Creme Brulee French Toast

In a word - decadent! I'm definitely not a morning person so this was my kind of breakfast recipe. Made it the night before, then bleary-eyed I stumbled into the kitchen this morning and popped it into the oven. Forty minutes and several cups of coffee later, I enjoyed a wonderful breakfast.

I was surprised by how much flavor the brown sugar bottom imparted on the bread. I also really liked that the bread wasn't at all eggy or soggy but still had a nice crunch to it. The brown sugar crust is sweet enough that you do not need any syrup at all. I just dusted mine with sifted powdered sugar and it was dee-licious! Next time I might flip the bread over (brown sugar crust side up) and broil it for a minute to see if I could achieve that hardened sugar crust for which creme brulee is known. Anyway, since it was just Andrew and me for breakfast, I served the french toast by itself, but if I were making it for company staying with us, I'd probably serve it with scrambled eggs (or some other savory offering) and a fresh fruit salad. Now if we only had a guest room so we could actually have guests stay over...

Creme Brulee French Toast

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons corn syrup
6 French bread
5 eggs
1 1/2 cups half-and-half cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon brandy-based orange liqueur (such as Grand Marnier®)
1/4 teaspoon salt

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Mix in brown sugar and corn syrup, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Pour into a 9x13 inch baking dish.

Arrange bread slices in the baking dish in a single layer. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, half and half, vanilla extract, orange brandy, and salt. Pour over the bread. Cover, and chill at least 8 hours, or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bake uncovered 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, until puffed and lightly browned.

Source AllRecipes.com, recipe submitted by Sandipants