Cooking the French toast in the crockpot is such a great way to go.
Once the smell of cinnamon begins to fill the air, you’ll know it’s time to eat! This French toast recipe is easy and delicious, but the best part is that it can be prepared the night before and cooked in the morning while sitting by the fire opening gifts. You won’t need to take time away from the family standing over the stove flipping dozens of pieces of French toast or worrying about them burning in the oven. The crockpot does all the work for you, cooking them perfectly, and even keeping them warm until you are ready to eat. Plus, if you’re looking to make breakfast more of a brunch, but don’t want to cut into cooking time for Christmas dinner, this Crockpot French toast is the only way to go. Honestly, I couldn’t think of a better Christmas Day breakfast. This French toast is doughy, sweet, buttery, and loaded with cinnamon, my favorite!
OK, but we all know it wouldn’t be Christmas without some drinks.
In my family, we’re all slightly obsessed with hot chocolate. So this year I came up the idea to combine one of my favorite cozy cocktails, Hot Buttered Rum with Hot Chocolate. Why I am just thinking this up now is beyond me, but I’m pretty excited about this boozy, chocolaty drink. It’s a game changer. Think hot buttered rum with the addition of creamy milk chocolate and topped with either whipped cream or marshmallows. Kind of screams Christmas, right? I like to leave the rum out of the hot chocolate and instead add it individually to each mug. This way, the kids and non-drinkers can enjoy a mug of hot chocolate, while the adults can add as little or as much rum as they’d like. I like to use the SMEG electric tea kettle. It works great for keeping the hot chocolate steaming and makes for easy pouring.
Now all that’s left to do is set the table.
Find some pretty dishes, set the table, and prepare the easiest and most delish Christmas brunch recipe yet. Then go back for another mug of Buttered Rum Hot Chocolate because…it’s Christmas!
Crockpot Cinnamon Pecan French Toast Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- 2 tablespoons brandy optional
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 loaf loaf challah bread cut into 1 inch cubes
- 8 ounces cream cheese cubed
- Streusel:
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup flour
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 cup raw pecans chopped
- 6 tablespoons butter softened
- maple syrup, powdered sugar, and or fresh fruit for serving
Directions
- Grease the bowl of your crockpot. To the bowl, add the eggs, milk, brandy, vanilla, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Whisk until combined. Add half the bread and toss to moisten. Arrange the cubed cream cheese over the bread and then add the remaining bread cubes. Gently toss to moisten the bread, being sure the cream cheese evenly distributed throughout.
- To make the streusel, in a small bowl, combined the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, pecans, and butter. Mix until combined. Sprinkle the streusel over top of the bread.
- Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or on high for 1-2 hours. Serve warm with maple syrup or powdered sugar.
Buttered Rum Hot Chocolate Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 1/2 Cups Milk
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 6 ounces milk chocolate chopped
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons butter softened
- 2 tablespoons dark rum per drink (or to your liking)
- whipped cream or marshmallows for serving (optional)
Directions
- To a medium sized pot, add the milk, brown sugar, cocoa powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, milk chocolate, vanilla, and butter. Place the pot over medium low heat until the milk is scalding, but not boiling, being sure to stir the pot often to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom or burning.
- Add 2 tablespoons rum to the bottom of 4-6 mugs. Once the hot chocolate is steaming, ladle into mugs. If desired top with whipped cream or marshmallows.
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