This overnight vegan French toast makes a relaxing start to the day

From washingtonpost.com

By Ellie Krieger

This fragrant bake is studded with juicy berries and crunchy nuts, and makes for a great brunch dish or breakfast on-the-go 

I have documented proof of my adoration for breakfast bakes based on the recipes I have written over the years. There’s a lot to love. The bakes can be made ahead, which takes the pressure off in the morning, letting you relax and sip coffee as the dish warms in the oven and fills your kitchen with the most enticing aroma. They easily feed a crowd or can cover you as a quick, reheatable breakfast for the weekday mornings. They may be made either sweet or savoury and can showcase the most nourishing ingredients: fruit, vegetables, nuts and whole grains.

Nearly all of the breakfast bake recipes I’ve created in the past lean on the traditional milk and eggs as binders, which means those who cannot eat eggs or are vegan have been excluded from the party, but that’s about to change.

Get the recipe: Vegan French Toast With Berries and Nuts

                                                  (Tom McCorkle for The Washington Post/food styling by Gina Nistico for The Washington Post)

This berry-studded French toast bake delivers a creamy centre that is dairy and egg-free. While many vegan French toast recipes rely on cornstarch added to plant milk for creaminess and binding capacity, I decided to take a more nutrient-dense route by blending soy milk — which I prefer because it’s high in protein, but any plant milk will work — with ground flaxseed, which has an egglike ability to bind and thicken, and cashews, which add a luxurious creaminess.

Pour that mixture, spiked with vanilla, orange zest and maple syrup, over cubed whole-grain bread and mixed berries in a baking dish, and let it soak in for a couple of hours or overnight. When you are ready to bake, sprinkle the top with chopped pecans and almonds (or any combination of nuts and seed you like) and pop it in the oven.

The finished bake bursts with berries and crunchy nuts, warm, fragrant, crisp on the outside and delightfully custardy on the inside. It’s so good you might want to double the recipe, whether for a relaxed weekend brunch, or a week’s worth of breakfasts to start the day.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2025/04/16/vegan-french-toast-overnight/