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With pumpkin puree and sourdough bread topped with a warmly spiced streusel topping, this Pumpkin French Toast Casserole is the perfect fall breakfast or brunch.
Why You’ll Love This Pumpkin French Toast Casserole
- Loaded with fall flavor. This French toast casserole is made with pumpkin puree and a handful of warm spices to ensure every bite is loaded with fall flavor.
- Streusel topping. The streusel topping is, hands-down, the best part of the recipe. It’s made with all the classic fall spices and the crunchy texture is a great contrast to the rich, custardy French toast.
- Make ahead. This is an overnight pumpkin French toast casserole recipe so you can do all of the “work” (it’s so easy!) the night before and just pop it in the oven in the morning.
- Breakfast or brunch. I love making this overnight pumpkin French toast for a special weekend breakfast with the kids but it’s also great for brunch too. Or even breakfast for dinner. So many options!
If you love French toast, you should also try my easy Overnight Cinnamon Baked French Toast Casserole recipe and Overnight Cinnamon Apple Baked French Toast Casserole.
Recipe Ingredients
You’ll need typical French toast ingredients along with some pumpkin and fall spices. Scroll down to the recipe card below for measurements.
Casserole
- Bread – You’ll want a pound-sized loaf to cut into chunks. Sourdough is my favorite, but French bread would work too.
- Eggs
- Milk – Whole milk is best, though 2% will work.
- Sugar – This recipe uses both white and brown sugar to sweeten the casserole.
- Vanilla Extract
- Cinnamon – Adds the warm flavor to the pumpkin French toast casserole.
- Pumpkin puree – Be sure to grab pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling.
Topping
- All-purpose flour
- Light brown sugar – Adds the sweetness and crunchy texture to the streusel.
- Spices – Cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger add the warm fall flavor to the topping.
- Salt
- Unsalted butter – Cut into small pieces.
Tips for Success
- Use the right bread. You want a thick, sturdy bread like sourdough or French bread. If you only have softer bread, like challah or brioche, then let the cubes sit out for a while to dry out before adding the custard.
- Do I need to make this in advance? Yes, this French toast casserole needs to set for several hours, which is why I recommend making it as an overnight casserole. Otherwise, the egg mixture won’t have time to absorb into the bread.
- Use pumpkin puree. Be sure to use pumpkin puree in this recipe, NOT pumpkin pie filling. The pie filling is already sweetened and spiced.
How Do I Know When It’s Done Baking?
The exact time it takes to bake this pumpkin French toast casserole will depend on how you prefer your French toast. Some people prefer it to be a bit more custard-y while others prefer it firm and dry. I recommend that you start checking around the 45-minute mark by pressing a knife into the middle and pushing it to the side just a bit to see how wet the center is.
Serving Suggestions
Pumpkin French toast casserole makes an excellent weekend breakfast or brunch – it could even be enjoyed as a Thanksgiving morning breakfast!
There are lots of ways to serve it. A few of my favorites are to serve it with syrup or add some pecans, powdered sugar, or fresh fruit.
Proper Storage
- Fridge. Allow the casserole to cool completely then cover the baking dish tightly with plastic wrap or transfer the leftovers to an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Freezer. You can also freeze your pumpkin French toast casserole. Once cooled, wrap the entire baking dish in two layers of plastic wrap or transfer individual slices to a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge.
- Reheat. The best way to reheat your French toast casserole is in the oven. Remove the plastic wrap from the baking dish or place individual pieces in a baking dish. Cover with foil and bake at 350F for 15 minutes or so, until heated through. Individual slices can also be reheated in the microwave.
More Breakfast Recipes To Try
Overnight Pumpkin French Toast Casserole
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 65 minutes
- Yield: 8-10 Servings
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
With pumpkin puree and sourdough bread topped with a warmly spiced streusel topping, this Pumpkin French Toast Casserole is the perfect fall breakfast or brunch.
Ingredients
CASSEROLE
- 1 loaf Sourdough Or French Bread
- 8 large eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 cup (104g) sugar
- 1/4 cup (36g) light brown sugar, loosely packed
- 2 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin puree
TOPPING
- 3/4 cup (98g) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup (169g) firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp ground cloves
- 1/8 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (112g) unsalted butter, cut in pieces
Instructions
- Grease a 9 x 13 casserole dish with butter.
- Cut bread into 1 inch chunks and spread evenly in the bottom of the casserole dish.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, sugars, vanilla, cinnamon and pumpkin. Pour the mixture evenly over the bread, getting all the bread wet from the mixture.
- Cover the casserole and store in fridge for several hours or overnight.
- To make the streusel topping (this can be made ahead and refrigerated), combine the flour, brown sugar, spices and salt. Add the butter and cut into the dry mixture until it all comes together to form a crumble. You can store this mixture in the fridge overnight if you’d like.
- When you’re ready to bake the casserole, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Crumble the streusel topping evenly over the top of the casserole, covering as much of it as you can.
- Bake for 45 minutes for a softer, more moist texture. Bake an hour or more for a firmer, less moist texture.
- When casserole is ready, serve warm with syrup and other toppings such as powdered sugar, pecans or fresh fruit.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Serving
- Calories: 532
- Sugar: 39.9 g
- Sodium: 482.4 mg
- Fat: 17 g
- Carbohydrates: 77 g
- Protein: 17.7 g
- Cholesterol: 180.5 mg
Categories
Enjoy!
This was awesome! I added more cinnamon because, why not! I also added some chopped walnuts to the topping. I will be making this again!
Awesome! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Have you tried this using Brioche bread?
I haven’t.
Hi Lindsay,
Love all your recipes but do have a question about this one. I’m wondering if you think I could bake, freeze and then reheat in oven. I’m not sure about the consistency since I haven’t made it yet. I’d like to take it on a boat trip for guests so would have to prepare ahead to make it easier. Appreciate your feedback.
I suppose that would be fine. You may just want to have it slightly under baked prior to freezing it so that when you reheat it later it doesn’t dry out.
Can you put cream cheese in with it?
I suppose. I haven’t ever tried it.
Can this be made ahead of time and then reheated?
It’s most ideal to reheat slices rather than the whole casserole so it doesn’t dry out.
Lindsay: This looks like I could eat breakfast all day. I have a niece who loves anything pumpkin. I will definitely send this to her, and make it myself.
Definitely! I hope you enjoy it!
Looks delicious! Can I use challah bread, it’s all I have right now.
Oh and if you can please check your email from me 🙂
I’ve never used challah bread, so I’m not entirely sure, but I’d think it’d be ok.
I made this a couple weeks ago with a loaf of honey wheat from the farmers market, and it was incredible. It seems versatile enough to use with pretty much any type of once-fluffy bread.
My roommate hates cinnamon, and since I couldn’t eat a whole batch by myself, I subbed out the cinnamon for cardamon and the pumpkin spice for cardamon, nutmeg, and cloves. I think I was converted to the non-cinnamon version!
Also, if you half the recipe (because when doing the apple version of this, it was still too much), if you forget to half the last ingredients (HAHAHAHA) the recipe is gracious enough not to notice. I almost doubled the milk (But it was skim), definitely doubled whipping cream and vanilla extract requirements. It was a bit rich…but it was at a consumable-over-a-weekend quantity and dosage even with the non-halved ingredients added. 🙂
Thanks so much for the lovely recipes!
I forgot to mention, but I forgot (read: too lazy to get off the couch) the night before, and let it soak for about 20 minutes the morning off. That seemed to be enough for a tasty concoction 😀
Do you need to let the casserole come to room temperature before baking?
Nope! You can bake it right away! 🙂
This was soooooooooooo good and my kids loved it! I did use almond milk instead of regular milk and it turned out fine (2 1/2 cups).
The topping is super tasty!!! But, how can you go wrong with sugar and butter mixed up? 🙂 I’ve been reheating it in the mornings for breakfast and it works fabulously.
Do you think almond milk would work in place of the milk and cream?
I haven’t tried it, but I think it’d be ok. It’s a bit thinner milk, so perhaps you’d need to add a little baking time.
I wonder if I could make this and freeze it. I bought everything to make it for Thanksgiving but didn’t get the opportunity. so I was going to wait and serve it for Christmas breakfast.
Great question. I haven’t ever tried it, but it might be fine. If it ends up with some extra moisture from freezing it, you could always bake it a touch longer.
Agh!! This looks amazing! I need to make this this weekend!
Made this French toast this morning and absolutely loved it! Made it last night and refrigerated it and finished it off this morning. The only thing I did differently is I sprinkled chopped pecans on top. This will definitely be my go to Fall breakfast recipe.
It came out looking so pretty and tasted…not. Seemed like too much egg and we were unable to eat more than a few bites 🙁
French toast is one of my addictions! Next to potatoes I think it has to be my favorite food! I always get it at Cracker Barrel with my family but I’ve shockingly never tried to make it on my own! But today I mentioned it to my soldier and he said he loved home-made French toast and I realized I had no idea how to make it! I feel like I haven’t lived life if I haven’t made French toast! Lol! This looks delicious and I can’t wait to give it a try!
PS: I nominated you for the Inspirational Blogger Award!! Congratulations!
https://jessiehomemaker.wordpress.com/2012/12/03/inspiring-blogger-award/
Oh man, you’ve been missing out! 🙂 Homemade french toast is a regular in our house. This casserole is a great way to give it a try too! Enjoy! And thank you so much for the nomination! It means a lot that someone actually finds me inspiring!
I made this for work and they LOVED it! I added coconut to the topping which was amazing. The only thing I would do would be to add more cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice to the egg/milk mixture! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Thanks Emily! I’m so glad you and your co-workers enjoyed it!