Take your favorite egg and cheese bagel sandwich and turn it into a breakfast casserole instead! This breakfast cake is an easy crowd pleaser.
BE PICTURED IN; CHARACTERIZED IN:
I’ll be the first to admit I’m not a breakfast person. The thought of waking up and working to support myself (or others) makes me turn over and go back to sleep.
That was all well and good when I was single, but now I have a tall, burly husband and two teenagers who are always hungry. They simply believe that breakfast is the best meal of the day.
Easy to make breakfast dishes like this Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Breakfast Bagel Casserole are now a necessity for me.
Turn bagels into a make-ahead casserole
Rather than worrying about individual sandwiches for the whole family, I threw together the ingredients of my favorite breakfast bagel sandwich and baked them in one casserole.
The slightly sweet, chewy bagels crisp up right on the edge of the casserole, while the sage note in the sausage and the sharp cheddar blend into a savory flavor that makes it a quintessential breakfast dish.
Breakfast casseroles like these make mornings more bearable as they can be made with minimal effort and can often be made in the evening before you decide to enjoy them. They are ideal when you have to feed a crowd in the morning.
Simply chug along according to the recipe the night before, wrap the dish in foil and put it in the fridge. Get the dish out of the fridge in the morning and let it warm on the counter for a few minutes while the oven preheats (this takes the chill off). Then simply slide into the hot oven and bake as directed.
Adapt this recipe to your own taste!
Not only is this casserole economical, it’s one of the most filling and versatile meals I’ve ever created.
Change up the flavors by using chorizo instead of sage sausage; or use Swiss cheese instead of cheddar. If you’re allergic to seeds, swap out the all-purpose bagels for the plain or whole-grain breads instead. The combinations you can create from this basic recipe are practically endless.
More great breakfast casseroles!
- Baked Blueberry French Toast
- Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole
- Ham and Cheese Breakfast Casserole
- Sausage Breakfast Casserole
- French toast casserole
Bagel breakfast casserole with sausage, egg and cheese
ingredients
-
6 (20 ounce packet) all bagels
-
7 large eggs
-
2 1/2 cups half and half
-
1 teaspoon kosher salt
-
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
-
1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil
-
1 pound breakfast sausage (I used sage)
-
1 red bell pepper, diced (about 1 cup)
-
1 small yellow onion, peeled and diced (about 1 cup)
-
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, divided
-
3 cups (8 ounces) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded and divided
method
-
Prepare oven
Preheat your oven to 350°F, then lightly grease or butter a 13″ x 9″ baking dish.
-
Prepare bagels:
Using a serrated bread knife, cut each bagel into bite-sized pieces. I like to cut the bagel in half (top to bottom) and then cut each half into quarters. Try to cut the bagel into pieces no larger than 1 inch.
-
Make the egg mixture and mix it with the bagels
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, half and half, salt and pepper until no yolks are visible and the mixture is smooth.
Add the sliced bagels to the egg mixture and toss with a large spoon or spatula to coat the bread in the liquid. Set this aside to let the bread soak while you brown the sausage.
-
Cook sausage, onion and pepper:
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering (this should take about a minute).
Add the breakfast sausage to the pan and begin to brown. Using a wooden spoon, break the sausage into small pieces until the sausage is about the size of pistachios. It shouldn’t look hacked.
Once the sausage is cooked through and browned (about 5 minutes), use a spoon to make a well in the center of the pan. Add the diced peppers and onions. Stir them in with the sausage and cook the mixture for an additional 3 to 4 minutes or until the vegetables are shiny and soft.
Drain off excess fat by straining the mixture into a sieve, then allow the mixture to cool for 5 minutes. This is a great time to shred your cheese if you haven’t already.
-
Combine the sausage, bagel, and egg mixture.
Once your sausage mixture has cooled slightly, add it to the bagel and egg mixture. Add 1 tablespoon parsley and 2 cups cheddar cheese. Toss the ingredients together to combine them evenly.
-
Assemble casserole:
Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish and cover with aluminum foil.
Prep Step: At this point you can refrigerate the dish overnight and bake in the morning. Once ready to bake, remove the casserole dish twenty minutes before baking, then do the following.
-
Bake the casserole:
Cover with foil and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, then carefully remove the pan from the oven and remove the foil.
Place pan back in oven and bake for an additional 25 minutes or until center is no longer wobbly and top is browned.
-
Cool and serve:
Remove the pan from the oven and immediately top with the remaining cheese and parsley. Allow the casserole to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
