for an hour the next morning (ahem…on Saturdays, my “morning” starts at noon), while I get washed up and have my first cup of coffee. And then I get to dig into this delicious stuffed French toast casserole. Bliss.

Absolute bliss.

Tips for the Perfect Baked French Toast

Baked French Toast recipes are quite similar to their stovetop counterparts. Many of the same rules apply. Here’s a quick rundown:

Use high quality bread / croissant – dense, buttery, cakey-style breads work best. It should go without saying that for this recipe, avoid using any of those ‘light’ croissant variations.

Stale bread is important –Using fresh bread for French toast (especially stuffed French toast recipes, like this strawberry cream cheese French toast bake) often leads to a soggy end product. And soggy means delicate.

If you’re planning to make this ahead of time, and leave it to soak overnight, you’ll definitely want to make sure that your croissants are stale (you can dry them out in the oven if you need to). If you use fresh croissants, there’s a chance that they will tear too easily.

And let’s face it, strawberry and cream baked mush just doesn’t sound as appeasing as a strawberries and cream baked French toast!

Don’t skim the milk! Switching out the half-and-half for skimmed milk just doesn’t work as well. If you’re in a pinch, sure – use that skimmed milk, or almond milk, or whatever you have on hand. But if you want that rich, velvety mouthfeel, you’re going to need dairy with a little oomph to it!

…And by oomph, I mean fat. (And that’s why we use half-and-half for this recipe.)

Other French Toast Recipes You’ll Love

• Chocolate Croissant Bread Pudding
• Perfect French Toast (Twice Cooked!)
• Nutella & Dark Chocolate French Toast

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Let’s Reminisce

• One Year Ago: S’mores French Toast
• Two Years Ago: Baked French Toast
• Three Years Ago: Orange-Blueberry Smoothie

Strawberry Cream Cheese French Toast Bake

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★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews

• Author: Riz | Chocolates & Chai
• Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
• Yield: 1 9×9-inch dish 1x

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Description

Deliciously sweet pockets of roasted strawberries paired with tangy cream cheese elevates this strawberry cream cheese French toast bake to more than your just run of the mill baked French toast casserole!

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 4 large eggs
• 2 cups of half and half
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• ⅓ cup sugar
• 4 croissants, sliced open
• 4oz full-fat cream cheese, cubed
• 1 cup strawberries, sliced, stems removed

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Instructions

1. Grease a 9×9-inch baking dish with butter. Spread the croissant bottoms along the dish.
2. Scatter the cream cheese cubes and sliced strawberries around the dish – on the croissant and in-between each croissant too. Place the croissant tops to effectively sandwich the cream cheese and strawberries.
3. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, half and half, vanilla extract, and sugar until well-combined. Pour the mixture over the croissants and into the baking dish. Press the croissant tops down gently to make sure they absorb the liquid.
4. Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for 45-55 minutes until the centre is set.
6. Serve with maple syrup, whipped cream, or a dollop of ice cream! (Or nothing at all, it’s already delicious.)

Notes

• Slightly stale croissants work best for this recipe.
• Cream cheese packs are usually 8oz, so you would only need half a standard pack.

• Prep Time: 20
• Cook Time: 50
• Category: Brunch
• Method: Baking
• Cuisine: French

Keywords: Strawberry Cream Cheese French Toast Bake, Stuffed French Toast,