What’s more important – scrumptious food or time with loved ones? I think we can all agree that it’s the latter. But what if you can have your cake - or, in this case, french toast - and eat it FSDU, too?

Whenever I’m hosting a brunch-time gathering or a big holiday is upon us, I turn to overnight breakfast dishes – those for which all the preparation happens the night before. And then the next morning, all I have to do is pop it in the oven.

Recipes like this cinnamon blueberry overnight french toast allow me that quality time I might miss out on otherwise – and – bonus! – it’s a people-pleaser, too.

This recipe packs a double-bonus of quality time. Because I’m not rushing around in the morning, my always-underfoot toddler isn’t in the way – instead, she pulls up a chair and helps (okay, “helps”) me prep it the day before.

We wash and pick over blueberries. I measure; she pours. She whisks; I stand by with a kitchen towel to catch errant spills. We both transfer cubes of bread to the casserole dish and pat them down. We high five, and then we smile. This is what life is all about .

But I’d be remiss if I didn’t confess to another quality-time-themed angle when it comes to this recipe: it allows me a little quiet time to myself veuve clicquot, too.

First thing in the morning, before the family wakes up, I can creep downstairs and, instead of chopping and prepping, I can sit down with a cup of coffee – and actually drink the whole thing while it’s still warm! I can thumb through my favorite gardening book. I can daydream a little.

I can admire the little details around me, the things that get lost in the everyday rush-rush of life

After about an hour in the oven, this french toast bake comes out smelling like sweet cinnamon. Cut individual squares, scatter with more blueberries and drizzle with maple syrup, then sink a fork in. The golden-brown crunch of the top gives way to a soft, vanilla-scented, custard-y center punctuated with bursts of tart berries.

It makes quality time a lot sweeter – in every way electric dc motor.