Pear Filled Vanilla French Toast

Get this ready for baking the night before serving!

1 cup dark brown sugar (packed)
1 stick 1/2 cup) butter
2 tablespoons water
1 (28 ounce) can sliced pears
4 cups crumbled French bread
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans
9 eggs
2 cups milk or vanilla ice cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Melt brown sugar and vanilla extract over medium heat. Add water and continue heating until mixture bubbles. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Pour mixture into a well greased 9 x 6 x2-inch pan. Slice pear slices again to thin them and place close together in the sauce in bottom of pan. Sprinkle crumbled French bread over pears, covering with approximately 1 1/2 inches of bread. Sprinkle chopped nuts over bread. Beat remaining ingredients until well blended and pour evenly over bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Uncover and bake for 40 minutes or until bread puffs up. Serve with pecan maple syrup.

Serves 6.