Take it easy on yourself by making this breakfast casserole the night before, then bake it in the morning while you get ready! A true crowd pleaser, this breakfast bake is perfect for holiday breakfasts or when you have guests!
This Easy Breakfast Casserole is such a great holiday breakfast idea, and SO delicious! We love make-ahead breakfasts that the whole family will enjoy, like my Maple Caramel Pecan Sticky Buns, and Overnight French Toast Bake. This is one of my Breakfast recipes you’ll definitely want in your collection!
For some people, Christmas dinner is the main event on Christmas, but in our family, it’s breakfast Christmas morning! Since we’ve had kids, my parents and brother make the trek over to our house early in the morning.
We all sit down around our table (as many as can fit anyway), mugs of steaming coffee in our hands, and eat a hearty, stick to your ribs, breakfast that will last us through the many hours of gift opening to come.
We have a tradition in our family that on Christmas, everyone gets a gift, but we only open them one at a time, which is nice, because then you’re guaranteed to be able to watch your loved one open that gift you’re so excited to give them!
It also means that it takes us a lot longer to get through all the presents lol. So we definitely need that hearty breakfast to fuel us up!
Several years ago, on the first Christmas morning at our house, I served this overnight breakfast casserole… it was a TOTAL hit! There are rarely any leftovers, and usually we’re all scrambling to grab the last piece.
We usually just call it “the breakfast casserole”, but technically, it’s a strata since the base of the dish is cubed pieces of bread and they soak overnight in a spiced up egg custard.
CAN BREAKFAST CASSEROLE BE MADE AHEAD?
Yes, in fact, it’s best when it IS made ahead of time! You can make this breakfast casserole up to 8-12 hours ahead of time. My favorite way is to make it on Christmas Eve after dinner, then let it chill overnight and bake it Christmas morning! You want it to sit in the refrigerator so the custard really soaks up into the bread and all the flavors come together.
WHAT CAN YOU PUT IN A BREAKFAST CASSEROLE?
Just about anything! I’ve seen breakfast casseroles made with tater tots, hashbrowns, croissants, etc. I love my breakfast casserole loaded with sausage, bacon, and plenty of cheese!
I consider this recipe to be more of a method, and not necessarily a hard fast recipe. Meaning, you can add (or subtract) ingredients to customize it to your tastes! Here’s a few options…
Customization options for this casserole:
- Add sautéed onions (since our little ones have an onion aversion, I leave them out, but they’re delicious!)
- Play with the herbs and add your favorites
- Use chorizo instead of sausage and sprinkle with cilantro to add some Mexican flair
- Switch up the cheeses, or use all cheddar
- Use some torn croissants or cubed up bagels instead of Italian or French bread
I love using both the sausage and the bacon here, as we’re huge breakfast meats fans around here, but feel free to use one or the other if you’d rather not use both.
CAN YOU FREEZE BREAKFAST CASSEROLE?
Yep! After you assemble the casserole, instead of covering it and refrigerating, place it in the freezer instead. Breakfast casseroles can be frozen for up to 2 months, then just thaw overnight and bake as directed.
I hope you guys give this overnight breakfast casserole a try… it’s perfect for not only holiday breakfasts, but for weekend breakfasts as well!
We like to serve ours with a dollop of sour cream and sprinkling of fresh parsley and chives!
SHOP THE RECIPE:
- Enameled Cast Iron Casserole Dish – I love the even baking in this dish, plus the easy cleanup!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 1 lb sage or breakfast sausage
- 8-10 pieces bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 8 large eggs
- 2 2/3 cups whole milk
- 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 1/2 tsp ground dry mustard
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 12 oz Italian bread, cubed into 1/2" pieces
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
- minced fresh parsley, for garnish
- chopped fresh chives, for garnish
- dollop sour cream, for garnish
Instructions
- In a large skillet, brown and crumble sausage until cooked. Drain and set aside.
- Use a bread knife to cube Italian bread into 1/2" pieces, then set aside. Combine shredded cheddar and Gruyere cheeses, then set aside.
- To a large mixing bowl, add eggs, milk, salt, dry mustard, dried parsley, black pepper and paprika. Whisk until combined.
- Add cubed bread pieces to bottom of 3 quart oven safe pot, or 9x13" baking pan. Top with crumbled sausage, bacon, and 3/4 of the cheeses. Pour egg custard over the top, using a wooden spoon to gently push any un-soaked bread down into the custard. Sprinkle with remaining shredded cheeses.
- Cover pan with foil and refrigerate overnight.
- Remove from refrigerator, uncover, and let sit at room temperature while oven preheats to 350 degrees F. Bake, uncovered, for 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Serve hot, topped with garnishes if desired.
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Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Romilly says
I was looking up strata and found your site, your recipe sounds delicious. I missed trying it out at Christmas, but will try to remember of next year, because we do the same as you, presents are given one at a time, and it can take ages (I think this family tradition was started by my parents, because we were very poor and didn’t get many gift! they’d put all the presents in a box and the youngest child choose the first gift). Back to the strata, in Italy as a child, in the version I was shown, the bread was left in slices, and spread with any leftover pasta sauce (ragu, pesto, etc), arranged in a dish with any extras you wanted, the egg/milk mix was poured on top and allowed to soak in and cheese put on top and baked. I’m sure every family had their own recipe!,
Carly says
My step-mom and I have been making overnight breakfast casseroles for years for Christmas morning and this one is fabulous! We loved it! It’s delicious and excellent as leftovers!
Cee Cee says
Thank you for sharing this recipe!
I was going to make it for Christmas morning but you know what they say about the best plans..so I made it today instead. It was delicious & my boyfriend loved it! I ran out of sour cream so we topped it with warm maple syrup. Swoon.
Marie says
I made this last night and put it in the fridge but the party was cancelled. Can this dish be put in the freezer? If so, would I bake it first?
The Chunky Chef says
You can freeze it unbaked, just thaw it out overnight in the refrigerator before you want to bake it 🙂
Kim says
I made a similar recipe one year for Christmas breakfast. I used both French bread and a loaf of Jalapeño Cheddar bread I bought in the bakery section, and added mushrooms to half the pan (my husband isn’t a fan), it was fabulous! I’m making this recipe this year with the Jalapeño bread, and probably adding leftover ham as well. It’s a very easy recipe to play with!
Amy says
Christmas morning perfection indeed!
Allyson Zea says
WOW!! This looks SOOOO good!
Krista says
This looks so good! I would love to have this Christmas morning!
Dee says
This looks absolutely amazing! I love overnight breakfasts, and I’ll definitely be giving this one a try!
Sabrina says
This is exactly how I want to start my mornings especially during the holidays. So hearty and delicious!
Gina says
Great recipe! There were only 6 of us, but it would easily have fed 12.
Stephanie says
We made the overnight breakfast strata. Yummy! But we added mini tater tots to the top before baking the dish. Added some Minnesota yumminess.
Beth says
Could I mix all the ingredients how you’ve explained and put in the refrigerator around 2:00 pm and bake it the next morning around 8:00 am? I was afraid that might be too long for it to sit in refrigerator.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Beth, I haven’t officially tested it, but I think that should work just fine 🙂
Lavinia Thornton says
I am going to make this Breakfast Strata to take for Election Day Breakfast for my fellow Election Board Officials on November 6. I am also making a separate Breakfast Casserole for those who may be gluten free or gluten intolerant. Thanks for the RECIPE.
Marissa says
This looks delicious – I’m thinking about making it for a Brunch themed work event this week! What are your thoughts on baking it a day earlier and then warming it up the morning of the event? My office doesn’t have an oven so I’m trying to think of ways around this hurdle.
Do you think it will affect the dish in any major way?
Thanks!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Marissa 🙂 I wish I could give you a definite answer, but I’ve never tested the recipe that way, so I can’t say for certain. I think if you have the ability to have those sterno cans with the foil chafing dishes at your work, you might be able to heat it back up that way, but it would definitely take a while. Could you bake it in the morning before work and get one of those carriers for 9×13 pans that have the ability to keep the food hot? You could do that then keep it warm on the sterno chafing dish thing?
Tammie says
I would love to try this with bagels. How many do you think I should use and do you think I need to cut them into smaller pieces bc of the chewiness? Also was wondering what you thought of using Everything bagels?
Thanks!
The Chunky Chef says
Tammie, my thoughts about using everything bagels are that you are a genius! That would be SO tasty, I can’t wait to try it myself 😀 I would think 3-4 regular sized bagels, and I’d cut them maybe a little smaller than the recipe calls for, but not TOO small, or there won’t be any texture 🙂
Jane Doe says
I used Chorizo and added Gouda cheese. Turned out amazing!
Liz says
Made this for a crowd at a Wimbledon champagne brunch, and it was fantastic. I swapped out the parsley for rosemary which gave it a slightly different flavor profile, rosemary is so nice in dishes with sausage. Everyone loved it, it is hearty, generous in size, and a little decadent. Thank you!
Alison Izat says
Fantastic recipe! A hit with my family and has now been added to our favourite recipe list.
Such peace of mind that my main course was prepped the night before too! Highly recommended.
Jeri Karp says
What changes should I make if I want it to serve 12. Eggs? Milk? Cheeses?
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Jeri 🙂 I would probably 1.5x all the ingredients, and use a whole loaf of bread. Just make sure you’re using a really big pan, I’d say at least 4 quarts, or a large lasagna pan. This may take longer to bake as well. I’ve never made it other than the recipe specifies, so I can’t say for certain the exact changes.