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 cheese, 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 weekend guests, Christmas morning, or any special occasion—this classic breakfast casserole recipe is the answer. Packed with savory sausage, tangy cheddar, and a creamy center topped with a 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 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!
“It’s the perfect breakfast casserole. It’s quickly become my family’s go-to holiday or special event breakfast. So simple, so easy to prep, and so flavorful.”
What You’ll Need To Make The Breakfast Casserole
- Sweet or spicy pork sausage: During the holidays, many grocery stores offer sausage in bulk, eliminating the need to remove casings. Alternatively, you can easily remove the meat from its casings by squeezing it out or snipping the casing with scissors and peeling it away. Feel free to replace the pork sausage with chicken or turkey sausage for a lighter option; for a vegetarian version, try my spinach and cheese strata.
- Yellow onion: Provides a subtle sweetness and depth of flavor.
- White sandwich bread: Serves as the structure of the casserole, absorbing the egg mixture and giving body and texture to the final dish.
- Grated sharp cheddar cheese: Adds a rich, tangy flavor that complements the spices in the sausage, while also contributing to the casserole’s cheesy, creamy texture. I love cheddar here, but any good melting cheese such as Monterey jack, Colby jack, gouda, or Gruyère will work nicely.
- Fresh parsley: Lends color and fresh, herby flavor.
- Large Eggs: Bind the ingredients together, creating the custard-like base that solidifies when baked and gives the casserole structure.
- Half-and-half: Enhances the creaminess and richness of the egg mixture.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Start by cutting the bread into cubes. Set aside.
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a nonstick large skillet 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 bowl, leaving the grease in the pan. Reduce the temperature to medium heat, then add the onions to the pan along with 1 tablespoon of butter. Cook the onions, stirring constantly, until soft and translucent, about 5 min.
Add the onions to the mixing bowl with the sausage, along with the bread cubes, grated cheese and parsley.
Stir well, then spread the mixture into an even layer in 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 saran wrap and put in the fridge for at least a few hours or overnight. (At this point you can also freeze the casserole for up to two months.)
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.
Video Tutorial
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Breakfast Casserole
In need of a brunch dish that’s both delicious and easy? My breakfast casserole, brimming with sausage and Cheddar cheese, is your answer. Simply assemble it the night before and bake it to golden perfection in the morning!
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 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 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 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.
- Note: The cook time is based on cooking the bread pudding directly out of the refrigerator. If it's left to sit out at room temperature before baking, check for doneness after 45 minutes.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: To freeze the casserole before baking, assemble it according to the recipe, but don't bake it. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap and then aluminum foil. It can be frozen for up to two months. When you're ready to bake, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight, then bake as directed.
- Reheating Instructions: The best way to reheat the casserole is in the oven. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C), cover the casserole with aluminum foil to prevent it from drying out, and heat for about 20 minutes, or until warmed through. For individual portions, a microwave can be used, heating in 30-second intervals until hot.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Calories: 669
- Fat: 44 g
- Saturated fat: 20 g
- Carbohydrates: 37 g
- Sugar: 8 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 32 g
- Sodium: 1098 mg
- Cholesterol: 251 mg
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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Hi Jenn!
I made this yummy, scrumptious breakfast casserole for a brunch I hosted last weekend. Everyone loved it and went back for seconds! I loved the parsley and onions in it. I used the Pepperidge Farm sandwich bread as you recommended and cut off the crusts; but I did use both heel ends of the bread in it and loved the crunchy and velvety texture. I served it along with pancakes, vanilla yogurt topped with fresh fruit, bacon and breakfast potatoes. (We had a big crowd!). I am already craving Savory Sausage and Cheddar Bread Pudding so I will have to make it again very soon because it was SO good! I cannot wait to make it for my kids’ teacher appreciation breakfasts that pop up throughout the school year! This is a total winner and my very first recipe of yours that I have tried. I will be making many more of your delicious-looking and mouth-watering recipes, Jenn!! Thank you for making my family brunch such a success!!!
Such a good, quick and easy recipe! I made some changes by using brioche bread and a mix of turkey and chicken sausage. It quickly became a new favorite of ours. Thanks for the recipe!
This was absolutely delicious!! I made it for a brunch we had today and it was so convenient to put it together last night and throw it in the oven this morning. Everyone really liked it! I baked it in a smaller dish, it turned out great still, but I’ll be buying the right size serving dish for next time because everything was smushed together instead of a little airy. I served this with Jenn’s recipe for homemade applesauce, which paired really well with the flavors and was also amazing!! I made the applesauce the night before as well, I will definitely be using this menu again 🙂
I’m planning I make a 1/2 recipe and would be using a smaller baking dish, would I still need to cook for an hour?
Hi Marina, I’d start checking around 45 minutes. Enjoy!
That’s how long I cooked it for and it worked great.
Hello, Instead of ground pork, could another lean meat be used? If so what could be the options? Thanks!
Hi Parita, Both turkey and chicken sausage would both work well here. Hope you enjoy!
My question: If I wanted to refrigerate the sausage cheddar pudding overnight, could I add the cubed bread pieces in the morning to avoid becoming mush before cooking?
Yumm,
Helen
Sure, Helen – that’s fine.
Hi Jen,
Can you substitute the sausage for any other kind of meat?
Hi D, The sausage adds a lot of flavor here – you could try chicken or turkey sausage as an alternative.
We made this for Christmas Eve Breakfast. It was great! We doubled the recipe expecting to have a pan leftover but it was so good, we didn’t have much left at all. Very easy to make. We have several family members that are eating low carb, so we used a low carb bread and it worked perfectly!
Jenn – I love all your recipes – you are ,my go to website and I have sent all of my friends your way!! We have celiac disease, do you think I could sub out the bread for frozen hash browns? Or some sort of potatoes? Thanks!!
Hi Sue, So glad you’re enjoying the recipes! I do think this recipe could work with frozen hash browns. I’d love to know how it turns out if you try it.
Would this be as good without the onions? I have someone that is allergic to them.
Hi Delores, the onions do add a nice flavor but it will still be good without them. You may want to consider replacing the onions with diced fennel bulb. If you saute it, it loses its anise flavor and becomes mellow but slightly sweet.