Rustic Morning Strata
This is a great dish to have in your arsenal for a crowd of hungry breakfast guests. It's really easy, it's a "kitchen sink" kind of dish where you can use almost anything in it, and you prep it the night before so all you do in the A.M. is pop it in the oven.
Prep this dish the day before you plan to serve it. First, stale your bread. Cut up some old bread, the crustier the better, into roughly 2" (bite size) pieces. Let it sit out for a few hours, so it dries out and hardens-this will maintain its texture with all the egg filling.
Butter the inside of your baking dish- use a casserole or rectangular deep dish, at least 3 qts. In a chef's pan or deep skillet, heat up your oil and cook your sausage or ground turkey. Sauté over medium high until cooked through (about 7-8 min.) Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Into the pan add in the shallots and a little salt, continue to cook over medium heat, until translucent but not burnt. Add in the greens and cook until just starting to wilt, no more than 2 min. Turn off the heat.
In a mixing bowl, crack in the eggs, add the milk, the spices and another 1/4 tsp salt and whisk together. Now you start to do your lasagna-style layering.
Bottom layer: dried out bread cubes. 2nd layer: half of the sausage. 3rd layer: half of "Your Choice Cooked Veggie"- broccoli, cauliflower or spaghetti squash. 4th layer: half the greens. 5th layer: half of the cheese. Repeat, and use up all the ingredients. Then, pour your egg-milk-spice mixture over top. If it doesn't cover all of the ingredients, whisk up some extra eggs, milk and salt n' pepper. Cover it tightly with saran-wrap and put in the fridge over night.
In the morning, take the strata out of the fridge half an hour before you plan to cook it. Heat up the oven to 350, and enjoy your coffee. Remove the plastic wrap, cover the top with your sliced red peppers, and pop it in the oven for 45 minutes, until it smells great, is golden on top, and the center isn't jiggly. Cool for 5 minutes, and breakfast is served. Goes great with a big salad with apples and lettuce.
Ingredients
Directions
Prep this dish the day before you plan to serve it. First, stale your bread. Cut up some old bread, the crustier the better, into roughly 2" (bite size) pieces. Let it sit out for a few hours, so it dries out and hardens-this will maintain its texture with all the egg filling.
Butter the inside of your baking dish- use a casserole or rectangular deep dish, at least 3 qts. In a chef's pan or deep skillet, heat up your oil and cook your sausage or ground turkey. Sauté over medium high until cooked through (about 7-8 min.) Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Into the pan add in the shallots and a little salt, continue to cook over medium heat, until translucent but not burnt. Add in the greens and cook until just starting to wilt, no more than 2 min. Turn off the heat.
In a mixing bowl, crack in the eggs, add the milk, the spices and another 1/4 tsp salt and whisk together. Now you start to do your lasagna-style layering.
Bottom layer: dried out bread cubes. 2nd layer: half of the sausage. 3rd layer: half of "Your Choice Cooked Veggie"- broccoli, cauliflower or spaghetti squash. 4th layer: half the greens. 5th layer: half of the cheese. Repeat, and use up all the ingredients. Then, pour your egg-milk-spice mixture over top. If it doesn't cover all of the ingredients, whisk up some extra eggs, milk and salt n' pepper. Cover it tightly with saran-wrap and put in the fridge over night.
In the morning, take the strata out of the fridge half an hour before you plan to cook it. Heat up the oven to 350, and enjoy your coffee. Remove the plastic wrap, cover the top with your sliced red peppers, and pop it in the oven for 45 minutes, until it smells great, is golden on top, and the center isn't jiggly. Cool for 5 minutes, and breakfast is served. Goes great with a big salad with apples and lettuce.