A 16 ounce carton of strawberries, once capped and sliced will give you the approximate 10 ounces needed for this recipe. Taste your berries! If they are very tart, you may increase the sugar in the recipe to 1 cup. Blueberries and blackberries can be swapped for strawberries and raspberries in equal amounts.
1loafabout 12 ounces soft Italian bread or white bread
4ouncescream cheesecold
10ounceschopped strawberries
4ounceswhole raspberries
8eggs
1 1/2cupswhole milk
3/4cupgranulated sugar
1teaspoonvanilla extract
1/4cupunsalted butter, melted
maple syrupfor serving optional
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Slice bread into 1-inch cubes. Cut cream cheese into small cubes. Place half of the bread cubes in the prepared dish. Top evenly with the cubes of cream cheese and half of the berries. Top with remaining bread cubes and berries.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the eggs, milk, sugar, and vanilla. Using a whisk, mix them together well until thoroughly combined. Whisk in the butter and immediately pour over the layered bread and berries in the dish.
Bake for approximately 1 hour, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cover dish with foil during baking if the edges appear to be browning too much. (I didn’t have to use foil, but all ovens are different and some run hot!)
Serve warm. Accompany with maple syrup and whipped cream, if desired.
Keyword cream cheese frosting, fresh strawberries, Italian loaf