This easy overnight casserole is layered with bread, cheese, crumbled sausage and green chilis, and soaked in a seasoned egg custard overnight. It couldn’t be simpler to put together and the best part is in the morning when your kitchen is clean and your dishes are done and all you have to do is pop it in the oven! The popular casserole is a staple on many people’s holiday tables. At my house, it’s been our Christmas morning breakfast for over 40 years, and we love it on Easter and other special occasions, too. Wouldn’t be a holiday without it!
Ingredients Needed
- Bread – No need to get fancy. While most similar casseroles call for dried out french bread, I actually recommend basic everyday soft white sandwich bread fresh from the bag.
- Butter – Use real butter.
- Cheese – You’ll need a lot of cheese! I call for a mix of Jack and Cheddar. That’s my favorite combination, but in a pinch I’ve also used Colby Jack, and it would also be great with some pepper Jack in there. Experiment if you’d like to, but the classic way is terrific! My one tip: I do not recommend pre-shredded cheese in a bag for this recipe. Shredding directly from a block of cheese will produce better results.
- Green Chiles – You’ll find tiny cans of these near the jarred salsa at the grocery store. I don’t bother draining the tiny can, just use your hands to grab the chilis from the can and sprinkle onto the casserole, the juice that comes with it is just fine.
- Sausage – There are always a lot of questions when I have recipes that call for sausage of any kind. It’s probably because there are so many different types: breakfast sausage, Italian sausage, sausage in links, sausage in castings, sausage in tubes, sausage in 8 different sections of the supermarket! You’ll find this sausage in the fridge section, usually near the bacon. Avoid sausages with flavors like maple. I only use Jimmy Dean because that’s what my Mom always used and we like the flavor the best!
- Eggs
- Milk
- Spices
- Salt
- Pepper
- Oregano
- Paprika
- Garlic
- Dry mustard
How To Make Overnight Sausage and Egg Casserole
- Make sure your sausage is cooked before you begin assembling your casserole. You’ll start with the bread. Cut off the crusts, butter one side, and place the pieces butter-side-down in a 9×13 baking dish.
- Sprinkle on your shredded cheese, followed by the cooked sausage crumbles, and green chilis (no need to drain).
- Finally you’ll whisk together eggs, milk, and some spices and seasonings. Stir the egg mixture immediately before pouring on top of the assembled casserole. Otherwise all the spices will all gather in one spot and drop onto one single piece of casserole!
- It then goes in the fridge overnight to allow the liquid to be full absorbed and for the flavors to blend. In the morning you just pop it into the oven and have a gorgeous breakfast or bunch in under an hour!
Storing and Other Tips
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and consume within 3-4 days for best results.
- Reheating tip: Leftovers will reheat more evenly if you cut your piece of casserole into a few smaller pieces before popping in the microwave.
Frequently Asked Questions
I would consider 4-6 hours the minimum rest time, and up to 24 hours the max. This doesn’t mean it wouldn’t still work if left in the fridge beyond that, but I have not tried it.
I have not tried making this in larger than a 9×13 inch pan so I can’t promise it would cook evenly. Your best bet for serving a crowd is making multiple pans.
If you really don’t like the flavor of green chiles, it certainly won’t affect the way the casserole cooks to leave them out. If you have picky eaters who just don’t like the color or texture, you could try blending the can of chiles (juices and all) with a little of the milk and mixing that in with the milk and egg mix before pouring over the casserole.
Your casserole will still taste great with bagged cheese, but it may affect the final consistency, with the cheese slightly separated from the other ingredients due to the coating its tossed it to keep it from sticking together in the bag. In my opinion this is one of those recipes where its worth the effort to grate it fresh.
Overnight Sausage and Egg Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6-8 slices plain white sandwich bread
- butter very soft, for buttering bread
- 2 cups Jack cheese, shredded not pre-shredded from a bag
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded not pre-shredded from a bag
- 12 ounces pork sausage crumbled and browned (I use Jimmy Dean)
- 1 4-ounce can green chiles
- 6 eggs large
- 2 cups milk
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon dry mustard
Instructions
- Start by removing the crusts from your bread and lightly buttering one side.
- Place bread, butter side down, in a 9×13 baking dish. You want the bottom of the pan covered with no big gaps, so cut up some pieces like a puzzle to cover the whole pan.
- Grate cheese and sprinkle evenly over bread. Then, layer on browned sausage, followed by green chiles.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk eggs. Add milk and seasonings; combine well. Give the mixture a final whisk before immediately pouring evenly on top of the assembled casserole.
- Cover well and place in the refrigerator overnight.
- In the morning preheat your oven to 350℉. Bake (uncovered) for 50-60 minutes. You'll want the center to be puffed and set and the outside edges to be golden brown. Let cool for about 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and consume within 3-4 days for best results.
- Reheating tip: Leftovers will reheat more evenly if you cut your piece of casserole into a few smaller pieces before popping in the microwave.
Questions & Reviews
YUM, YUM, YUM!! I LOVE breakfast casserole – especially Christmas morning. Mine never turns out quite right, though, so I'm using your bread tip (the recipes I've tried have bread in chunks and mixed throughout) and no bagged cheese! This and the overnight cinnamon rolls are on the menu for our Christmas morning. 🙂 Mmmmmm…..
My mom just made this for a christmas brunch the women in our family had together. It was so good we stuffed ourselves and didn't save room for the cheesebake dessert! Thanks for the recipie, now I don't have to ask her for it!
I also just made your peppermint bark popcorn for another party -LOVE your blog!
Happy Holidays!
Merry Christmas to you and your family… just wanted to thank you for all your time that you put into your blog!!! I love it!
I make something similar as well, but with tater tots on top instead of bread on the bottom. Dee-licious. And I love the green chiles too.
Merry Christmas!
I cannot even begin to express my love for this casserole… LOL
SOOOOOOOOOOOOO DELICIOUS!!!!!!!!!!
I have a similar recipe and I love it! Such an easy breakfast. I put my husband in charge of making it a few months ago, and he decided to substitute cubed potatoes instead of the bread, and it was delicious!
Where so cubed potatoes boiled semi cooked or place raw directly on the bottom of casserole?
Use frozen potatoes, shredded or cubed..with or without onions and peppers
This is one of my very favorite recipes. In fact, I was planning on making it for Christmas morning. And then my husband begged me to make quiche instead. So…I might have to make quiche for Christmas and this for New Years! Thanks for the tips on the bread and cheese too. I've never thought of using Colby Jack before.
I was so hoping you would be posting a Christmas morning recipe. I was just thinking I need to prepare something. Unfortunately it needs to be milk free so this one won't do. SOunds yummy though!
Looks really good, thank you!
I would encourage you all to forget buying pre-grated cheese period…did you know that there is an antibiotic in it? (Natamycin…not sure on my spelling, but if it is in there, it is on the back of the bag…) and also cellulose…
Anyway, that is enough to have me grating my own cheese….yuck…
GLad to have found you!
C~
Want to wish you you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
This recipe looks so good. Hubby loves sausage so i know he will love this.
sure hope your hand is ok and no pain.
Hugs Pam