This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and Post Pebbles, but all my opinions are my own. http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV
I go in phases with cereal – sometimes I’m a cereal monster and take care of an entire box within a few days. But sometimes I go a month or two without buying a box…usually because I know I lack that little thing called ‘self control’ around it…it’s just so good! I love the crunchiness of it in the milk at the beginning and then how it gets just a little bit soggy towards the end, depending on how fast you eat it. And by the end of a bowl, I’m craving that crunchiness again, so I load up on another bowl. It’s a vicious cycle, I’m telling you.
Since I have portion control issues when it comes to cereal and milk (it also takes a LOT of cereal to fill me up), I like to eat it dry as a snack or make it into cereal bars. So when Post cereals wanted a group of bloggers to create recipes using their cereal I was more than excited. My first idea was to make regular french toast coated in Post’s Honey Bunches of Oats, but let’s face it – making french toast can be a little tedious and who doesn’t love a breakfast casserole that can be made ahead of time and popped in the oven in the morning? So french toast casserole, it was!
This french toast casserole is incredible. I decided to jazz it up with a cream cheese filling with blueberries and orange zest along with orange zest in the egg mixture and the pairing is so delicious. The orange flavoring isn’t overpowering, and adds just a bit of freshness to the custardy casserole. Of course, the crunchy topping made with Honey Bunches of Oats was my favorite part. I’m always a sucker for crunchy crumble toppings and this one is no exception. The flakes and clusters from the Honey Bunches of Oats were just enough sweetness and crunch to go with the french toast, but not so much that it took away from it.
This recipe is also part of Walgreens and Post Cereal promoting American Heart Month and while it may seem indulgent, I cut down on a lot of the fat and calories you might find in other french toast casserole recipes. First, instead of using heavy cream for the egg mixture, I used low-fat milk, which cuts down on a ton of saturated fat. I decreased the amount of sugar compared to a typical french toast casserole (Paula Deen has a recipe with over 1 cup!) and added some blueberries to it for some antioxidants. You could also use whole grain bread here if you’d like, but since it was the weekend I was feeling extra indulgent and used a french baguette 😉
Since Walgreens and Post Cereal graciously sponsored this post, I would encourage all of you to stop by your local Walgreens to pick up your next box of Post Cereal!
blueberry-orange cream cheese stuffed french toast casserole with crunchy honey bunches of oats topping
Print RateIngredients
- 1 baguette sliced
- 4 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
for the cream cheese filling:
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp fresh orange juice
- 2 tsp orange zest
- 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
for the topping:
- 3/4 cup Post Honey Bunches of Oats
- 2 tbsp butter melted
Instructions
For the french toast:
- In medium bowl, whisk together 4 eggs, milk, vanilla extract, orange zest, salt, and sugar.
- Place baguette slices into egg mixture and stir well so every piece is well saturated.
- Let sit for 10-20 minutes, mixing every 5 minutes or so, to make sure they are soaking up all of the egg mixture.
- While waiting for the bread to soak, you can preheat your oven to 350 degrees and lightly spray baking dish with cooking spray. I used an 8x10" baking dish but you could also use a 9x13" dish.
- Also while waiting for the bread to soak, make your cream cheese mixture:
- Beat cream cheese for one minute with electric mixture.
- Add sugar, egg, orange juice, and orange zest and beat well to combine.
- Beat in blueberries until they are roughly broken up.
To assemble:
- Place half of the sliced baguettes along bottom of baking dish.
- Pour cream cheese mixture over baguettes, spreading with spatula if needed.
- Top with remaining baguette slices.
- If making the night before, wrap with saran wrap at this point and refrigerate overnight. Add topping right before baking it.
For the topping:
- Combine Honey Bunches of Oats and melted butter.
- Sprinkle over french toast casserole.
- Bake in preheated oven 30-40 minutes if baking right away, or 40-50 minutes if baking after letting it sit in the refrigerator overnight, until golden brown and middle is set.
- Let cool for 5 minutes, then enjoy!
I LOVE cereal and also have portion control problems when I’m around it. It’s just so good! This looks delicious and honey bunches of oats happens to be one of my favorites!