We eat challah every Friday night in our house as part of celebrating Shabbat. Which means, that leftover challah is also a weekly thing in our house. You may ask yourself why there is leftovers, and I’m here to tell you it’s because of french toast. Even if it means we buy extra or make extra, leftover challah is key to this recipe!
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What is challah exactly?
Challah is an egg bread that is traditionally braided and eaten on Shabbat and other Jewish holidays. It’s texture is similar to brioche. It’s eggy and soft and oozes the feeling of home and tradition for Jewish people around the world.
Today however, you can buy a loaf of challah in most grocery stores including Trader Joes. You can also find frozen challah dough in many kosher sections of traditional grocery stores. Looking for a little bit more ambitious project? You can make your own. Here are a few recipes I like to use:
- Naomi Elberg’s instagram page has everything you need to know and this youtube video will walk you through it step-by-step
- Tori Avey’s site does a great job explaining the origins of challah
- Jamie Geller has a ton of different recipes for you to try out
We are HUGE french toast fans around here.
Probably because we love challah, probably because we love butter, mostly because it’s delicious. Almost every Sunday, there is a stack of french toast piled up high on the the stove. And every Sunday, somehow that stack quickly diminish before I’m done cooking the rest of the loaf (my people like to sneak food as a make it). I can’t lie, I eat it straight from the pan as well.
So, I found a way to take my french toast recipe and make into a baked french toast casserole. Don’t need to stand at the stove, and no chance of anyone sneaking a bit while it cooks 🙂
How do you make baked french toast?
You’ll start by tearing up whatever leftover challah you have into smallish pieces. If you have a little helper with you this is a great step for them to do.
Then you’ll mix up the custard mixture in a medium size bowl. First crack the eggs and whisk them together. Then whisk in the milk, vanilla and cinnamon sugar.
Spray a 9×13 glass dish liberally with baking spray and put the torn up challah into the dish. Then pour the custard mixture over the top being sure to press it down so that all of the challah is covered.
Now, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least two hours but overnight is ideal.
Can baked french toast serve a crowd?
This recipe works really well when you have guests coming for brunch (Mother’s Day, birthdays, friends in town) and want to hang with your guests instead of hanging at the stove.
Serve it with a lox or smoked fish plate, some fruit, and voila, a simple, easy and delicious brunch appears before your eyes.
However, this dish isn’t just great for brunch, but also makes a great option when you are serving breakfast for dinner (which is something we do often around here). You’ll see that we are doing it once a week this month if you check out my May menu.
Put this together the night before or first thing in the morning and then bake it when you get home. Simply serve with lox, veggies and dip and you’ve got a simple dinner on the table quickly.
Bonus Note: Want to just make regular french toast? Check out this post on Challah French Toast for step by step directions.
Simple Baked French Toast
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup milk
- 8 eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon sugar
- one loaf leftover challah or other bread
- for topping
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Prepare a glass baking dish by spraying with non-stick baking spray
- tear your challah into small pieces
- put the pieces of torn challah into the prepared baking dish
- whisk together the rest of the ingredients in a medium size bowl
- once whisked well, pour over the top of the challah, being sure to saturate the entire dish
- press down challah pieces if needed
- cover dish and let sit at least two hours but overnight is best in the fridge
- when ready to bake:
- preheat oven to 350 degrees
- make the topping by adding all ingredients to a small bowl and mixing with a fork until a sandy like consistency forms
- evenly distribute the topping over the entire top of the custard and bread mixture
- bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Uncover and bake another 10 minutes or so until the topping gets lightly browned.
- cool a few minutes before serving
- enjoy!
Notes
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