Maple Syrup Casserole Made in Heaven

I added a few raisins between the layers of bread, and mixed some cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg to the egg-milk-syrup mixture ... This is soooooooooooooo Good! Thanks Dawn for a fabulous recipe, too bad the rating stars only go to 5, cause this one gets a 10 in my book.

I have had the pleasure of having this recipe for about a year. I used to make it only for brunches, but everyone loved it so much, I now make it and keep it in the fridge to be heated up in individual servings by anyone needing a quick breakfast. Much better than those toaster things and better for you. It is gone pretty quickly since they eat it after school, after work and for dessert. An all around favorite. I have put raisins in it and added nutmeg also apples cut in small pieces. The blueberry sounds good, I'll give that a try. Everyone loves this one, it is easy and good a real keeper. In reading some reviews that have had mushy results. I don't leave the bread whole, I cut it up into bite size pieces. The first time I made it, it was a little mushy, so I put it into the micro to firm it up. It came out fine, I found that if I cut up the bread, it got firm quicker, I don't like wet french toast either. Hope this helps.

This is an awsome recipe, I had something similar at a bed and breakfast in Amana Iowa. They also had a apple/maple surup to drizzle over it. I made this for my MOMS Club brunch and it got rave reveiws!

I prepared this recipe last night and we ate it this morning. It really was delicious - the perfect brunch with a fresh cup of coffee. However, I made one change: I added only 1 cup of maple syrup. Adding more than that will make it cloyingly sweet. It still baked perfectly for 45 minutes at 375. The author did not state whether to cover it or not, I chose not to and it was just perfect - will definately make again. Thank you!

I served this at Easter brunch and my family loved it! Everyone couldn’t wait to dig in, as it looked very pretty and impressive as I took it out of the oven. It puffed up and was nice and golden brown. I only used 1.5 cups of syrup (that's all I had) and it was plenty sweet, no one added any to their serving. I also choose not to spread the cream cheese as others had suggested and was glad…for one it made it easier to make and second I thought it made it look prettier. I also sprinkled cinnamon on each of the layers. I was worried that it would be soggy as others had complained but mine turned out more what I would call fluffy, not soggy. Also, as for the portions… recipe said it served 8 but with 5 adults and 2 kids we only ate a little less than half. Of course we had other items but I will only make half for the same number of people next time. I will definitely make this again and so will some of the guest I served it to.

I wish we would have read the reviews before we made this recipe...I believe it would have turned out better if we would have spread the cream cheese on the french bread. This recipe was delicious. It tasted more like a dessert than a meal. It was very sweet. I will make it again, but I will be sure to have something else to go with it.

Good, but...in my opinion: too many eggs!! They overpowered the other flavors in many places. I'll make this again, but with 10 eggs, not 12.

I too, wish I had read the reviews prior to preparing this dish for Easter brunch. It was very mushy in the middle, too crispy around the edges and bottom and had little flavor. No one in my family was thrilled with this one, in fact many good humored jokes were made at it's expense. Thankfully I halved the recipe, less to throw out.

This is good only right out of the oven and you must spread cream cheese on every slice and I also added apricot jam to every slice. This is somewhat like a bread pudding. You have to like the semi mushy texture in the middle due to the egg mixture and bread. We liked it right out of the oven, the next day we did not like it at all. This meal makes alot of casserole! Too much for a hearty family of five. So Sorry..... We as a family of 5 did not like this one at all. We vote recipies as a family to bump it or dump it and this one was unanimous to dump it.

The rating is more out of personal preference. If you like bread-pudding type recipes, you'll probably enjoy this. Oddly enough, with all of this syrup, one of the consumers of the dish commented that he would have liked some more syrup to put on top.

I wasn't very impressed with this recipe. I didn't find it very flavourful at all, and I had even used flavoured cream cheese (cinnamon & brown sugar). My boyfriend didn't mind it, but he wasn't quite thrilled either.

I thought it was very yummy. I had to cook it longer because it was not cooked in the middle. I used cinnamon. It tasted like bread pudding. I thought the clumps of cream cheese were delicious! Overall, I was happy with it.

I was disappointed with this recipe. I usually read the reveiws before trying out a recipe but with this one I didn't. I probably wouldn't have tried it. The bread was very mushy. And the taste was bland. My children eat about anything and didn't care for this one either.

I didn't care for the cream cheese in this recipe & I love cream cheese. Other than that it was good.

Wow! What an excellent recipe. All I added was the cinnamon, cloves & nutmeg. Kind of a cross between french toast & bread pudding.

Served this recipe to family and they loved it! Just lik French Toast - but easier! - thank you

I do have to admit, first off, that I'm basing this review on the reactions of others - I don't eat eggs because I just don't like the taste, so I don't eat french toast either. But, I made this for my annual Girlfriend's Holiday Brunch and it was raved over! I've passed this recipe on to others by popular demand...it's really easy to put together, too. Just a suggestion but, to get the best maple flavor, use grade-B syrup. It's somewhat less than the higher grades and has a deeper, richer flavor that's best for cooking.

I made this for family when we were visiting and it was a hit! Real maple syrup seems to be a key. I will be sure to use a bit more than 1# of bread next time, this one came out a bit mushy in the middle - but delicious none-the-less. Try spooning the egg mixture onto the bread to prevent it running over the edge. I would love to make it with craisons and almonds next time - and the spice recommendations from previous reviews sound yummy, too. We actually LIKED the "clumps" of cream cheese - came out rather like a cream cheese danish. I've also had good luck with using whipped cream cheese, and spreading it on the slices of bread before cutting it into cubes. I'll be making this for one of our next faculty meetings, they'll love it!

This recipe was too easy to taste so good! I cannot eat sugar, so here is how I altered the recipe: I used 1/3 less fat cream cheese, skim milk, 6 boxes of egg scramblers and sugar free maple flavored syrup. This version cut the fat and cholesterol also. Served it with additional sugar free syrup on the side. Sherry

I thought this was pretty good - it was a little soggy - but maybe I didn't cook it long enough? I did add cinnamon for the flavour and I'm glad I did. I would also spread the cream cheese on the bread next time.

I cut the recipe in half and used a smaller casserole dish and sprinkled cinnamon over each slice of bread. The top and bottom were nicely toasted but the center was too mushy. We like our french toast pretty firm. The overall flavor was good but it was too soggy. If I were to try it again, it would use a larger pan and not layer it as high.

Definitely a keeper for our family. I've made this recipe twice - the first time I followed the recipe precisely, the second time I added an extra 1/2 cup of syrup and served with syrup on the side. We enjoyed the second time much, much more. Also, the first time we used maple syrup as called for in the recipe - so expensive and not worth it. Regular breakfast syrup tastes significantly better and costs a lot less.

I served this delicious recipe at my seniors citizens coffee hour. It literally disappeared in minutes. I added some raspberry jam to the creamcheese and cut back a little on the syrup, also added cinnamon to the batter. I sprayed the pan with Pam before layering. Got many requests for the recipe. Will definitely serve this many, many times. It will be a new treat for my grandchildren when the visit. THANKS Dawn

ive made this twice so far once turned out really good once just ok. i got better results when i used real maple syrup rather than the imitation syrup. i will make it again

Surprisingly delicious! Everyone loved it. Best part was being able to make it ahead. I'd make it next time in a deeper casserole dish so more of the bread soaked in the liquid. This time the bread exposed to the heat was crunchy, but that added texture.

Dessert for breakfast! This was super yummy, but I learned a couple of extras. Break the bread into 1 inch pieces, add lots of fun spices like cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and don't layer it too high. Mine was a little mushy in the middle, which didn't bother my friends, but I had to bake it quite a bit longer than instructed. Overall, yummy!

I was so excited to try this recipe. I followed the recipe exactly as it said and it came out totally gross. I don't know what I did wrong but mine came out mushy all throughout and very bland. The top rose up real high and fluffy..looked great but tasted awful..anyone know what could have been done wrong?? Help?

Very few recipes get five stars from me but this one deserves six! Very good as written, needs only to bake longer than 45 minutes. I did cover the dish with foil for 45 minutes then baked about another 30 minutes. I'm happy I didn't read the reviews or I would have missed out on a great recipe!

I don't normally take the time to review recipes, but I didn't want anyone else to serve this up at a big family gathering and have NOONE like it except a little 3 year old that would eat anything. First of all, spreading the cream cheese does seem important so you don't have clumps. Second, it was a mushy texture that was pretty gross. Finally, it really needed maple syrup served with it to make it taste edible. I thought with 2 cups in the recipe it would be sweet enough, but everyone added more syrup. I was so excited to try a dish you could make the night before, but next time I'll remember my rule not to test new recipes when I'm having company.

This came out mushy like bread pudding. I wish I had read the reviews before I tried making it. I can't believe it is in my cookbook! It is nothing like french toast.

BIG HIT !!!! I did add some rasins and a little cinnamon and nutmeg.Everyone had seconds (and some had thirds) .... and I could lay money my husband is back in the kitchen STILL walking by and taking a spoonfull here and there. THANK YOU for the recipe!!

I made this for the kids and my husband they loved this the only thing i need to do next time is spread the cream cheese around.

not so great for us--I liked it alright, but not a big hit with the fam.

this worked for me. there are only 2 of us so i used a much smaller dish (scaled down the recipe) and because bread whole wouldn't fit well in the round dish i spread the cream cheese on the bread and cubed it. i used whole wheat bread. i always have cinnamon and vanilla in my french toast so i added that too. yes it is very moist, but it is wonderful. i cut the temp. down to 350 with the smaller dish, cooked it for 40 min. uncovered and let it sit for 5 min. would like to add blueberries next time.

Every year we have friends & their kids over for the weekend, and this has become our standard breakfast. It is SO good! Adults and kids just LOVE it! It does take a while to cook - but it is well worth the effort for me. I have been making it for years, and this year was thinking of adding a layer of fruit for a little twist. Thanks for sharing!

not great...I would look elsewhere for a breakfast casserole. Dry and nothing special.

Absolutely delicious! It was so easy to make the night before and then just pop in the oven. So light and sweet and everyone loved it, even my hard-to-please grandmother. The leftovers were even better the next day. The only thing I would do differently is spread the cream cheese on the bread, even though the recipe says you don't have to.

Soggy

I gave this recipe 3 stars strictly for the idea. The idea is great, now someone just needs to get it to work! After reading the reviews I had to change this recipe so much to make it work I won't be making it again. I added cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves just to give it "some" taste.

It was VERY bland and I had to cook it 20 minutes longer because it was not set after 45. My husband said this was the first thing I've made that he just could not eat. Doesn't taste like french toast at all.

A very good breakfast casserole - really sticks to the ribs! Next time I will spread softened cream cheese on each slice of bread. This is a keeper!

What a wonderful breakfast. Our family did like to drizzle additional maple syrup over the top for extra sweetness. This is one I will certainly make for my next brunch get together!

So, so good. I cut the recipe in half for my 8 inch square pan, and glad I had more than half a loaf of bread to use up (is it me, or are the loaves getting skinnier and smaller...). I did use grade B syrup from Trader Joe's, we did not find this recipe too sweet and I loved the cream cheese. I served with cranberry relish for a topping, it was a great combo :)

This had the consistency of a bread pudding...which I'm not a fan of. However, I had several people comment that they really liked it and one that wanted the recipe. SO, I guess it's a hit for some people, just not me.

Meh. This was pretty okay. It needed something. I'm not really sure what. I might make it again, but I would definitely not add the cream cheese. Even though I buttered it onto the bread, it still felt like I kept getting big bites of cream cheese. I think next time, I would omit the maple syrup, add a lot of brown sugar instead, and then chuck in some cinnamon.

I cooked this for a brunch we were having and everyone left raving. It ended up taking twice as long to cook then the recipe said, but turned out great. Not for someone without a sweet tooth. Would cook this again!

After reading some of the reviews, I decided to cut the maple syrup by half and put the syrup bottle on the table for those that wanted more. I really enjoyed this, as did the group for which I made it. I will say that I cannot see how you can make multiple "layers" in a standard 9 x 13 dish unless you were to cut the bread very thin. I cut it in probably 1/2 to 3/4 inch slices and could only get a piece of bread on the bottom, a layer of cream cheese, and a piece of bread on the top. Which actually was fine as it was not mushy in the middle that way. I could only find fresh French bread, so I sliced the bread and let it sit out overnight the night before I made this so it would get "stale", which I am glad I did as I did NOT want mushy. At least one person told me, "The cream cheese really makes this dish", and I agree. I cooked it longer (about an hour) as I was trying to do everything I could to avoid it being mushy... and I cooked it too long as the bottom burned so we avoided taking the very bottom so all was not lost. Next time I will either stick with the recommended time of 45 minutes, or lower the temperature to 350. I really liked this and will definitely make it again.