How To Make French Toast Casserole With Salted Frosted Flakes

When my boys were little I remember making a French Toast Casserole for Christmas morning. I would throw it together the night before and let it hang out in the fridge overnight. Christmas morning all I needed to do was pop it in the oven while the kids tore through the presents under the tree. Its cinnamony goodness would fill the house as it baked and I had no trouble getting the kids to the table. They would clamor for seconds, drowning their servings in pools of maple syrup, literally devouring it after their Christmas morning present opening frenzy.

When I volunteered to host a group of ladies for brunch I wanted to serve up something that didn’t require spending a lot of time in the kitchen. I wanted something I could pull out of the oven piping hot once everyone arrived so I could relax and enjoy myself too. So my hunt began for that recipe I made all those years ago. Try as I might I could not find it anywhere…sigh. It was back in the olden days, before Pinterest, so I know it’s written down on a piece of paper somewhere.

Jump to Recipe

I scoured the internet and found several recipes on Pinterest but none of them had a crunchy topping. I remember topping the casserole with buttery cornflakes that added a crunchy topping and was such a wonderful contrast to the custardy filling. I kept coming across Chrissy Teigen’s French Toast Casserole With Salted Frosted Flakes on Pinterest. It had loads and loads of great reviews and came pretty darn close to the recipe I remember using all those years ago. So I decided to give it a try.

Start by greasing a 13×9 inch deep sided casserole dish. Set a side.

Cut up a loaf of French bread into 1 inch sized cubes. Place in an even layer in the prepared casserole dish.

TIP: Use a slightly stale loaf of bread for best results.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs. 

Add heavy cream, milk, rum, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, vanilla extract and nutmeg.

TIP: I used a white Bacardi rum, but for added flavor you could use a dark or spiced rum. The rum is critical, it adds a lovely toffee flavor to the custardy filling that makes this casserole utterly delicious. If you are worried about the alcohol, don’t worry, it will cook off as it bakes in the oven, leaving behind loads of flavor.

TIP: For the best flavor use freshly grated nutmeg.

Whisk to combine all the ingredients.

Pour egg mixture over the cubed French bread in the casserole dish.

Use your hand to push bread cubes down into the egg mixture saturating all the cubed pieces of bread.

Cover casserole dish with foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning take casserole dish out of the fridge and allow it to sit on the counter, covered, for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350℉.

While oven preheats, combine Frosted Flakes, melted butter and salt in a large bowl. Stir to coat cereal flakes with the melted butter 

Remove foil from casserole dish.

Spread buttered cereal evenly over the egg soaked bread cubes in the casserole dish.

Bake for 60-65 minutes until cereal is toasted golden brown and casserole is heated through.

Serve with your favorite French toast toppings; maple syrup, chopped nuts, fresh fruit, whipped cream.

I have to agree with all the positive reviews online, this casserole is phenomenal!!! The addition of rum in the custard mixture gives this casserole the best most delectably delicious toffee flavor! The crunchy, sweet & salty topping adds a lovely contrast of textures to the creamy, custardy filling. This was a HUGE hit with all my lady friends, Everyone cleaned their plates and I noticed several ladies go back for a second helping. You know a recipe is a big hit when almost everyone goes back for seconds. This easy to make ahead casserole will be making an appearance at the table often in the future for sure! It will be perfect for an Easter brunch meal. Great for feeding a crowd with a minimum of fuss. DELICIOUS!!!

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