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This baked Monte Cristo Casserole is the perfect breakfast for the Monte Cristo lover. Sweet, savory, and cheesy deliciousness in every bite.
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This baked Monte Cristo french toast recipe is chock full of bold, delicious flavors with Swiss cheese, ham, and turkey stuffed between two thick slices of French toast and topped with a sweet, berry syrup. They are a delightful twist on the traditional Monte Cristo Sandwiches and are very similar to our Breakfast Monte Cristos.
If you are only wanting to make just one Monte Cristo for yourself, I would suggest just making the Breakfast Monte Cristo recipe but this baked version is MUCH easier for a crowd. Both recipes are fantastic. It just depends on what method you want to use. These Monte Cristo sandwiches are a MUST try! You will love each bite of savory and sweet deliciousness!
Ingredients in Monte Cristo Casserole
You can see there are several ingredients, which means each stuffed Monte Cristo is only one serving! They are filling and full of ingredients that blend perfectly. You can serve these with something lighter like orange slices or berries but honestly, you don’t need much else! This is a pretty hearty breakfast as-is!
- French bread – One sliced loaf of French bread should do the trick. The slices will be layered on the bottom of the pan to hold together the sandwich.
- Whipped cream cheese – Whipped is best so that it spreads easily over the sandwiches and melts beautifully.
- Black forest ham – Deli ham is the way to go! It is simple and has the flavor you need.
- Deli turkey – Again, deli meat has the perfect thin slices that are easy to layer.
- Swiss cheese – This is the cheese that has holes in it. This cheese is known to be one of the healthiest types of cheese with plenty of calcium and protein.
- Large Eggs – This will help crisp up the French toast as it is baking.
- Milk – Gives a creamy texture and flavor over top of the Monte Cristo sandwiches before baking.
- Sugar – Added in for that extra sweetness!
- Kosher salt – Just a pinch of salt balances out the flavors in the egg mixture.
- Cinnamon – Just like any french toast, cinnamon is a popular ingredient. Just a dash of cinnamon will go a long way.
- Butter – Melted butter is drizzled over top for an extra rich and buttery flavor.
- Berry syrup – Some people like to add the syrup before being baked or you can use it to dip your famous Monte Cristo sandwich in it.
- Powdered sugar – Add a dusting of powdered sugar over top for presentation!
Monte Cristo Casserole in Five Easy Steps
Unlike traditional Monte Cristos, these stuffed French toast Monte Cristos are baked which makes them somewhat healthier than the fried recipes. We call it a Monte Cristo breakfast casserole! These come together quickly and are perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner! It is a filling sandwich that has all the texture and flavor!
- Prepare – Spray a 9×13 glass baking dish with cooking spray. Place 7 to 8 slices of French bread slices in the baking dish. Try not to over-crowd and squish too much.
- Layer – Spread cream cheese over each slice of bread, then layer on ham, turkey, and Swiss cheese. Top with remaining slices of French bread.
- Combine – In a large bowl, whisk eggs, milk, sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Pour the batter over the bread and let sit for five minutes, turn the bread over and cover the pan with saran wrap. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (or even overnight in the refrigerator).
- Pour – Melt butter in a shallow bowl, then drizzle it over the top of the sandwiches. Bake at 400 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Serve – Remove from pan and top with syrup and sprinkle powdered sugar over the top. Serve immediately.
Individual Sandwich Version
If you are only wanting to make just one Monte Cristo for yourself, I would suggest just making the Breakfast Monte Cristo recipe but this baked version is MUCH easier for a crowd. Both recipes are fantastic. It just depends on what method you want to use. These Monte Cristo sandwiches are a MUST try! You will love each bite of savory and sweet deliciousness!
Suggestions for this Baked Version
Sink your teeth into one of the best layered homemade Monte Cristo sandwiches! We loved how the cheese, meats, and sweetness come together for a delicious meal. Follow these suggestions and variations to create another way of making these Monte Cristos.
- Make ahead – This baked Monte Cristo French Toast recipe only takes a few short minutes of prep time. You can easily make it the night before and refrigerate overnight (they taste best this way)
- Syrup – We used Smucker’s Boysenberry Syrup and it was out of this world good, but you can use strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, or any kind of berry syrup you like. Maple syrup does work but it doesn’t have that sweetness and fruity blend that the berry syrups have.
- Toppings – As an alternative, you can top this with jam. You can even use raspberry jam or raspberry preserves! My husband likes them better with jam than syrup so it is totally up to you how you want to make it!
- Swap out the swiss cheese for gruyere cheese.
- Spread a thin layer of dijon mustard for an extra savory flavor.
“Have made this recipe multiple times for different family gatherings and it’s a HUGE hit EVERYTIME!! It is absolutely the best you’ll find and super convenient since you pretty much make it ahead. Fabulous!”
-Kimberly M.
Frequently Asked Questions
An original Monte Cristo is a fried ham and cheese sandwich that has a special jam or jelly in it. It is warm when served and is eaten for any meal of the day. It is also known as a French sandwich, toasted ham sandwich, and French toasted cheese sandwich.
Monte Cristo comes from France or a French background. It has been said that the first serving was made in a Paris cafe but there are also verbal accounts that are saying it was first served in southern California.
The Monte Cristo sandwich is called that in tribute to the French novel The Count of Monte Christo by Alexander Dumas. Because of this, the sandwich suggests that it is of French origins. Food historians think that the Monte Cristo sandwich is similar to the French Croque Monsieur.
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How to Make Monte Cristo Casserole
Monte Cristo Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 loaf french bread
- 8 Tablespoon whipped cream cheese
- ½ pound deli black forest ham
- ½ pound deli turkey
- ½ pound Swiss cheese
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup milk
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup butter melted
- berry syrup we used Smucker’s Boysenberry syrup
- powdered sugar to taste
Instructions
- Cut bread into 1-inch slices. You should have 16 slices total.
- Spray a 9×13 glass baking dish with cooking spray. Place 8 slices of French bread in the baking dish (try not to over-crowd and squish too much). Spread cream cheese over each slice.
- Add a few slices of ham and turkey to each piece of bread.
- Add a slice of Swiss cheese to each piece of bread.
- Top with remaining slices of French bread (making "sandwiches").
- In a large bowl, beat together the eggs, milk, sugar, salt, and cinnamon.
- Pour over bread and let sit for five minutes.
- Turn each sandwich over and cover the pan with saran wrap. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes (or even overnight).
- Drizzle melted butter over the top and bake at 400 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Remove from oven and sift powdered sugar over the top.
- Serve immediately with berry syrup.
Notes
- Use jam or preserves instead of syrup if desired.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Leftovers are best heated in the oven or microwave.
- Make sure to flip each sandwich before chilling, otherwise they will turn out soggy.
I KNOW I am going to make this the next time the family comes to visit! In #3 it says to spread the cream cheese over each slice of bread, does that mean all the slices or just the ones that you are placing in the pan?
Fun! I hope they love it! You just put cream cheese on the slices in the pan.
The flavors were great! Unfortunately, we had to eat this with a fork, as the bottoms were too mushy to be eaten as a sandwich. It could have been my fault for using almond milk. However, the top pieces came out perfect.
(Sorry I think I left the first message in the wrong spot… Please delete if possible!)
Have made this recipe multiple times for different family gatherings and it’s a HUGE hit EVERYTIME!! It is absolutely the best you’ll find and super convenient since you pretty much make it ahead. Fabulous!
I just made these for the first time. I have three very fussy kids and I just gave up cooking properly over the last years – too much hassle… They are eating better now (one of my teenagers now eats almost everything) and I am again on my search for recipes at least two of them will eat. And two of my kids loved these Monte Cristos! The were delicious. The only problem I have – the bottom was a bit soggy. Any tips on what I might do wrong? Could this just be because I did not turn them over after pouring the egg mixture over them? I tried to but my beautiful assemble threatened to dissolve into chaos…
Hi Natalie, so glad that this was a hit with 2 out of 3! I will consider that a win! Yes, you definitely want to turn them over so you get an even distribution of the egg mixture throughout the bread. All of the mixture probably settled at the bottom. You can also flip them and drain off the excess if there is any. Another way would be to reduce the amount of milk but then you risk it getting too dry. Hope all this helps! Welcome back to cooking! We hope you will be able to find more recipes here for your picky eaters!
HI, when you say, “turn bread over,” do you mean just flip the top piece or flip each sandwich in the casserole?
You will want to flip each sandwich. Sorry, should have been more clear on that. Hope this helps!
Thank you! I ended up dredging each top slice through the egg mixture anyway before dumping the rest of the liquid all through the casserole. I also tore the Swiss into thinner strips so the liquid could permeate better. And I didn’t have cream cheese but mascarpone really worked out well in its place!
LOVE Monte Cristo sandwiches, and this version is much more ‘waist friendly’. If I wanted to serve these (savory) for lunch, would this recipe still work well if I left out the sugar & the cinnamon?
Yes, it just wouldn’t be quite as sweet. Hope this helps!
Yes and no jelly or any kind of sugar perfect without