Baked Deep-Dish Strawberry French Toast

Arrange half of cubed bread in a lightly greased, deep 9 by 13 inch pan. Sprinkle with cubed cream cheese, and cover with remaining bread cubes.

Whisk together eggs, half and half, butter, and maple syrup. Pour evenly over the bread cubes, making sure they all absorb the egg mixture. Cover with foil and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 dregrres F. Bake covered, for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake another 30 minutes, until the top is golden brown.

While French toast is baking, combine and heat topping ingredients in a saucepan. Cut French toast into 8-10 servings. Plate each serving, then ladle heated topping onto each serving.