Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Pumpkin Spice Baked French Toast
Enjoy the perfect breakfast for those cool, crisp Fall mornings with this easy-to-make Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Pumpkin Spice Baked French Toast.
There’s just something about September—even though it’s still 90 degrees outside and fall doesn’t “officially” start until the 23rd, I start dreaming about fall flavors. Apples, caramel, pecans, and PUMPKIN!
Enjoy your favorite Fall flavors with this Pumpkin Spice “Baked” French Toast. Just mix the ingredients with the bread and add it to your cake pan. Then sit back and enjoy your morning while your pressure cooker does the work for you!
What Is Baked French Toast?
Baked French toast goes by several different names like French toast casserole or French toast bake. No matter what you call it, it’s delicious.
Rather than dipping individual slices of bread in a milk and egg mixture, for baked french toast, you cut the bread into pieces, combine them with the egg mixture, let them rest overnight, and bake the entire pan in the morning. (If you’re curious, my Strawberry Rhubarb Baked French Toast is an oldie but a goodie.)
However, making french toast in the pressure cooker lets you skip the overnight step (as well the “baking” part!)
I love “baking” in the pressure cooker on busy mornings because I don’t have to keep an eye on it—if it sits on the keep warm setting for an extra 10 minutes, it has no effect on the finished dish!
(This is the case with so many breakfasts in the pressure cooker; see more Pressure Cooker breakfast ideas here!)
How to Make Pressure Cooker Pumpkin Spice Baked French Toast in an Instant Pot
Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Pumpkin Spice Baked French Toast is a flavorful, rich breakfast. Because you substitute a cup of liquids for pumpkin puree, this “baked” french toast doesn’t cook up as moist and ends up taking on a texture more similar to pan-fried french toast.
Use an instant-read thermometer to verify your french toast is at least 160°F in the thickest part of the breast after cooking
This Pumpkin Baked French Toast recipe will work in any brand of electric pressure cooker, including the Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, and Mealthy MultiPot. Pressure cookers are perfect for cooking food that cooks well in a moist environment.
By using a trivet and a 7×3-inch round cake pan, you can make this in your pressure cooker using the pot in pot method . This allows you to use steam to create the pressure without cooking your food in the water.
To make removing the pan easier, be sure to use a sling.
In order to make this french toast a bit lighter, I use whole milk instead of cream. That way I don’t feel so guilty smothering each bite in delicious maple syrup!
Unlike many other versions of baked french toast, this one cooks up a bit drier and does not need to be crisped up. That’s because I use less liquid and substitute one cup of pumpkin puree. If you do want to crisp it up a bit, it only takes a couple of minutes, so be sure to watch it closely!
Feel free to dress up your Pumpkin Spice Baked French Toast with additional fall favorites. Serve warm right out of the pot and top with apples, brown sugar, pecans, or anything else you enjoy. For me, the maple was more than enough.
What Is Pumpkin Pie Spice?
Pumpkin Pie Spice is a spice blend that’s generally made with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. The exact amounts of each varies by brand. I have a soft spot for McCormick because that’s what I grew up with. Penzey’s has a pumpkin pie spice mix that adds allspice and cloves.
How to Make a Pumpkin Pie Spice Substitute
For 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, I recommend substituting 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, and 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves. (It adds up to a bit more than a teaspoon, but the ratios are right and such a small amount won’t make a difference in the final product.)
Are you a pumpkin spice fan? Let me know your favorite fall flavor in the comments!
Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Pumpkin Spice Baked French Toast
This easy-to-make Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Pumpkin Spice Baked French Toast is a rich, decadent way to start a fall morning!
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup whole milk
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 1 cup pure pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup, plus additional for topping
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 loaf Challah bread, cut into 1- to 2-inch cubes (about 7 cups)
- Whipped cream and chopped pecans, optional, for topping
Instructions
- Generously coat a 7-inch cake pan with nonstick baking spray with flour.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and sugar. Add the milk, beaten eggs, vanilla, salt, and pumpkin pie seasoning. Add the pumpkin puree and maple syrup, and mix until well combined.
- Mix in the cubed bread. Let rest until the bread absorbs the milk, stirring occasionally.
- Gently press the bread mixture into the prepared pan.
- Pour 1 cup water into the pressure cooking pot and place a trivet in the bottom. Carefully center the filled pan on as ling and lower the pan onto the trivet.
- Lock the lid in place. Select High pressure and 30 minutes cook time.
- When the cook time ends, turn off the pressure cooker. Let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, then finish with a quick pressure release.
- When the float valve drops, carefully remove the lid. Use an instant-read thermometer to make sure the center reaches 160°F. If not, return the lid and cook a few minutes more. Use the sling to transfer the pan to a wire rack.
- If desired, crisp up the top using a CrispLid or broiler.
- Serve warm, topped with a drizzle of maple syrup, as desired.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 163Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 91mgSodium: 174mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 1gSugar: 13gProtein: 4g
Nutrition information is calculated by Nutritionix and may not always be accurate.
Other Pressure Cooker Fall Favorites You’ll Love
Pressure Cooker Pumpkin Steel Cut Oats topped with a sweet, buttery Pecan Pie Granola. This one is a family favorite—we often add diced apples and cranberries, and it’s just delicious! (We even included a version in our Instant Pot Baby Food & Toddler Food Cookbook!)
This Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Applesauce isn’t just for kids! Fresh, homemade applesauce is the perfect fall treat and it’s super simple to make in your pressure cooker.
Pumpkin-Date Brown Rice Pudding is vegan, dairy-free, and naturally sweetened with dates and maple syrup! A comfort food that you can feel good about!
Pressure Cooker Pumpkin Pie is a spin on the classic Libby’s pumpkin pie filling—made perfect for the pressure cooker with a crumbly Pecan Sandies cookie crust.
Instant Pot Pumpkin Creme Brulee is a fun fall spin on a classic custard dessert!
This one’s not a pressure cooker recipe, but it’s a family favorite so I wanted to share. Overnight Pumpkin Monkey Bread with Maple Cream Cheese Icing is the perfect breakfast treat for the holidays. You do all the work the day before and then your family and guests can wake up to the sweet, spicy smell of this bread baking.
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This sounds perfect for Christmas breakfast. I will need to double my recipe and I have the stackable pans for the pot in pot method. I’ve never used them stacked before and I wonder if I will need to increase cooking time at all. I do have two Instant Pots so I can cook them separately too. Thank you!!
HI Tammy – that does sound like a delicious, fun way to start Christmas day. Baked French toast is pretty forgiving, so I think you could do it with your stacked pans. The bread will expand as it “bakes” so don’t fill your pans more than 2/3’s full. I don’t think you’ll need to increase the cook time, but leave yourself some extra time just in case. Enjoy!
Does this recipe work with just a half recipe? What adjustments to time are needed? Do I use the same size pan?
Yes – since this recipe is cooked pot in pot, you can easily halve the recipe. Your cook time will be less, but you can use the same size pan. I would try 20 minutes with half the recipe.
Is is possible to bake this in the oven and if so, what adjustments would need to be made? Thanks! This looks incredible!
Hi Kelly – yes, you can bake it in the oven. I would bake it similarly to this recipe https://www.barbarabakes.com/baked-cherry-french-toast-and-utahs-owns-recipe-roundup/
Hi, I’m a new pressure cooker user (mine is electric too) and I’m excited to try out your recipes! But I was wondering, because the food keeps cooking during natural release, would I be able to decrease cooking time and replace that time with natural release? I know that food will not cook as quickly as pressure decreases, so it would not be a 1:1 time ratio if I took off too much cook time, but would doing something like that make sense? Like if I cooked this french toast for 20 mins and used natural release for 15 mins instead of 30 and 5 like you have above?
Thanks for all the recipes!
Hi Ann – yes, if you prefer using a natural release, you can reduce the cook time slightly and use a natural release. The except is things like pasta that can overcook by using a complete natural release.
What other types of bread can you use?
While I prefer a rich eggy bread with this like Brioche or Challa, you can use pretty much any bread. Croissants or a mix of half white bread and croissants would work well also. If you plan to use just white sandwich bread, I recommend making sure you use day-old bread so that they absorb more of the milk and egg mixture!
If you try it, let us know what you use and how it goes!
Bob was JUST mentioning the other day that he was thinking about pumpkin zucchini bread so he’s ready for pumpkin…and I was saying we needed to think about something else for breakfast. Looks like your delicious sounding recipe appeared at just the right time, Barbara-can’t wait to try it. We love French Toast in the pressure cooker.
What are your feelings on the Crisplid or air frying lid that fits on the Instapot? does it work as well as an air frier?
Hi Vione – I’m a big fan of the CrispLid. Here’s my review https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/mealthy-crisplid-air-fryer-lid-for-electric-pressure-cooker/
This was soooo good. I used my homemade bread and cut too much up, so it wouldn’t fit in a 7” pan. I put it in a 9” sq. Pan and baked it, All I did was add more milk. It was like eating a dessert. Yum!
I love that you tried it already. Thanks so much for the feedback Barb!