Banana-Coconut French Toast Bake

 Ok, ok. So this is my second baked french toast recipe & probably my 20th breakfast recipe. But I'm ok with that & I hope you are too. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day and I always look forward to our weekend breakfasts with my family. I made this as a surprise for Lana (my oldest daughter) this morning and she scarfed down every bite. 

 This week I've been pondering my Lana's 4th birthday. It's going to be a Maui, Hawaii theme (Maui is our family's "happy place"). We go every other summer with my mom, step-dad, sister & grandma. We have to most magical time and are depressed every time we leave. So I thought a hawaiian party would be a perfect warm weather theme this year. I've been scrolling through our pictures from our Hawaiian family trips for extra inspiration and it not only makes me wish I could transport ourselves there right this second, it has also made me want to bring that Hawaiian good feelin' to my home. That's probably what made me come up with this recipe. Clearly I've got that tropic inspiration going in this french toast. 

 

 I have a bag of Hawaiian rolls I was planning on using for sliders at my husbands birthday party last weekend, but I ended up using pretzel rolls (it was a Beer theme, after all). So I was trying to think how I could use up these delicious, fluffy bread rolls and french toast came to mind! I happened to have a little coconut & tons of bananas so POOF! Breakfast was born! Because it needs to bake, it takes about an hour in total to make. Only minutes to assemble though. After tossing the cubed bread in the yummy custard, I topped it with a coconut-brown sugar crumble. Delish!!! Syrup is optional. My daughter wanted it (mostly because she's a sugar junkie) but Chris & I found that the crumble sweetened it just enough. It really hit the spot on this beautiful Sunday morning, and for a few moments I was transported to our Maui house in Kihei...ahhhhhhh.....

Banana-Coconut French Toast Bake (serves 6-8)

12 King's Hawaiian Original Hawaiian Sweet Rolls, cut in 1/2 inch cubes

3 large eggs

1 1/4 cup milk (I used 1%)

2 Tbs maple syrup

1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 heaping tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Zest of 1 lemon

2 bananas, sliced thin

1/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut

Topping:

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut

1/4 cup cold butter, diced small

1/4 tsp cinnamon  

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, zest until combined. Stir in the bananas & coconut. Toss in the bread cubes and toss well until it's all coated. The bread will start to absorb the egg custard immediately. 

This is when I preheat my oven to 350 degrees. The reason I wait to preheat is because it gives the bread a good 10 minutes to continue to sit & suck up all the custard. (Which it needs) Plus, you don't have to warm up your kitchen for longer than needed. :) 

 Pour the bread into a 9x13 casserole dish sprayed with cooking spray.

Doesn't it look good already?? We're going to make it even better right now. 

To make the coconut-brown sugar topping: Toss all ingredients in a small bowl. Use you hands to work in the cold butter into the dry ingredients. Sprinkle evenly on top of bread mixture. 

(Tip: if you wish to make this recipe ahead of time, just cover it with plastic wrap at this point and it can sit in the fridge overnight. Just add 10 minutes to the baking time since it will be cold out of the fridge.) ;-)

 Bake for 35-40 minutes. Too should be golden brown & custard should be set in the middle. 

Smell the Hawaiian spirit filling your home? Yummy!!!!!

Serve with a drizzle of maple syrup & enjoy in all its tropical glory. Can't wait to make this next summer when we are in Maui again!