crème brûlée french toast

Hands down, this is my #1 favorite breakfast food. I could have it at least once a week, and I would, if only someone else would eat it with me. Though it saddens me that The Family generally prefers savory to sweet in the AM, my hips are thanking them! The french toast casserole generally shows up once a year at a brunch. The London Brother visit spurred me to make it last week.

The dish is a wonderful one, working best if prepped the night beforehand. I always use challah, a Jewish braided egg bread, though you can use french or italian bread if challah is not readily available.

The bread poofs up quite a bit towards the end of the cooking time, but it deflates when taken out of the oven.

Butter, brown sugar and a bit of corn syrup create the "crème brûlée"; the standard egg/dairy combo is used for the bread base. The combination of creamy, custardy, caramelly goodness is irresistibly addictive. The LB consumed  half the pan. The Gluten-intolerant Daughter implored me to make some more, citing the usage of Tums to alleviate whatever discomfort she was feeling.

I'm thinking that I'll be seeing this dish again sooner rather later now that I have a new convert.

Crème Brûlée French Toast

2 tablespoons corn syrup
½ cup butter
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
pinch of salt
1 loaf challah or french bread, thickly sliced
5 eggs
1½ cups half & half
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon Grand Marnier
¼ teaspoon salt

In a small saucepan, combine the corn syrup butter, brown sugar and pinch of salt. Simmer until syrupy. Pour into a 9 x 13-inch pan.

Place the bread slices on top of the caramel syrup in the pan. In a bowl, beat the eggs, half & half, vanilla, liquer and salt. Pour evenly over the bread. Cover and let refrigerate overnight. In the morning, let the casserole sit at room temperature while the oven preheats. Bake at 350º F uncovered for 35-45 minutes.