Baked Cranberry French Toast

After all that cooking for our Christmas the weekend before actual Christmas, I really had no intention of doing too much for a while.  Enough already.  But as is my habit, I was checking out the blogs I follow on my feedly and there popped up a really good looking recipe for Baked Cranberry French Toast.

And since I had most of the ingredients, I decided to get the couple things I was missing- well the only thing- which were eggs, and make it for breakfast for the MA and I on Christmas morning.  

The original link is here-  http://www.kristendukephotography.com/almond-cranberry-french-toast-casserole/

I changed a lot of things.  First of all, I did NOT let this soak all night long as I totally spaced putting it together the night before.  Besides I know that for a strata like this, you really don't have to let it sit for more than a half hour or so. I also used halved cranberries. Next,  the recipe called for a cream cheese icing, but I thought that was totally unnecessary....  and I was right.  I also cut the recipe in half, except I used 4 eggs instead of 3.  So yeah, I really made it Debi friendly.  I added some walnuts later to mine as the DH doesn't like nuts.....  doesn't that figure!  :)

SO!

Baked Cranberry French Toast

This is the full recipe, I cut it all in half, except I used 4 eggs

1 loaf of french bread (consider using a grainy or fruit and nut rustic bread, also!)

6 eggs

3 cups of milk or almond milk

2/3 cup of sugar

1 T cinnamon

1 cup of cranberries- halved

1/2 cup brown sugar

walnuts or almonds (optional)

Whisk together the eggs, milk, sugar and cinnamon.  Tear up bread and place in a buttered13 x 9 pan.  Toss the cranberries with the bread. Pour egg mixture over top and sprinkle brown sugar over breakfast.  Let sit for at least 30 minutes.  Top with chopped nuts if desired.  

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until the egg looks set.

Top with real maple syrup if desired.  But it is not necessary!  SO yummy.  What a nice Christmas breakfast!

**This was so easy to do, would be nice with many sorts of fruit instead of the cranberries.  But the tart cranberries were good!  

**I used 3 french bread rolls as there was no french bread to be found.