Valentine’s Baked French Toast
This baked French Toast recipe is so simple to make and is great for little chefs to help with. Let them cut out the heart shapes from the bread, crack the eggs, use the whisk and sprinkle the berries. You can make it the day before too - pop it in the fridge overnight and bake it in the oven when you wake up.
Prep time
25 mins
Cook time
50mins
Serves
4
Difficulty
Easy
- Butter, for greasing
- 1 loaf of day old sliced white bread (about 800 g)
- 5 eggs
- 400 ml whole milk
- 5 tbsp honey or maple syrup
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 75g raspberries
- 75g blueberries
- 30g flaked almonds (optional)
- A large heart cutter - about 11 cm diameter
- Baking dish - about 27 cm by 21 cm
To serve
- Extra fresh berries, honey or maple syrup & a dollop of Greek yoghurt
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Set aside the two end pieces from the loaf of bread then cut out a large heart shape from each piece of bread using the cutter. You should get about 14 heart shaped pieces. Keep the offcuts and the end pieces from the loaf to make breadcrumbs for the freezer.
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To make the egg mix: crack the eggs into a large jug and whisk them gently. Add the whole milk, honey or maple syrup, cinnamon and vanilla extract and whisk again to form an even mix.
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Gently butter your baking dish then lay 8 of the bread pieces into the base of the dish, overlapping them slightly. Pour about half the egg mix over the top, pressing the pieces of bread down lightly with a fork to ensure they soak it up evenly.
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Sprinkle two thirds of the raspberries and blueberries evenly over the dish.
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Lay the remaining pieces of bread (about 6 pieces) over the top of berries, then pour the rest of the egg mix on top. Press down lightly with a fork again to allow the bread to soak up the mix evenly.
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Sprinkle the remaining fresh berries and the flaked almonds (if using) over the top.
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Cover and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
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When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 170 °C fan and bake the French toast for about 40-50 minutes until the bread is golden brown on the top and the egg mix is set.
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Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 15 minutes before serving with some extra fresh berries, a dollop of yogurt and an extra drizzle of honey or maple syrup.
Any leftovers can be kept in the fridge for up to 2 days and eaten cold, or reheated in a warm oven for around 10 minutes or the microwave for about 1 minute.
Top Tip!
Use the leftover bread cuttings and end pieces to make breadcrumbs to pop in the freezer. You can use them in our:
Or use to top a Macaroni Cheese for your little one made with our Hidden Veg Cheese Sauce
