Breakfast Casserole with Mama Jess Garden Pasta Sauce
Posted by mama jess on Jun 8, 2018 in blog, blogs, good meals, recipes, Uncategorized
Breakfast casseroles may be completely out of style but I’m going to keep loving them until the end of time. My mom started a holiday tradition of breakfast casseroles on Christmas, Easter or any other significant morning, so for me they feel a bit celebratory. She often used the overnight recipes that were so convenient; prep ingredients and assemble the night before and then throw it in the oven to bake first thing in the morning.
Lately we’ve been knee deep in all sorts of wonderful life craziness; end of the school year, house construction, summer travel and kids home all. dang. day. Which means amidst all the construction dust and coming and going, they’re asking for food in what feels like 45 minute increments. Our go to breakfast of yogurt and fruit or even scrambled eggs just isn’t cutting it anymore. With all the extra physical activity kids get in the summer it makes sense that they’re extra hungry. So we’ve been doubling down at meal times in an attempt to keep them full for longer than 5 minutes.
Enter breakfast casserole. I love it because I can easily make it on the weekend and reheat and serve all week. We even tested out the make-ahead version that assembles the night before and cooks in the morning, and it works like a dream. The kids love it because it’s something different from our same old boring breakfast routine (truth be told; they mash it between two pieces of bread and call it a breakfast sandwich. I’ve taught them well.) And we all love that they are finally full.
This recipe is a lovely mix of veggies, eggs and Italian sausage to strike the perfect balance between healthy and indulgent. And the kids barely even know they’re eating spinach, peppers and zucchini for breakfast.
If you can eat dairy, by all means, add it! I’ve never met any type of casserole that didn’t benefit from some bubbly cheese. But if you can’t, have no fear; the coconut milk and grated zucchini give this casserole an amazing creaminess.
And while lots of egg casseroles can be a bit bland for me, especially the vegetable-centered ones, this is full of flavor from the Italian sausage, Mama Jess Garden Pasta Sauce and tons of fresh herbs.
I know this one will go over splendidly at your next brunch or during you next weekly meal prep. If you make it, let us know! We’re on Facebook @mamajess and Instagram @mamajessfounder.
-XO,
The Mamas at Mama Jess
- 2 T olive oil, divided
- 1 lb Italian sausage (raw and in bulk or removed from links)
- 1/2 yellow onion, chopped
- 8 oz package white button mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 5 oz fresh baby spinach or 1 cup frozen chopped spinach
- 1 zucchini, grated
- 2 tsp salt, divided
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 dozen eggs
- 1 cup Mama Jess Garden Pasta Sauce
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1/4 cup chopped basil
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
- Preheat the oven to 325 F.
- In a large saute pan, heat 1 T of olive oil over medium heat. Add the Italian sausage, and cook until it is well browned, breaking up the sausage in to small pieces as it cooks. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- In the same pan heat the remaining 1 T of olive oil. Add the onion and mushrooms and cook for 4-6 minutes or until the onions are soft and the mushrooms have released their liquid.
- Add the bell peppers and spinach and cook for another 3 minutes.
- Add the grated zucchini and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Season this vegetable mixture with 1/2 tsp salt and pepper and set aside to cool.
- In a large mixing bowl combine the eggs, Mama Jess Sauce, coconut milk and remaining salt. Whisk well.
- When the vegetables have cooled add them to egg mixture along with the sausage and chopped herbs.
- Pour the mixture into a well greased 9 x 13 baking pan and cook at 325 for 1 hour. The casserole will be done with the top is lightly browned and the middle is set.
- Feel free to prep the entire casserole the night before serving, store in the fridge over night and bake it in the morning. Do note that the bake time will be extended by about 15 minutes when cooking from cold.
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