Baked French Toast

I tried something a little different, and while it wasn't a total success, it is tasty enough to share. Plus, it's easy and a good way to use up bread that is about to go bad.

Start by throwing a few tablespoons of butter in a glass pan. Put this in the oven at 350 degrees while you prep the ingredients.

The hubby and I picked up this raisin pecan bread on a whim at HyVee, and it just wasn't quite what we'd hoped for. A little too dry for me, and too raisiny for him. I kind of knew I was going to turn this into a blog recipe when we bought it, but that's okay, too!

I cubed the bread and threw it into a bowl.

Then add some milk and eggs. Mix it up well. I found some similar recipes online, but none that were quite what I wanted. The thing I did learn is that the prep for this can be done a day ahead. It allows the bread to soak up all the Frenchiness, and you could do it when you plan to have company over.

Anyway, the butter should be melted by now. Butter makes everything tastier, and it eliminates the need to spray the pan.

I didn't want to add extra sugar to the mixture because my bread was already a little sweet, but I did want a nice sugared top. I've been buying this sugar at Costco, and I swear it tastes so much better. It can come out a little grainy in some recipes, but it's just perfect for topping desserts and mixing into tea.

A quarter cup worked out perfectly for me.

Now go make yourself some coffee while this bakes.

After about half an hour, I really wanted to eat this. I hoped that the liquid on top was just butter, but it's still eggy. Sadness!

Of course I never time anything, but this took a little over an hour to bake. Just keep checking it every 10 minutes until you don't get any raw egg on the poking knife.

It plates up kind of like a bread pudding. I made this yesterday and warmed some up today in the microwave with a little extra butter, and I liked it a lot better. In the attempt to make this not terribly unhealthy, I think I fell a little short of the result I dreamed of. So don't be afraid to finish this off with some extra sugar, butter, or maybe a drizzle of frosting.

Baked French Toast

1 loaf cinnamon raisin bread, cubed
6 eggs
1 cup milk
3 tbsp butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar

1. Melt butter in the bottom of a 9x9 glass baking dish.
2. Combine all other ingredients. Pour on top of the butter.
3. Bake at 350 degrees about an hour, or until a knife comes out clean.