Whenever I’m hosting a brunch, my menu generally looks something like this: a sweet pastry (chocolate chip sconesare one of my favorites); smoked salmon, a dozen bagels and at least three different types of cream cheese from the bagel shop in our neighborhood; a bottle (or three) of champagne and a carafe of orange juice; a seasonal fresh fruit and yogurt parfait bar and of course, a baked egg dish that I can make the night before and bake off in the morning.
In the egg category, one of my favorite go-to recipes is this spinach and cheese strata that is rich, savory and perfect.
With the holiday season in full-swing, egg casseroles always make me think of the movie, “The Family Stone.”
Sarah Jessica Parker’s character meets her boyfriend’s parents for the first time and though everything is going terribly, she insists on making her family strata recipe for brunch, only to drop it all on the floor.
I had a nice internal chuckle when Brad told me, shortly after we began dating, that his family always had a breakfast casserole on Christmas Day – I won’t be making the Messerveys a breakfast casserole anytime soon out of sheer self-preservation.
Even though I might not be making the eggs this Christmas, I recently made this egg casserole, and it’s perfect for your family holiday celebrations. With Christmas falling on a Monday this year, it practically begs for a weekend-long celebration with not one or two, but three opportunities to break out your best brunch menu.
When I shop for entertaining, be it brunch (or as we’re hosting this year, appetizers on Christmas Eve) I shop at Jewel-Osco, where great-tasting organic food is affordable and easy to find. With the O Organics® and Open Nature® product lines available exclusively in the Chicago area at Jewel-Osco stores, it is easy to incorporate organic and good-for-you ingredients into your holiday meals.
I love the O Organics® products because when I use them in my recipes, I know they’ll consistently deliver on taste and quality. I buy eggs, milk, cheese, olive oil, balsamic vinegar and even most of my spices from the O Organics® line, because it never disappoints. The fact that their prices are completely reasonable make it so much easier to grocery shop, especially when I’m entertaining or picking up ingredients in bulk for holiday baking.
O Organics® products are available in the Chicago area, exclusively at Jewel-Osco. If you do not live near a Jewel-Osco you can also find them at all Albertsons Companies family of stores, including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Randalls, Tom Thumb, ACME Markets, Shaw’s, Star Market, United Supermarkets, Market Street, Albertsons Market and Carrs/Safeway.
Some of my favorite O Organics® products are versatile and practical – I always have a carton of eggs, a few bags of shredded cheese and a bottle of olive oil in my kitchen and these staples are the perfect base for a Christmas breakfast casserole.
Just be careful not to drop yours on the floor.
- 3 links Open Nature® chicken sausage, sliced lengthwise, then diced
- 2 cups for O Organics® mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons O Organics® Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
- ¼ cup chopped shallot
- 1 cup chopped roasted red bell peppers
- ½ chopped green bell pepper
- 1 cup chopped broccoli florets
- 12 O Organics® large eggs
- ¼ cup O Organics® 2% milk
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- Preheat the oven 375 degrees F. Coat the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish with 1 teaspoon of olive oil (you can use more, or a little butter, if you need it). Place 1 cup of cheese in the bottom of the baking dish.
- In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 more teaspoon olive oil and cook the sausage over medium-high heat until cooked through.
- Add shallots, and sauté until tender, about five minutes. Add red peppers, green peppers and broccoli and cook for about 1 minute until veggies are warmed through and begin to soften. Spread evenly in baking dish.
- In a large bowl, whisk eggs with milk. Pour over the veggie mixture and top with the remaining mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with parmesan, salt and pepper.
- Bake until casserole sets, sides begin bubbling and a knife inserted near the center comes out clean, about 35-40 minutes.
- Cut into 8 pieces and serve warm, or refrigerate covered for up to three days.
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