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    TaraTeaspoon » Recipes » Breakfast + Brunch

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    French Toast Bake with Cream Cheese and Raspberries

    Published: May 3, 2021 · Updated: May 17, 2021 by Tara Teaspoon

    Jump to Recipe Pin Recipe
    french toast bake
    french toast bake pin

    Raspberry French Toast Strata has tangy raspberries, cream cheese, and a sweet custard stuffed into light and airy brioche, all baked in one dish. Make this French toast bake with cream cheese the night before for easy entertaining!

    Raspberry French Toast Strata
    Jump to:
    • French Toast Strata with Raspberries
    • Raspberry Overnight French Toast
    • Overnight French toast with cream cheese:
    • French Toast Bake FAQs
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    French Toast Strata with Raspberries

    One of the best brunch dishes around has got to be the strata. Call it what you will, bread pudding, breakfast casserole, baked French toast. It goes by many names and comes in almost a million variations (I counted).

    My French toast strata is a raspberry and cream version and has always struck me as kind of lady-like breakfast strata. It's sweet, I think it's pretty, it has pink berries and a sprinkle of confectioners' sugar to make it nice.

    When to serve this berry strata recipe:

    I envision it being served at showers, ladies brunches, spring holiday occasions, and such. All very lady-like wouldn't you say? Plus it is pretty amazing for Mother's Day, Christmas, and New Year's.

    Raspberry French Toast Strata just for the ladies? No, way, I've seen many a manly man reach for seconds!

    Raspberry Overnight French Toast

    Besides being overwhelmingly delicious, one of the loveliest things about this French toast bake with cream cheese is that it can be made ahead. I love make-ahead breakfasts that you just have to throw in the oven before you jump in the shower! Like my World's Best Bran Muffins, which can be baked fresh every day.

    Once you assemble this french toast strata, you let it chill for 4 hours or overnight! Bake it in the morning or just before you take it to brunch. Letting it sit allows the bread to absorb all the egg custard so that it bakes without any dry spots.

    Overnight French toast with cream cheese:

    I adore the little burst of sweet cream cheese that gets dolloped throughout this baked stuffed French toast. Just a typical sweet custard is delicious, but those little bursts take it up a notch.

    I mix cream cheese with a little sugar to each little dollop of cream cheese tastes like cheesecake nestled between the custard and berries. I don't do an entire layer of cream cheese because I think that is too rich. The little dollops throughout are perfect, and lend themselves well to sitting overnight in the custard mixture.

    Raspberry French Toast Strata

    French Toast Bake FAQs

    What bread to use for overnight French toast?

    I use brioche or challah for this French toast strata. Both breads are enriched, which means they are made with a lot of eggs and butter. The texture holds up so well to a rich custard.
    You can use other bread if you like, but the brioche and challah add the best flavor. Find it at your bakery or grocery store if you can. The loaves may come in different shapes, like braids or loaves, but either is fine. You can even slice brioche rolls into slices if that's all you can find.

    What berries can you use for stuffed French toast?

    You can use other berries in this raspberry overnight French toast. Try mixed berries, or just blackberries or blueberries. The tender berries can hold up to sitting for 4 hours or overnight in the custard and bake and soften quickly in the allotted baking time.

    Simply sprinkle the finished strata with confectioners' sugar just before serving. I like to serve this slightly warm so the custard is not totally set. It gives it a little sauciness. And don't we all need a little more sauciness in our day?

    More special breakfast recipes:

    • Quick Bread Cinnamon Rolls (No Yeast Needed!)
    • Soft Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls
    • Savory Bacon Mushroom Strata Recipe
    • Southwest Frittata with Black Beans
    • Oven-Baked French Toast Fondue

    📖 Recipe

    Close up recipe image of Raspberry French Toast Strata

    French Toast Bake with Cream Cheese and Raspberries

    Tara Teaspoon
    An overnight French toast with cream cheese and juicy berries. This one-dish french toast strata saves you time and is super impressive
    4.80 from 10 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Work Time 30 minutes mins
    Cook Time 55 minutes mins
    Total Time 5 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
    Course Brunch
    Servings 6 to 8 servings

    Ingredients
      

    • 5 large eggs (beaten)
    • 1½ cups whole milk
    • 7 tablespoon granulated sugar (DIVIDED)
    • 5 oz cream cheese
    • Butter for Dish
    • ¾ loaf (15 oz) brioche or challah (thinly sliced and quartered)
    • 2 pints raspberries
    • Confectioners' sugar

    Instructions
     

    • Mix together the eggs, milk and 4 tablespoon sugar. In another bowl combine cream cheese with 1 tablespoon sugar. Butter a 2½-quart baking dish.
    • Quickly dip half of the brioche slices into the egg mixture and arrange them in a slightly overlapping layer on the bottom of the dish. Top with bits of half the cream cheese and half the raspberries. Repeat with remaining brioche, cream cheese, and raspberries. Pour the remaining egg mixture over the top and sprinkle the entire dish with 2 tablespoon sugar. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 4 hr or up to 24 hr.
    • Heat oven to 350ºF. Remove plastic wrap and bake strata until eggs are set and the top is golden, about 55 min; cover with foil if the top gets too brown. Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve warm or at room temperature.

    Notes

    • Make this the night before to save time in the morning. 
    • If you can't find a loaf of brioche or challah, slice brioche buns and use the slices.
    • You can use mixed berries or just blackberries or blueberries if desired.
    Make a savory strata: Bacon and Mushroom Strata recipe

    Nutrition

    Calories: 314kcalCarbohydrates: 37gProtein: 10gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 187mgSodium: 164mgPotassium: 409mgFiber: 10gSugar: 25gVitamin A: 694IUVitamin C: 41mgCalcium: 155mgIron: 2mg
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    Tara Teaspoon

    I’ve been in food publishing for over 25 years, creating recipes & food-styling for magazines, books, television, food brands, & advertising. With two cookbooks under my belt and thousands of my recipes at your fingertips, I hope you'll be inspired to spend more time in the kitchen!

    More about Tara

    Recipe by Tara. Photographer Yunhee Kim. Food Stylist Paul Grimes. Prop Stylist Michelle Wong. Originally published in LHJ 04

    Comments

      4.80 from 10 votes (8 ratings without comment)

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    1. courtney says

      September 09, 2016 at 1:11 pm

      What size casserole dish do you use?

      Reply
      • Tara says

        September 09, 2016 at 2:38 pm

        Hi Courtney! I used a 2 1/2 quart dish. Mine was rectangle, but you can use round, oval, anything you have or like. To measure the quart size of a baking dish or pan simply use a liquid measuring cup to pour liquid in a few cups at a time until it is full. My 2 1/2 quart dish is about 8-by-10 inches (and 2-inches deep).

        Reply
    2. Mary Bench says

      July 18, 2018 at 11:00 am

      You are after my heart with this one! Glorious!

      Reply
    3. Jenseena Cook says

      February 13, 2023 at 8:40 pm

      This is incredible!!! I made this for a brunch family get together and it was a huge hit, even among the pickiest eaters! It was even great the next day as a leftover. So, SO good!!!

      Reply
    french toast bake
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    Hi, I'm Tara Teaspoon!

    I’ve been sharing my original ideas for years. What began as a passion, turned into a publishing career as Food Editor at Martha Stewart Living and Ladies’ Home Journal magazines.

    Now I write cookbooks, and share delicious recipes and expert cooking tips with you here! Thanks for stopping by Tara Teaspoon!

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