Easy Breakfast Casserole With Bacon - Layers of delicious fluffy bread soaked in milk and egg mixture and then baked with bacon & cheese until perfection. A perfect casserole dish for breakfast or brunch!
I've been experimenting with some strata/frittata recipes lately - both sweet and savory. One of my favorites are coming very soon to this blog, so keep your eyes peeled 🙂 Hint: strawberries and croissants!
There is a skip-to-recipe button in the top left corner along with a clickable table of contents list (just below) that will quickly take you to the part you are more interested in. Enjoy!
If you like easy breakfast recipes like this, be sure to check out my Farmer's Casserole next time.
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Have you tried any Breakfast Casserole (Strata) before? What is your favorite filling? Please let me know down below in the comments, I really can't even decide which ones to make for the blog as all of them are so tasty!
It is so simple and quick to make, and is even better enjoyed later at room temperature and of course not only for breakfast 🙂
Let me explain first what is a Breakfast Casserole (Breakfast Strata) and how to make this simple breakfast casserole. Let's go!
So what is a Strata? It is basically a ‘’breakfast’’ casserole with an egg and bread base soaked (ideally) overnight and then mixed with other ingredients like cheese, veggies, sausage, or bacon, ham.
It is then transferred to a casserole dish and baked until the cheese is melted and the outside exterior crisp and golden brown.
I usually let it soak for 1-2 hours but if you have an older bread that you want to use up, try soaking it overnight and baking the strata in the morning.
Strata is still very tasty when at room temperature, or reheats very well in the oven or microwave.
Instructions
Prep. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs first, then add milk or heavy cream, salt, and pepper, italian seasoning.
Whisk until all the ingredients are combined. Set aside.
Cook. In a skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until slightly crispy and reserve 2-3 tablespoons for garnish.
Drain on a plate lined with paper towel.
Transfer the sliced bread, bacon, green onions, and cheese (reserve ½ cup for later) to the egg mixture, mix until bread is fully covered in the mixture, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
After 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C) and grease a casserole dish with butter.
Bake. When the bread and egg mixture is soaked and ready, gently transfer to the casserole dish.
Top with leftover cheese and bacon. Cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes.
Remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes until eggs are cooked through (check with a toothpick that there are no raw eggs) and the strata exterior looking crispy and golden brown.
After removing from the oven, let it sit for 5-10 minutes, top with sliced green onions, parsley and serve with a fresh green salad and a cup of coffee. Yummy!
Tips
Cheese - choose any grated cheese that melts well like Cheddar, Monterey Jack, or mozzarella. For extra flavor add crumbled feta, goat, or cotija cheese for garnish when the strta is ready.
Bread - baguette, croissants, toasts, buns, most of the gluten-free options will work here. Also, any older bread will work too, but make sure to soak at least 3 hours in the egg mixture, for even better results leave it overnight. With fresh bread, you can leave it for 1-2 hours in the egg mixture. Please note that if the baguette or your bread crust is too thick and hard, either cut it off or soak longer until it becomes soft. You want to have a smooth and fluffy center for the Strata.
Milk - low fat or full fat is fine, also for rich and creamy flavor try using heavy cream instead!
For baking - place a tray in the bottom of the oven or under the casserole as it may leak a bit (also depending on your baking dish, ideally 9x13 inch will fit the strata but you I’ve used smaller ones too).
Variations
The options to customize this dish are limitless! But here’s few of my favorites:
Basic and Easy Breakfast Casserole - meat options:
- Instead of Bacon - sausage, pepperoni, kielbasa, ham, pulled chicken (rotisserie, slow cooker bbq chicken), ground beef, salmon.
- Spicy - try mix of spicy salami, chopped jalapeno (pickled or fresh), slices of onion, cheese.
- Spinach, ham, and cheese
Vegan Breakfast Casserole:
- Milk - almond or oatmeal are great substitutes for regular dairy milk. I haven’t tried vegan cheese with this dish but if you do try, please let me know in the comments section how it went 🙂 Thanks!
- For more flavors - add 1-2 tablespoons of green or red pesto to the egg mixture.
- Mediterranean - artichoke, plum or sun-dried tomatoes, olives, onions (red or white), feta and crumbles and ruccola leaves on top for garnish.
- Instead of cheese try vegan cheese options or vegan creamy sauce like Bechamel, I haven't tried this but should work fine too!
- Try mix of mushrooms, asparagus and spinach or kale.
Vegetarian:
- Green vegetable breakfast casserole V1 - mushrooms, asparagus and spinach with crumbled feta of corija cheese on top for garnish.
- Green vegetable breakfast casserole V2 - Asparagus and spinach, kale, zucchini
- Tomatoes, mozzarella, seasonal veggies
FAQ
What is the difference between frittata and strata?
Frittata is more of an omelet with different ingredients except for the bread. It is often prepared in the skillet or cake pan.
Strata on the other hand require more steps and one of them is soaking the bread in the milk and egg mixture overnight (preferably). It is then baked in a casserole dish and is thicker and fluffier than a frittata dish.
How long does a strata need to soak?
In my experience, the fresher bread - the better. Why? Because it is softer and requires less soaking in egg and milk mixture and is perfect for achieving a creamy and smooth filling as we want in a Strata.
More Egg Breakfast Recipes
ALL BREAKFAST recipes.
I hope you enjoy this super duper easy Breakfast casserole With Bacon and please let me know what are your favorite filling ideas for this 🙂 Thank you!
Julia
This recipe is inspired by Recipe Tin Eats - Cheese & Bacon strata cake.
Easy Breakfast Casserole With Bacon
INGREDIENTS
- 7 medium-sized eggs
- ¾ of a whole baguette (gluten free) (sliced into 1-2 inch thick pieces (see notes))
- 10-12 oz bacon (diced)
- 2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 2-3 tablespoon Green onion ( chopped)
- 1 ¼ cups of milk ( or heavy cream)
- Salt and pepper ( to taste)
- 2 ⅓ cups of cheddar cheese (grated, see notes)
- 2 tablespoon of Parsley (or chives/ green onion chopped)
- Butter for greasing the casserole
- Vegetable oil for cooking
INSTRUCTIONS
- Prep. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs first, then add milk or heavy cream, salt, and pepper, Italian seasoning. Whisk until all the ingredients are combined. Set aside.
- Cook. In a skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until slightly crispy and reserve 2-3 tablespoons for garnish. Drain on a plate lined with a paper towel.
- Transfer the sliced bread, bacon, green onions, and cheese (reserve ½ cup for later) to the egg mixture, mix until bread is fully covered in the mixture, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- After 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C) and grease a casserole dish with butter.
- Bake. When the bread and egg mixture is soaked and ready, gently transfer to the casserole dish. Top with leftover cheese and bacon. Cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes until eggs are cooked through (check with a toothpick that there are no raw eggs) and the strata exterior looking crispy and golden brown.
- After removing from the oven, let it sit for 15-20 minutes, top with sliced green onions, parsley and serve with fresh green salad and a cup of coffee. Yummy!
NOTES
PRIVATE NOTES
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)
Marge
Made this casserole yesterday but in different dish and it was so good and so fluffy!
Soaked the bread for 5 hours only. Delicious!!
Julia
Thank you Marge, so glad that you liked it!
Karyn Roesler
Never bacon…hate mushy bacon…just a personal opinion. Ham or breakfast sausage, but again…the sausage gets mushy and I like links that have a crispy outside…I know…I’m difficult! Other than that I will try this because it looks delicious! Just with ham! Thank you
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
absolutely! Ham is a great substitute. Another thing with bacon is to perhaps choose the thickest bacon and cut it into larger pieces or leave whole strips inside. But I haven't tried it this way yet:)
Lyn
What a great make ahead breakfast idea!! I haven't made a strata before, but thinking now that I will need to try it out!
Julia
thank you, hope you'll love this one!
Deb
Recipe sounds easy and delicious! Approximately how many cups of bread would equal one baguette cut into cubes?
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
great question, I will have to measure it out soon. But an average length about 26-30 cm I thin would be 4 cups?
Robin
I used dried out Baguettes and soaked them overnight. I didn't add the cheese, bacon or chives until this morning, because I don't like mushy bacon either. It appeared dry to me (probably because the Baguettes were dried out) so I added 4 more eggs over the top. Put the toppings on after taking the foil off to help crunchy it up.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
Interesting! I soak the mixture for just one hour, with medium-old bread. Some baguettes vary indeed, and it is good advice to soak them separately until softened enough. My casserole was pretty juicy after baking!