I made this Savory Baked French Toast recipe because I don’t have the sweetest tooth, as you’ll know by my excessive love for meat and who says French toast should only be enjoyed with maple syrup and sugar? I love mine baked, with caramelized onions, crispy bacon bits and massives of grated Cheddar cheese, oozing and melting all over. I like a drop of mustard powder in my mix too, but you can leave it out if that’s not your taste. You’ll be surprised with this one!
To make Savory Baked French Toast, you will need the following ingredients:
In a large skillet over medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of oil and add 2 thinly sliced onions. Sauté for about 5 minutes.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and add ½ teaspoon of fresh thyme. Cook for about 20-25 minutes until the onions begin to caramelize. If needed, lower the setting to low for a slower cook. Scrape out the onions with all the bits and set aside.
In the same skillet over medium-high heat, add 1 teaspoon of oil if needed and then add about 300 g of diced bacon. Reserve 2 tablespoons of uncooked bacon for the topping. Cook until browned then drain on a towel and set aside.
In a large bowl whisk 6 eggs with 1¼ cups of milk, ½ teaspoon of mustard powder, if using, ¼ teaspoon of salt and pepper to taste until well combined.
In a large ziplock bag, place 7 cups of 1-inch cut baguette pieces and pour the prepared egg mixture over. Add 1½ cups of Cheddar cheese, cooked bacon and the caramelized onions. Gently massage the egg into the bread pieces.
Refrigerate for about 30 minutes to overnight, to soak.
Preheat the oven to 350 °F and grease an 8x9-inch cake tin or medium casserole dish with cooking spray.
Pour the soak bread mixture into the prepared baking dish and gently press down, to compress. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of uncooked bacon over and top with the remaining ½ cup of Cheddar cheese, all over.
Loosely cover the dish with some aluminum foil and bake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes then remove the cover and cook for another 20 minutes until golden and bubbling.
Rest for 5 minutes before removing, garnishing with parsley and black pepper and then slicing. Enjoy!
Were you surprised this Savory Baked French Toast was like no other? Let us know what you loved most about this recipe. Take some pics and post them online then tag us at #cookmerecipes for us to see what you’re up to!
