Complete Guide to Making Pumpkin French Toast Casserole
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Pumpkin French Toast Casserole is a popular dish among pumpkin lovers, and if you’re one of them you have to read our guide! You’ll learn what makes a good pumpkin French toast casserole with all the tips for bringing your dish to life.
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Pumpkin French Toast Casserole
Collaborative Feature
The whole ingredients list and instructions are in the printable recipe card at the end of this post. I highly recommend reading the blog post all the way through so that you don’t miss any tips or substitution suggestions, to ensure that you have all the ingredients and equipment required and understand the steps and timings involved. Images for illustrative purposes.
They may not seem like an obvious pair, but, believe it or not, pumpkin and French toast make for a tasty casserole!
Choosing the right bread is critical for pumpkin French toast casserole. Although you can use any type of bread, certain types work better for French toast.
Types of Bread to Use
The bread you use should be thick, fluffy, and buttery, the type of texture you get in cakes for events.
This kind of bread soaks up the egg, cream, and custard better than others, allowing all of the flavors to come together.
Thick fluffy bread also adds a soft, sponge-like texture to the dish, which contrasts perfectly with the crunch of the pecan topping.
With that in mind, what are your options? Well, the good news is, you have many. Check out this list:
- Brioche: Brioche bread is probably the most suitable bread to use for this casserole. The thick, rich texture provides great contrast with the pecan topping. Brioche will soak up the pumpkin/egg mixture very well to combine the flavors.
- Challah: Challah is a very eggy bread and has a slightly sweet flavor, which makes it perfect for a pumpkin French toast casserole. As with brioche, challah is rich and fluffy, allowing it to soak up all the flavors of this dish.
- Milk Bread: Japanese milk bread is another good option. Its flavor can add an extra element to your casserole and is rich enough to carry all of the flavors.
- French Bread: Baguettes are a cheaper alternative to the options given above. The crunchy exterior helps it hold its shape, and the soft doughy center soaks the pumpkin/egg mixture.
You don’t have to use all the types of bread above, of course. You may want to choose the one that’s most readily available to you.
Or you may want to just pick the type of bread you’re already familiar with.
Whatever you choose, don’t fret! Your pumpkin French toast casserole will be just as delicious.
Ingredients & Equipment Used In This Recipe
While most ingredients can be bought in grocery stores, for your convenience, any specialized or notable ingredients and equipment needed for this recipe have been linked to Amazon or other stores if available online.
The complete list of ALL ingredients with measurements is found on the recipe card at the end of this post.
Ingredients Needed For Pumpkin French Toast Casserole
- Dairy – Milk, Heavy Cream (Double Cream), Salted Butter
- Other Fresh Ingredients – Eggs
- Stale Bread Slices – brioche, challah, milk bread, or French bread work the best
- Granulated White Sugar
- Canned Pumpkin Purée – NOT pumpkin pie filling.
- Pure Vanilla Extract – always buy good vanilla as it makes a flavor difference.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice – if you can’t source it ready made you can make your own pumpkin spice with our recipe.
- Light Brown Sugar
- All-Purpose Flour – also known as Plain Flour
- Pecans
Equipment Needed For This Recipe
Recipes on The Purple Pumpkin Blog use cup measurements and/or weighted measurements. American cups and kitchen food scales are handy pieces of equipment to have in your kitchen as it means you’ll be able to make all of the different recipes on my blog. I try to give American, imperial, and metric measurements in my recipes. Please note, that you can mix cup measurements with weighted measures, but never mix imperial (pounds, ounces, pints, etc.,) with metric (kilograms, grams, liters, etc.,).
More Recipes Using Pumpkin
One of the hero ingredients in this dish is pumpkin, so here are some more recipes using the same:
- Coffee & Walnut Pumpkin Bread Recipe For Autumn Afternoon Tea
- Rich & Gooey Pumpkin Earthquake Cake with Chocolate Chips
- Easy To Make Pumpkin Chess Pie Recipe
- Bake Pumpkin Spice Scones with Cinnamon Glaze for Fall!
- Pumpkin Mocha Cupcakes with Pumpkin Spice Frosting
There are 500+ Recipes on The Purple Pumpkin Blog for you to enjoy – please feel free to check them out too.
How Do I Make Pumpkin French Toast Casserole?
The printable recipe card has the full ingredients list and instructions and can be found at the end of this post.
Follow these steps for the perfect casserole:
- Cut your bread into cubes and place them in a greased casserole dish. (You can use sliced bread if you prefer).
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, cream, sugar, pumpkin spice, pumpkin puree, and vanilla extract to make an amazing pumpkin custard.
- Pour the pumpkin custard mixture over the cubes of bread in the baking dish.
- Pour the mixture slowly, making sure that all of the bread cubes are soaked.
- Cover with cling film and refrigerate for at least three hours (preferably overnight) to allow the bread to soak up the custard.
Now that your casserole has been prepared, you need to make your pecan streusel topping.
Although it is not the main component of the dish, a good streusel topping can make all the difference when making pumpkin French toast casserole.
The extra crunch of the pecan crumb topping provides a pleasant contrast in textures when combined with the soft, creamy casserole.
So, if done right, your topping can help combine the different textures and flavors, bringing the whole dish together nicely.
With that in mind, let’s go through some tips to help you prepare your pecan streusel topping.
- Chop your pecans into small pieces so that these can be mixed with the other ingredients. The cold salted butter must also be diced.
- Place the pecans and butter into a mixing bowl along with the remaining ingredients – brown sugar, flour, and pumpkin pie spice.
- Use your hands to blend the ingredients together and break the butter down into small pieces. Mix until there are no more large chunks of butter. Make sure that all the pieces of pecan and butter are coated in flour and sugar.
Then, simply sprinkle your resulting mixture on top of your casserole immediately before baking.
Bake for 45–55 minutes at 350ºF/180ºC/Gas 4 until it becomes golden brown on top.
TIP! You can prepare the topping beforehand. However, do not add it to the casserole until just before you put the dish in the oven to bake. If added to the casserole and left overnight, the topping may mix into the casserole and lose its crunch.
Tips and Tricks to Make it Even Better!
Here are some extra ingredients you can add and different preparation techniques you can use to make this pumpkin French toast casserole even better.
- Refrigerate your casserole overnight before baking it as you would for a bread pudding. As mentioned above, three hours is the minimum time you should leave your casserole to set before baking. However, giving it 8 to 12 hours overnight allows extra time for the bread to soak up all the different flavors of the custard, making for a richer final product.
- You can also use pumpkin butter instead of pumpkin purée to mix things up a little. Pumpkin butter is a more concentrated pumpkin flavor than purée and so can add a sweeter element to your casserole if that’s what you like. This is a useful tip to experiment with if you’ve made this dish before and want to change it up.
- For extra presentation points, you could sprinkle some pumpkin seeds or cinnamon on top. Once you’ve added the topping, sprinkle pumpkin seeds or cinnamon on top before baking. A simple touch like this adds to any dish whether you’re cooking for friends or baking cakes.
- Another tip to impress guests is to bake smaller pumpkin French toast casseroles in individual dishes instead of one large casserole dish. That way, you can give all of your guests an individual dish.
As a final tip, while serving, you can add whipped cream and/or a drizzle of maple syrup for the ultimate sweet dish.
Or why not add a scoop of homemade no-churn vanilla ice cream – yummy!
Storing Leftover Pumpkin French Toast Casserole
You can serve up this casserole dish for breakfast, brunch, or dessert – and make it in advance too!
Here’s how to store it before and after cooking:
- To make it ahead, follow the recipe card to step 4 – cover and keep in the refrigerator up to one day in advance of baking and serving. You can also make the pecan streusel topping (steps 5 and 6) and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for the same amount of time. When ready to bake, follow the recipe from step 7.
- Storing Leftovers: Cool, transfer to an airtight container, and store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Freezing Leftovers:
- Cool completely and wrap in a double layer of plastic wrap and a layer of foil to help prevent freezer burn and keep out unwanted freezer smells. Place on a flat surface in the freezer.
- You can also cut the cooled casserole into individual portions and wrap each portion as above.
- Label with the name of the dish, thawing/reheating instructions, and the date to keep track of your food storage.
- The pumpkin French toast casserole will last in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- To defrost the casserole, unwrap it completely and place it in the fridge to thaw overnight (or at least 12 hours).
- Reheat in a microwave until hot, or in a 300°F/150°C/Gas 2 oven for about 20 minutes or until piping hot throughout.
- With all leftovers, make sure the food looks and smells okay before eating.
Pumpkin French Toast Casserole Recipe Card
The printable recipe card below has the full ingredients list and instructions. To save ink, any demonstration photos do not print.
Pumpkin French Toast Casserole with Pecan Streusel Topping
Pumpkin French Toast Casserole is a popular dish among pumpkin lovers, and if you're one of them here is a great recipe to try!
Ingredients
For the Casserole
- 6-7 cups stale bread cubes (about 1lb/450g)*
- 2 cups whole milk
- ½ cup heavy cream (double cream)
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup of granulated white sugar
- 1 cup pumpkin purée
- 2 tsps pure vanilla extract
- 1 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice
For the Topping
- ⅓ cup pecans
- ½ cup cold salted butter, diced
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup all-purpose flour (plain flour)
- 2 tsps pumpkin pie spice
Instructions
- Place the cubes of bread into a greased 9/13 casserole dish.
- Whisk together the milk, cream, eggs, sugar, pumpkin purée, vanilla extract, and pumpkin pie spice until combined.
- Slowly pour the pumpkin custard mixture over the cubes of bread making sure all of the bread is soaked.
- Cover with plastic wrap (cling film) and refrigerate for at least three hours (preferably overnight to allow the bread to soak up the custard.
- To make the pecan streusel topping, chop the pecans into small pieces and place them into a mixing bowl with the diced butter, brown sugar, flour, and pumpkin pie spice.
- Use your hands to blend the ingredients together and break the butter down into small pieces. Mixing until there are no more large chunks of butter. Ensure sure that all the pieces of pecan and butter are coated in flour, sugar, and spice.
- When ready to bake, Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C/Gas 4.
- Take the casserole out of the refrigerator and remove the plastic wrap.
- Sprinkle the streusel mixture over the top and place it in the center of the preheated oven.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes until golden brown.
- Serve with whipped cream and/or maple syrup. Enjoy!
Notes
*You can use sliced bread if you prefer.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1017Total Fat: 33gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 193mgSodium: 1210mgCarbohydrates: 154gFiber: 7gSugar: 53gProtein: 27g
This site uses Nutritionix to provide estimated nutrition. Nutritional information is always approximate and will depend on the quality of ingredients used and serving sizes. If you need exact calories and macros, please do your own calculations.
Some Final Tips!
So, there you have it, our comprehensive guide on how to make a delicious pumpkin French toast casserole.
- Make sure to have all of the ingredients at hand before you start.
- Always use day-old bread.
- Choose your bread wisely, too. Brioche and challah are great options, while French bread offers a cheaper alternative.
- Be sure to take the time to perfect your topping – it will help bring the whole dish together perfectly.
- To change things up a little, you can add some cinnamon or sprinkle some pumpkin seeds on top for presentation.
Follow these tips and your pumpkin French toast casserole will soon be a family (and friends’) favorite. Good luck!
Richard Fowler is the Head of Sponge and has been with the business since its inception, working his way up the ranks to Managing Director. He is responsible for leading and managing the operation of Sponge, from New Product Development to baking, packing, and trade operations – keeping quality and customer satisfaction at the forefront of our values.