Stone Ground Mustard & Sausage Breakfast Bake
In my family, food is a love language. We have many traditional dishes that we make on holidays and special occasions. A favorite of ours is my Mother’s breakfast casserole. It is really quite nice, with pepper-jack cheese and ham and chives. Classic flavor combinations. However, this year I wanted to put a fresh spin on it. While at the core it is very similar, I found my version to be an improvement on the original! They both start with frozen hash browns, seasoned and brushed with butter as the base. Let that brown in the oven for 30 minutes. This creates such a delicious crust that pairs so nicely with the eggs and cheese. Instead of ham, I cooked some breakfast sausage links on the griddle and diced them to add to the casserole. There is that word again, casserole! I much prefer the term breakfast bake, don’t you? I have always found that stone-ground mustard pairs remarkably well with sausage, so I add some to my scrambled egg mixture to pour over the cooked hash browns and diced sausage. Add some spinach and cheddar and gruyere, and you have a beautiful holiday breakfast that may become a tradition with your family as well! Let’s get cooking!
Stone Mustard and Sausage Bake
Pre time 5 minutes
Cook time 45 minutes
Serves 4
Ingredients
1/2 bag of frozen hash browns. Enough to cover your pan 3/4-1 inch thick
5 eggs
2 Tbsp. milk
12 breakfast sausage links
1/2 cup of spinach
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1/2 cup shredded greuyre
2 Tbsp. melted butter
1 1/2 Tbsp. Stone Ground Mustard
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
Procedure
Step 1 Line a baking dish with some non-stick spray and pour in half a frozen bag of hash browns and fill it 3/4 to 1 inch. You may need to add more depending on the size of the pan. Pre-heat the oven to 400. Mix in 1 tsp of salt and pepper and 1/2 tsp of garlic powder. Heat 2 Tbsp melted butter and brush on the top of the hash browns. Place in the oven for 30 minutes until you see the edges brown and the top is a bit golden.
Step 2 Take your sausage and throw it on the skillet. Turning every so often and cooking through on all sides. Move to a cutting board and slice half of them to add to your bake. The rest will be a nice side to serve with some stone-ground mustard on the side. Shred your cheddar and gruyere. In a bowl, crack 5 eggs, add 2 Tbsp of milk and 1 1/2 Tbsp of stone ground mustard. Whisk it all together. Add a pinch of salt and pepper to the egg mixture and set aside while the hash browns finish cooking.
Step 3 Remove the hash browns from the oven and change the oven temperature to 350. 400 is a tad too hot for the eggs. Add the diced sausage and spread evenly. Take half of the egg mixture and pour over the sausage and hash browns. Then add a layer of spinach and pour the remaining egg mixture over that. I like to press down the the spinach a bit. Mixing them into the sausage. Then take your shredded cheese and spread over the entire dish. Full disclosure. I even added a tiny bit more cheese on top once I peaked at them in the oven, but then again I am a certified cheese fanatic!
Step 4 Put your dish back in the oven for 10 minutes at 350. It is done when the cheese is fully melted and you can see the cooked egg shining through. A good way to test is to just poke the middle. If it is still runny, then give it a more time. This dish is very difficult to overcook as the eggs bind to the hash browns and cook quite easily, but don’t really change consistency after that. Once its done pull it out of the oven to cool for a few minutes and enjoy! I hope this becomes a favorite of your family, like it has become for mine!
