Lemon Blueberry French Toast Casserole

It’s the weekend of Mother’s Day. The gifts are prepared for my mother and mother in law.

My daughters are not coming home. I won’t be spending time with them . I do have a date tonight with their father, so all is not lost. Love and family will still be celebrated.

I decided it’s a good day to make a French Toast Casserole for the two of us.

This is a recipe that I have made for years. I change the ingredients to fit the season and the company. It’s a basic custard with brioche bread. You could use a French bread or whatever you have on hand.

Let’s get to the ingredients that I’m using today.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Prepare a 9×13 casserole dish by wiping the the bottom and sides with vegetable oil.

juice and grated peel 1 of lemon

2 pints fresh blueberries (washed with cold water and set aside to drain)

1 tsp of cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

8 eggs

3/4 c of white sugar

2 c milk

2 c whipping cream

1 loaf French Brioche about 17-18 oz

1/2 stick cold unsalted butter

3 tbs turbinado sugar

Mix milk, cream, white sugar, eggs, salt, cinnamon, lemon juice, grated lemon peel in a large mixing bowl. Cut the loaf of brioche into cubes. Gently fold cubed bread into the custard mixture. Add one pint of the blueberries into the bread and custard mix and gently fold in the ingredients. Add half of the custard mixture into the prepared casserole dish. Take the second pint of blueberries and evenly disperse about half a pint onto the casserole. Then add the rest of the custard into the dish and cover the top with the rest of the blueberries.

For the the topping cut 1/2 cup of cold butter into small pieces and dot the top of the custard. Sprinkle the turbinado sugar over the French toast.

Bake casserole for 55 minutes.

Hint: I usually cover a cookie sheet with foil and put the casserole dish on it to bake the French Toast. The foil cookie sheet will catch any of the bubbling over from getting on the bottom of your oven which could cause a bit of a mess or even a little smoke. We don’t want that. So a little foil makes clean up quick and easy.

The French Toast is ready when the tip of a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

Let the casserole rest for about thirty minutes on a wire rack to cool and set up. It will cut easier after a rest.

Easy and delicious! Enjoy with a fresh cup of coffee or tea. Of course it a great addition to any brunch menu.