If you like a good sausage, egg, & cheese breakfast sandwich, you will LOVE this sausage egg and cheese breakfast casserole! It is fluffy & light, yet filling. Stuffed with savory sausage, bread, eggs, and gooey cheese. And the best part – it is simple and EASY to make with very few ingredients (many that you likely already have on hand!). It’s the perfect breakfast crowd pleaser!
Breakfast is my FAVORITE meal of the day. Who’s with me?! We do simple breakfasts mostly on the weekdays because of the season of life we are in with little ones. Yogurt & granola. Oatmeal. Scrambled eggs & toast. On the weekends, we like to do a special cooked breakfast as a family. But I am the default breakfast maker. And on occasion – momma needs to sleep in. Or at the very least – have a slower morning with an actual warm cup of coffee. Am I right?!
Make-ahead breakfast casserole for the win!
Assemble this easy-peasy egg casserole the night before and put it in the fridge for the bread to soak up all the eggy goodness. Pull it out in the morning and toss it into a cold oven. (Ok – don’t really toss it. No one wants to clean up raw egg first thing in the morning.) Turn oven on. Set a timer. And pour yourself a hot cup of coffee to enjoy while your breakfast cooks. And as a bonus – you probably won’t have any complaints. Everyone – from young to old – seems to love this breakfast casserole. And it is filling enough that little ones won’t be immediately asking for a snack (moms – you know what I’m talking about!).
This recipe is not a lagniappe table original. It was passed down to me from my mom. For many years, I thought this was her recipe. We had this delicious breakfast casserole every Christmas morning, Easter, when I came home from college, and other special occasions. Then one day I asked her about it, and found out she got it from my Aunt Be Be. Who got it from an old church cookbook. It was originally called “Breakfast Before.” Garrett always says, “Before what?” Ha! My assumption is that it gets the name from making it the night before, and cooking it for breakfast in the morning.
A Few Simple Ingredients
You don’t need a lot of fancy ingredients to make this breakfast casserole! Plain white bread forms the base. If you want to make it healthier, you could use whole wheat or homemade sourdough. Any kind of stale bread you have on hand works great in this recipe! You’ll also need some shredded cheddar – I usually like to buy a block and shred it myself, but when you’re in a rush, a bag of shredded sharp cheddar is a great time-saver. For the sausage, you can choose whether you want a mild or spicy breakfast sausage. I usually double the recipe and use one spicy and one mild. Then of course you’ll need some eggs, milk, salt – and the secret ingredient that makes this the BEST breakfast casserole: dry mustard powder. It sounds strange, but just trust me on this one!
Night Before: Assemble the Breakfast Casserole
The prep work for this casserole is super simple. First brown the sausage, drain excess grease, allow to cool for a few minutes. While sausage is cooling, grease a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Then set aside one slice of bread and cube the rest. Place 1 slice of bread in the center, and around that place a little less than half the bread cubes. Layer on the sausage, then cheese. Repeat the layers – bread, sausage, cheese.
Next you will mix your wet ingredients. Crack eggs into a large bowl. Whisk. Then add your seasoning: salt and mustard powder. Whisk again. Finally, add the milk and whisk one last time until fully combined.
Pour the egg mixture over your layers in the casserole dish. Press ingredients down gently with spoon or spatula to be sure everything is saturated in the egg mixture. Cover and place in the fridge overnight.
In the Morning: Cook the Breakfast Casserole
Remove casserole from the refrigerator. Uncover the casserole dish. And place in a COLD oven.
Turn oven on to 350 degrees. Allow to cook (uncovered) for 45-55 minutes – until the eggs are cooked through, cheese is melted, and bread around the edges starts to get golden brown. Allow to cool for 15 minutes to let the eggs set. Top with parsley or chives if you want to be extra fancy (definitely not necessary). That’s it! Seriously so easy!
I’ve made a couple small tweaks to proportions over the years, but for the most part the recipe remains unchanged. I recently decided that it is just too good to stay hidden away on a stained recipe card. This casserole is not fancy at all, but it reminds me of my mom and home and family and friends. It brings back sweet memories, as my family creates new memories around the table. I hope you will enjoy it as much as we have over the years!
If you try it (and I hope you will!), be sure to comment below to let me know if you and your family like it!
Sausage Egg & Cheese Breakfast Casserole
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading...This easy make-ahead breakfast casserole is fluffy & light, yet filling. Stuffed with savory sausage, bread, eggs, and gooey cheese, it is sure to become a family favorite!
Ingredients
- 1 lb breakfast sausage (mild or spicy)
- 8 slices bread (white, wheat, or sourdough)
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 8 eggs
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp dry mustard
- 2 1/2 cups milk
- Parsley or chives (optional)
Instructions
The Night Before
Brown the sausage. Drain excess grease. Set aside to cool.
Meanwhile, spray or grease a 9x13 casserole dish. Set aside 1 slice of bread. Cube the remaining slices of bread into about 1" pieces (it doesn't have to be perfect!)
Place about 1/2 the bread cubes around the whole slice of bread. Top with sausage & cheese.
Repeat the layers: bread cubes, sausage, cheese.
Make your egg mixture by whisking eggs in a large bowl. Add salt & mustard powder and whisk until there are no clumps of seasoning. Add milk and whisk one more time until fully combined.
Next, pour your egg mixture over layers in the casserole dish. Press layers down gently with a spatula or spoon to be sure all the bread is saturated with the egg mixture.
Cover casserole dish with lid or foil and place in refrigerator overnight.
In the Morning
Remove casserole dish from fridge and uncover.
Place in COLD oven. Turn oven on to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Cook for 45-55 minutes until eggs are cooked through, cheese is melted, and bread begins to brown around the edges.
Remove from oven and allow to set and cool for 15 minutes before serving.
Top with parsley or chives if you want to be extra fancy, or just chow down!
Favorite Kitchen Tools
You don’t need many tools to make this recipe! But here are a few of my favorite kitchen tools that I use when I make this breakfast casserole. These are some of the tools I use over and over again!
Meals for Friends: My Top 10 Tips & Why It Matters - Lagniappe Table
September 24, 2022 at 5:09 pm[…] Sausage Egg & Cheese Breakfast Casserole […]