Breakfast Casserole
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In need of a brunch dish that’s both delicious and easy? My breakfast casserole, brimming with sausage and cheddar, is your answer. Simply assemble it the night before and bake it to golden perfection in the morning!
If you’re looking for a crowd-pleasing, stress-free brunch option—perfect for houseguests, Christmas morning, or any special occasion—this classic breakfast casserole recipe is the answer. Packed with savory sausage and cheddar cheese, with a creamy center and golden crust, it’s as flavorful as it is easy to make. Best of all, you can assemble it the night before and bake it in the morning, leaving you free to sip coffee and enjoy time with your guests.
This recipe has a wonderful backstory: it came to me from my dear friend Kelly Santoro, who got it from her friend Corey, who got it from his mother—who first discovered it in an old spiral-bound church cookbook. Such is the path of a great recipe!
“This recipe has become a Christmas morning tradition in our family! So good.”
What You’ll Need To Make The Breakfast Casserole
- Sausage: During the holidays, many grocery stores sell sausage in bulk, eliminating the need to remove casings. If you have links, simply remove the meat by squeezing it out or snipping the casing with scissors and peeling it away. Feel free to use chicken or turkey sausage for a lighter option, or for a vegetarian version, try my spinach and cheese strata.
- Yellow onion: Adds subtle sweetness and depth to the casserole.
- White sandwich bread: Acts as the base, soaking up the custard and giving the casserole its structure. No need to use anything fancy.
- Sharp cheddar (or any good melting cheese): Cheddar adds rich, tangy flavor, but Monterey Jack, Colby Jack, Gouda, or Gruyère all work well.
- Fresh parsley: Brightens everything up with fresh, herby flavor.
- Eggs + half-and-half: Whisk together to form the creamy, custard-like mixture that holds the casserole together.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Prep the bread. Cutting the bread into cubes about 1 inch in size, then set them aside.
Step 2: Cook the sausage and onions. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it into small pieces as you go, until it’s nicely browned, about 10 minutes. Scoop the sausage into a bowl, leaving the drippings in the pan. Turn the heat down to medium, add the onions and another tablespoon of butter, and cook until they’re soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
Step 3: Put the base ingredients together. Combine the onions, sausage, bread cubes, grated cheese, and parsley in a large bowl and toss well to combine.
Step 4: Make the custard. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, salt, and pepper.
Step 5: Assemble. Spread the casserole mixture into a buttered baking dish. Pour the egg mixture evenly over the top. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least a few hours, or overnight. (If you’d like to prep even further ahead, you can freeze the assembled casserole at this point for up to two months.)
Step 6: Bake. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake for about one hour, uncovered, until the dish has puffed up and the top of the bread is golden brown. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Video Tutorial
More Brunch Recipes To Feed A Crowd
Breakfast Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 1 pound sweet or spicy pork sausage, casings removed
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 loaf (18 slices) white sandwich bread, such as Pepperidge Farm, crusts removed and cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) cubes
- 2½ cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
- ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 6 large eggs
- 2 cups half-and-half
- Scant teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Grease a 9 x 13-inch (23 x 33-cm) baking dish with butter.
- In a large nonstick skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon to break the meat into small clumps, until browned, about 10 minutes. Transfer the sausage to a large mixing bowl, leaving the fat in the pan.
- Turn the heat down to medium, then add the onions to the pan along with the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Cook the onions, stirring constantly, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the onions to the mixing bowl with the sausage, along with the bread cubes, grated cheese, and parsley. Toss well, then spread the mixture evenly into the prepared baking pan.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, salt, and pepper.
- Pour the egg mixture evenly over the bread mixture. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position. Bake for about one hour, uncovered, until puffed and golden brown. Slice into squares and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Can this be frozen ahead of time?
Hi Kate, I’ve never tried freezing this dish, and not sure how well it would freeze with the eggs and dairy. Sorry!
This dish is regular in my freezer :))
Good to know, thank you! Cooked or uncooked, Marijeta?
Made this for the first time (I am very brave, but trust your recipes) for a potluck for our bridge group. As I moved through the room visiting the comments were: “Did you try this?? Who made it? It’s DELICIOUS!” and so on with variations. The cassserole dish was completely empty in short order. Like the others who have left rave reviews, I agree this is a keeper. The worst part is that because of my calorie counting I only tasted a small spoonful of it. Your recipes are the best on the net and my “go-to” site when I want to try something new. Thanks so much! Sigrid Price, Napa, CA
Stop what you’re doing and make this-IMMEDIATELY!! This is the best strata ever! My family loves it every time I make it. Do yourself a favor and double it for leftovers-you’ll thank me later! Jenn-I love that I can trust that every recipe you publish is fabulous! You’re my go to for new, interesting recipes!
I made this for my mom’s bridge group luncheon of eight women, substituting turkey sausage for the pork. They all raved about it! It was great to be able to make ahead, and then have her house smelling so wonderful as it was cooking in the oven as they arrived. As you suggested to one commenter, I made the strawberry and orange salad as a side dish – also a big hit! Perfect combo.
I trust every recipe you provide. I don’t think I’ve ever had a miss. Well done!
I substituted pork sausage for ground beef. My 3,5 (veeery picky) and 2-year-old DEVOURED their plates (hurraaaay). Is there a way to make it taste more like the original recipe? What seasonings would you recommend? Sould I add some pancetta? Thank you:)
So glad they enjoyed it, Marijeta! I’m not sure what you mean by the original recipe, but I’m sure a little pancetta would be delicious and you could always use fresh herbs, like thyme or rosemary.
I’m sorry I didn’t make my question clear enough. When I said “original recipe” it meant the recipe how you posted it. Since I substitute ground beef for sausage it is a bit healthier but it’s definitely not tastier. I’m curious is there a way to make ground meat taste more like sausage 😀
Ahh- got it! Yes, sausage does have a lot more flavor – Some spices I would add to ground beef to more closely mimic sausage — a bit of oregano, Italian seasoning, whole or ground fennel seeds, paprika, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Hope that helps!
This recipe is outstanding – perfect for a breakfast gathering! I have made this multiple times to take to school for our staff, and it is always a hit. I am a faithful fan of Jen’s awesome recipes!
This delicious bread pudding is loaded with flavor! I made it for New Year’s Day brunch and all were delighted. I try to eat healthy and this is just a bit more cheesy creamy than I normally cook but worth the splurge for the holiday. It is very satisfying and easy to make.
Hi Jenn
This sounds delicious and would love to make it. Is there a way you could send me the ingredients for two? Thanks your recipes are great, appreciate any help you can give me.
Hi Mary, So glad you like the recipes. If you want to make this to serve two, Math is not my strong suit, but I’d cut all the ingredients by 2/3. Hope you enjoy if you make it!
Made some changes so I didn’t want to rate this the 5 stars it probably deserves. I halved the recipe to make in 8×8 pan.
Used Jimmy Dean Turkey Sausage Crumbles, added chopped red & green pepper with the onion, but forgot to saute before adding to the bread cubes (oops – but turned out fine). Also added about 1/2-1tsp of ground mustard.
My bread seemed a little dry after I added the egg mix, even though I stirred it well, so I added another egg and some more 1/2 and 1/2. MISTAKE!
Took almost 2 hours of baking to absorb all the liquid. Next time, rather than pouring the egg mixture over the bread in the pan, I’ll mix bread, vegs, & egg mix in a bowl to make sure all the bread is absorbing the egg mix.
All of that said, it was delicious and is added to my favorites!
Dry Mustard powder is key !
Made this for Christmas breakfast, after having transported the dry and wet mixes to the house I’m staying at. Verdict: request to make this a Christmas tradition! Excellent and easy.