Carrot Cake French Toast Casserole

5 from 2 votes

Published 3/20/2023

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This carrot cake French toast casserole has the dreamiest texture and is full of delicious carrot cake flavor. Each bite is made of little flecks of wholesome carrots, nuts, raisins, and sweet maple syrup.

Carrot cake french toast casserole on a plate with a fork.

Carrot Cake French Toast: A Perfect Breakfast

Level up your next Mother’s Day brunch, Easter morning, or typical weekday breakfast with this easy carrot cake overnight French toast casserole! I gotta tell ya, I’m an inner texture-freak, and this morning delight does NOT disappoint.

With a French toast mixture made up of French bread, freshly shredded carrots, raisins, walnuts, maple syrup, and warm spices, how could you not fall in love?

And to make things even better, we topped things off with a deliciously rich cream cheese frosting that compliments the carrot cake flavors beautifully. It’s simply the BEST.

Why you’ll love it!

It’s a one-pan meal that makes breakfast or brunch an easy clean-up.

It makes for an easy holiday meal. Make it ahead of time, so you are ready before your guests arrive.

It tastes FANTASTIC. Just like carrot cake!

Eggs, milk and cinnamon in a bowl for carrot cake french toast casserole.

Ingredients You’ll Need

French baguette: French baguettes are our bread of choice for French toast, so we just had to put it in this French toast casserole.
Carrots: we grated carrots from fresh for this recipe for the best results.
Raisins & walnuts: you can’t have a carrot cake casserole without raisins and walnuts! If you have picky eaters, though, you can omit.
Eggs: find the freshest eggs possible for your french toast casserole, and make sure you whisk the eggs thoroughly. There is nothing worse than a breakfast casserole with thick clumps of egg whites.
Almond milk: feel free to use whatever milk you would like! We prefer unsweetened almond milk or oat milk for this specific recipe.
Maple syrup: this liquid sweetener tastes great with the carrot cake flavors. Honey or agave work just as well, too.
Spices: we used a warm and tasty spice blend of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and kosher salt.
Cream cheese: a rich and creamy frosting that tastes amazing with this carrot cake French toast casserole.
Greek yogurt: greek yogurt is mixed with cream cheese to create a flavorful and fluffy frosting.

Carrot cake french toast casserole in a casserole dish.

How to Make Carrot Cake French Toast Casserole

PREPARE FILLING

Grease a 9×13-inch casserole dish and add the french baguette pieces, grated carrot, raisins, and chopped walnuts to the dish and toss. Set aside.

Next, crack the eggs into a large bowl and whisk them together. Add the milk, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt to the eggs and whisk to combine.

Then pour the egg mixture over the bread, mixing well. Use a spatula or your hands to push all the ingredients down into the egg mixture.

REST OVERNIGHT

Cover the casserole dish and place it in the refrigerator overnight.

Carrot cake french toast casserole mixed together in a casserole dish.

BAKE

Preheat the oven to 350ºF and remove the French toast bake from the refrigerator. Use your hands to submerge the bread in the egg mixture one more time before baking.

Cover with tin foil and bake at 350ºF for 30 minutes, covered. Remove the tin foil and bake for another 15-20 minutes.

PREPARE FROSTING

While the French toast bake is baking, prepare the cream cheese frosting.

Place all of the ingredients for the cream cheese frosting into a bowl and use an electric mixer to whip all the ingredients together until the frosting is smooth.

Pro Tip: If you like your cake frosting on the sweeter side, feel free to add more maple syrup to the frosting.

FROST, SERVE, + ENJOY

Let the bake sit for 10 minutes before serving. Then, top your delicious French toast casserole with a spread of cream cheese frosting. Enjoy!

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Let’s Go to Brunch!

While this carrot cake French toast casserole is filling enough on its own, it also tastes great paired with other classic brunch flavors. Next time you and your friends or family want to get together for a satisfying brunch, consider these great side options:

A spoon in a casserole dish of carrot cake french toast casserole.

FAQs

Can you make this recipe the day of?

Absolutely! Although this is an overnight French toast casserole recipe, you don’t have to let it sit overnight. Just make sure that it chills for at least 4 hours before baking.

Why is my French toast casserole soggy?

If your french toast bake is soggy, you either haven’t baked it long enough, or your bread-to-egg ratio is off! Try baking the french toast bake a bit longer covered with tin foil.

What is the best bread for French toast?

The best types of bread for making French toast are French baguette, brioche, and challah. This recipe calls for a French baguette, but you are more than welcome to try the other two options!

Serving of carrot cake french toast casserole on a plate with a fork.

Storage

Store your carrot cake French toast casserole in an airtight container (or in the casserole dish covered in plastic wrap) in the fridge for up to 3 days.

To freeze your French toast casserole, prepare and bake the french toast bake according to the recipe card. After your french toast bake has cooled completely, cover it with plastic wrap and aluminum foil. Place it in the freezer for up to 3 months.

To reheat: When you are ready to reheat your casserole, remove it from the freezer and take off the plastic wrap and tin foil. Bake at 350ºF for 15-25 minutes.