Gluten-Free French Toast Casserole with Butter-Pecan Maple Syrup
Try this Gluten-Free French Toast Casserole with Butter-Pecan Maple Syrup recipe
Try this Gluten-Free French Toast Casserole with Butter-Pecan Maple Syrup recipe
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 6 large eggs
- 1/4 cup butter (or vegan butter)
- 3/4 cup fisher naturals pecan halves roughly chopped
- 1-1/2 cups pure maple syrup (not pancake syrup)
- 18 oz loaf gluten-free bread (i used canyon bakehouse mo
- 2 cups milk any kind (i used unsweetened almond milk)
- 1/2 cup butter-pecan maple syrup (see recipe above)
- 1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- fresh berries for topping optional
- Carbohydrate 0.690433333692641 g
- Cholesterol 282 mg
- Fat 6.62750666666837 g
- Fiber 0 g
- Protein 8.38750666666837 g
- Saturated Fat 2.06614000000028 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (125g)
- Sodium 93.459333333589 mg
- Sugar 0.690433333692641 g
- Trans Fat 1.11183733333436 g
- Calories 99 calories
Step-by-step
- For the Butter-Pecan Maple Syrup: Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add chopped pecans then cook, stirring occasionally, until pecans are light golden brown, 8-10 minutes. Add maple syrup then stir to combine and turn off the heat. Let syrup sit and infuse while preparing the rest of the casserole.
- For the French Toast Casserole: Spray a 9x13” baking dish with nonstick spray then set aside. Trim away any tough crusts from the bread slices then slice into bite-sized cubes and arrange in the bottom of prepared baking dish.
- In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, 1/2 cup Butter-Pecan Maple Syrup, vanilla and cinnamon until smooth then pour over the cubed bread and press down with a spatula to ensure all the bread is soaked. Cover with foil then refrigerate for 2-15 hours. Refrigerate remaining Butter-Pecan Maple Syrup. (I leave it in the saucepan with a lid on or transfer to a mason jar with a lid.)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pull the baking dish out of the refrigerator to warm up a bit then gently press on the bread cubes again with a spatula to evenly distribute the egg mixture - do not pack bread cubes down though. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the eggs are set in the center and the top is golden brown and slightly crispy. Check the casserole around the 30 minute mark - if the top is browning too quickly, place a piece of foil on top of the baking dish then continue baking.
- Let casserole cool for 10 minutes before slicing. Warm remaining Butter-Pecan Maple Syrup then serve with fresh berries, if using.
Allowing the cubed bread and custard to rest in the refrigerator for two to fifteen hours is the single step that determines whether the dish succeeds or fails. Skipping this hydration window leaves the gluten-free structure brittle and dry internally, because denser specialty loaves require extended contact time to absorb liquids evenly. Stale bread functions best here, possessing less residual moisture and a firmer crumb that resists turning entirely mushy during the long soak.
Toasting the chopped pecans in melted butter over medium heat for eight to ten minutes releases their essential oils before the maple syrup goes into the saucepan. Watch the pan closely during this phase because nuts transition rapidly from golden brown to scorched. Turning off the heat immediately after adding the syrup prevents the sugars from crystallizing too early, leaving the mixture fluid enough to infuse while the casserole rests.
Assessing doneness visually replaces any need for a thermometer when working with baked custard dishes. Press the center of the surface gently after forty to forty-five minutes in a 350-degree oven; the eggs should feel completely set rather than fluid, and the uppermost bread edges ought to show a light crispness. Checking the dish at the thirty-minute mark allows time to drape a loose sheet of foil over the top if the browning accelerates too quickly.
Allowing the baked dish to rest for ten minutes off the heat stabilizes the internal crumb structure before slicing. Portioning the casserole while piping hot causes the slices to crumble apart rather than hold their shape on the plate. Reheating the reserved syrup gently on the stove finishes the preparation right before serving alongside fresh berries.
