French Toast Casserole

Look who followed me to Tampa!!!

MEGANERD!!!!

Megan is a Tampa native, but was in Orlando for school and then work. She has temporarily moved back to Tampa to live with her family as she figures out the next stage in her life.

(mental note – need to be better at removing eye liner before bed)

I was so excited that Megan moved to Tampa that I didn’t even wait a full 24 hours before hopping in the car and meeting her for a run at her new digs. 🙂

We ran a loop in her neighborhood that took us back to her house in 6 miles.

Then I bid Megan adieu and went back out for four more miles to bring me to an even 10 for the day.

Thumbs up for finishing 10 miles before 9:00 on a Sunday morning. 🙂

Before I left to meet Megan this morning I had a crazy idea to turn yesterday’s day old whole baguette into a French Toast Casserole.

Fun Fact: When I was in 8th grade I won the Home Economics award. My parents were very proud. 🙂

One of the dishes that stood out to me in that Home Ec class was making French Toast Casserole. It was really simple. We mixed a couple of eggs, some vanilla extra, cinnamon, sugar, and milk then poured it over some stale bread and baked it for 45 minutes.

I didn’t remember the exact recipe this morning, so I improvised.

• 1 Stale Baguette
• 3 Eggs
• 1/2 cup Milk
• 1 T Vanilla Extract
• 1 T Cinnamon
• 2 T Sugar
• 1/4 cup of Pumpkin
• 1/4 cup Raisins

Tear the baguette in to bite size pieces and added to a medium casserole dish. Combine the eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, sugar, pumpkin, and raisins in a separate bowl and whisk until combined. Pour mix over the bread and put in fridge for at least two hours or overnight. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

I prepped it before my run and called Derek on the way home to have him place the casserole in the oven. When I arrived home the delicious aroma of cinnamon and pumpkin filled the house.

Having Derek place in the oven before I got home, gave me just enough time to shower and prep a topping before breakfast was ready.

I created a simple topping with some fresh strawberries and a peach that I combined with blackberry jam and microwaved until everything was hot and runny. A bit of vanilla yogurt on top completed the meal. 🙂

This was a very sweet breakfast, but it was also very fun. The crusty baguette gave the dish a hearty texture that regular bread could not replicate. I enjoyed every bite. 🙂

Sunday is a fun day. Fun as in we’re hanging shelves and curtains. Probably more fun to me than Derek, but it’s still fun. 😉