Easy Sausage Breakfast Casserole

Y'all, I have been a royal mess lately.  I won't go into too many details right now, but my schedule for the past 2 weeks has not made it easy to prepare any homemade meals.  And I LOVE to cook!  It's been a real drag not being able to spend any creative and fun time in the kitchen. 

So I took advantage of the 3 day weekend and made time and planned ahead to make us a brunch casserole.  It was super easy and very tasty!  Hubby liked it, so that makes it a keeper recipe and to me... blog worthy so I can have it for future reference!

This is most likely 1 of probably 1000 recipes like it... but this is what I did today.  I even tried to measure some to help make it recipe worthy in case anyone wants to try it!

This recipe would be a great option when hosting out of town guests, brunch, and for the holidays!

Easy Sausage Breakfast Casserole

6 servings

Ingredients

6 eggs

1 package tube of Turkey Sausage

1 cup milk (minimum 2%)

1 cup shredded cheese of choice (I used a blend flavor)

1/2 cup shredded cheese 

4 slices of whole wheat bread (or whatever bread you have on hand)

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp pepper

(These ingredients fit perfectly into a 2L or 11x7 rectangle baking dish)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Brown your turkey sausage over medium heat and then drain if needed.  I used Jenny O brand and rarely have I needed to drain this very lean sausage.

While your turkey is browning, 

Cut 4 slices of bread into cubes.  

Add the eggs and milk into a large mixing bowl.  

Whisk the eggs until frothy then add the garlic powder, pepper, the bread cubes and then the 1 cup of shredded cheese.  Gently mix to cover the bread cubes with the egg mixture.   

Let that soak while the sausage finishes browning, then add the sausage to the full egg mixture and gently blend.

Add everything to a greased (I used cooking spray) glass 11x7 baking dish.  

Bake uncovered for 20 minutes.  

Remove from oven and top with remaining 1/2  cup or less of shredded cheese and put back in the oven for 5 more minutes. 

(knife will come out cleanish, when testing.  The cheese will coat the knife)

Let stand for a few minutes to cool then serve.

  

Enjoy!

Enjoy and please don't forget to let me know you made it and any alterations you have made.  It's always fun to make recipes "your own"!

Sausage Casserole Recipe

Sausage Casserole Recipe

This recipe is another one of my mother's staples from our childhood.  I am not sure if this was a southern living recipe or something handed down.  My grandmother did not make this though, that I am aware of.  I note that it could be a southern living recipe only because my mother was obsessed with southern living cookbooks.  Sadly, I had to give a ton of her cookbooks away, but as I inherited her obsession with cookbooks, I am not limited to just southern living.  Wait... where was I going with that?? (My sister read this and let me know that it may have been our "Aunt" Bev's recipe.  Aunt Bev was our mom's Bff since we were littles.)

Anyway, we had this like every week or every other week... a lot!  My guess is because it was fairly inexpensive, easy to make, and pretty darn good.  

My version is made half and half.  Half for honey with mashed potatoes and half for me made with fauxtatoes.  I also use turkey sausage instead of mild sausage to save on fat content and I do like the taste of turkey sausage.  

Sausage Casserole Recipe:

Ingredients:

Jenni-O mild turkey breakfast sausage (entire package) or mild sausage of choice

Potatoes (4 - 5 servings)

Raw cauliflower (almost 2 cups)

EVOO 1 tbsp 

Half and half (I use Horizon organic) 3 tbsp or so

Salt (I use pink Himalayan) a few shakes

Black Pepper a few shakes

Canned sauerkraut (1 can) or 1/2 Jar (not Bavarian style)

Grated Parmesan (a few shakes)

Okay.. we all know that I'm horrible at remembering to measure.  My goal this year is to get better at that for my 20 readers.  =)

Cut up your potatoes into small pieces.  Place in a medium size pan and cover with water.  Shake a bit of salt on the water and boil until soft for mashing.

While your potatoes are boiling, steam your cauliflower and brown your sausage.

When your potatoes are done, drain them and add 1 tbsp of butter, about 2 tbsps half and half and a few shakes of salt and pepper and start mashing.

Now mash your cauliflower with about 1 tbsp of butter and maybe 1 tbsp of half and half.  Also add a little salt and pepper to taste

When the sausage is finished, drain any water or fat.  I hardly ever have to drain turkey sausage.

Now you are ready to assemble...

In your larger casserole dish, add your cooked sausage.  If you have minced onions, go ahead and sprinkle those on top of the sausage.  I didn't have any so I sprinkled Parmesan cheese.  

Next, add your sauerkraut.  I did drain mine by pushing the fork against the sauerkraut and draining the in the sink.  I pulled the sauerkraut out with the fork and spread it all over the sausage.

next, I added the mashed potatoes to one half of the casserole and the mashed cauliflower to the other half of the casserole.  This made a normal carb and a low carb dinner.  =)

Mashed potatoes on left

mashed cauliflower on right

Sprinkle a little more parm on top and then  bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  

Yummy out of the oven

Normal carb mashed potatoes serving

Low carb mashed cauliflower serving

Delish!

Enjoy!

Please let me know if you make any of these recipes and how you liked them.  I'd love to hear from you.