Sausage and Egg Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients

• 1 lb pork breakfast sausage i.e. Jimmy Dean or similar
• 1 medium sweet onion ( finely diced)
• 1 medium red bell pepper (seeded and diced)
• 1 medium green bell pepper or poblano pepper (seeded and diced)
• 8 cups cubed French bread or brioche bread (day old, preferably)
• 2 cups frozen hash browns (thawed)
• 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese
• 8 large eggs
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tsp seasoned salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp garlic powder or granulated garlic
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp dry mustard (ground mustard)
• fresh chives or fresh parsley for garnishing

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the sausage in a skillet over medium-high heat until browned and no pink remains. Drain excess fat from the pan, set aside.

2. 2

   To the pan add the onion, red bell pepper and green bell peppers. continue to cook until softened, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat.

3. 3

   Assemble: Spray a 13x9-inch casserole dish with cooking spray. Spread the cubed French bread evenly in the prepared dish. Scatter the thawed hashbrowns over the bread.

4. 4

   Top with the cooked sausage and sautéed vegetable mixture. Toss both flavors of cheese together then sprinkle 1/2 over all.

5. 5

   In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, heavy cream, seasoned salt, black pepper, garlic powder, dry mustard and onion powder until smooth.

6. 6

   Pour the egg mixture evenly over the casserole, gently pressing the bread and hashbrowns down to help them absorb the liquid. Let it sit for 15 minutes, allowing some of the liquid to soak into the bread gently pressing with the back of a spoon, to fully submerge, if needed. Sprinkle the top with the reserved cheese.

7. 7

   Cover with plastic wrap and chill overnight. (You can bake immediately, if needed but overnight allows time for the eggs to soak into the bread.)

8. 8

   Preheat the oven to 350°F. Remove from fridge and let stand at room temperature for 10-15 minutes on the counter. Uncover, transfer pan to oven and bake for 50–60 minutes OR until the center is set and the top is golden brown. (Check it at 45 minutes and cover with foil if browning too quickly.)

9. 9

   Let stand 5-10 minutes then slice and serve garnished with fresh chives or parsley.