Food Musings

I crave a good breakfast casserole.  It’s easy because you can make it the night before when you have company and pop it in the oven that morning.  It’s also enticing because it’s a dish that has everything you need for breakfast…delicious eggs, spicy sausage, melted cheese and bread to mop it all up with.  However, I always felt there was something missing.  Fortunately, the last time I prepared a breakfast casserole, Greg mentioned that there was one ingredient missing…potatoes.

Potatoes were a brilliant idea!  I could either mix them in with the rest of the casserole or place them on top like a Shepherds’ Pie.

Thus, even though I wasn’t feeling 100% Christmas morning, I got up a little earlier than Greg and prepared a new recipe of breakfast casserole (new for me).  I decided to combine the best of my favorite breakfast casserole recipe, favorite quiche, and add the potatoes on top.

The first stage was to decide how to insure that the potatoes were fully cooked.  I decided to go ahead and par- cook (partially cook) them in the same pan that I had already used to cook the sausage in.  After that…what to do about browning them on top?  Of course, broiling was the easiest way to accomplish that trick.

Instead of using a large casserole dish I decided to utilize two pie plates.  Greg and I kept one for ourselves that morning and I brought the other to my mother while it was still warm.  Raymond and Mom ate it that day and the next for breakfast and really enjoyed it.  Greg and I did the same.

I do want to apologize to all of my English friends about loosely using the word – Shepherds’ Pie.  I do know that this is not the proper use of that term, but I loved it for these breakfast pies.  I hope you do too!

Breakfast Shepherds’ Pie

• 1 lb spicy breakfast sausage (cooked)
• 1 Lb shredded potatoes
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 8 eggs
• 2 cups half and half
• 2 tablespoons Olive oil
• 8 ounces bread cubes or bread
• 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil spray or olive oil

In the same pan that you cooked the sausage, warm olive oil and cook potatoes over medium heat for about 15 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 350°.  Spray olive oil spray or lightly grease two pie pans.  Whisk green onions, eggs and half and half in a large bowl.

Equally line the pans with the bread cubes.  Sprinkle the bread with the cooked sausage and cheese.  Equally pour the egg mixture over both pans.  Lay the potatoes over both pans and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Cook uncovered for 40 minutes or until the egg mixture is set.  Turn on broiler and set the pans closer to top of oven so you can brown the potatoes.

Let rest for about 15 minutes before serving.