Caramel Cream Cheese French Toast (Printable)

Golden brioche layers with cream cheese and caramel, soaked overnight and baked until puffed and set.

# What You'll Need:

→ Bread & Dairy

01 - 1 loaf brioche or challah bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (approximately 18 oz)
02 - 8 oz cream cheese, softened
03 - 6 large eggs
04 - 1.5 cups whole milk
05 - 0.5 cup heavy cream
06 - 0.5 cup granulated sugar
07 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
08 - 0.5 teaspoon ground cinnamon
09 - Pinch of salt

→ Caramel Sauce

10 - 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
11 - 0.5 cup unsalted butter
12 - 0.25 cup heavy cream

→ Topping

13 - 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
14 - 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

# How-To Steps:

01 - In a saucepan over medium heat, melt brown sugar and butter, stirring constantly until smooth and bubbling, approximately 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in heavy cream until fully combined. Pour caramel sauce into the bottom of a greased 9x13-inch baking dish.
02 - Arrange half of the bread cubes evenly over the caramel layer in the baking dish.
03 - In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Drop spoonfuls of cream cheese over the bread layer, spreading gently while leaving some texture and dollops intact.
04 - Top with remaining bread cubes, distributing evenly across the casserole.
05 - In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, heavy cream, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt until smooth and well combined. Pour custard evenly over the bread and cream cheese layers, pressing gently to ensure thorough absorption.
06 - Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or for a minimum of 6 hours to allow bread to absorb the custard completely.
07 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove casserole from refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes before baking.
08 - In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over the casserole surface.
09 - Bake uncovered for 40-45 minutes, or until puffed, golden brown, and set in the center. If browning too quickly, tent loosely with aluminum foil.
10 - Allow casserole to cool for 10 minutes before serving. Serve warm, optionally accompanied with additional caramel sauce or fresh berries.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • You can prep it entirely the night before, which means you actually get to enjoy your guests instead of flipping toast at the stove.
  • That golden-brown top with pockets of caramel hitting your teeth is the kind of decadent that doesn't require a culinary degree to pull off.
  • Everyone assumes you woke up at 5 AM perfecting this when really you were sleeping while it soaked.
02 -
  • Stale bread is actually your friend here—fresh bread dissolves into mush because it has too much moisture, while day-old bread keeps its structure while soaking up custard.
  • Don't skip the overnight chilling; I learned this the hard way when I tried to bake it after just 3 hours and ended up with crispy bread on top and barely-soaked cubes underneath.
  • Softening that cream cheese actually matters; cold cream cheese doesn't spread into pockets and you'll get bitter cold streaks in otherwise creamy bites.
03 -
  • Assemble this the night before in the exact baking dish you'll bake it in—no transferring, no excuses—and your morning becomes effortless.
  • If your oven runs hot, that foil tent isn't optional; keeping an eye on browning takes two seconds and saves the whole dish from a burnt top with an undercooked center.
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