Sausage, Egg & Cream Cheese Breakfast Casserole Recipe (2023)

FAQs

Do you have to refrigerate breakfast casserole before cooking? ›

A lot of breakfast casseroles require you to assemble the casserole and refrigerate it overnight before baking. This sausage and egg casserole, however, doesn't have to refrigerate at all! You can throw it together from scratch in 5-10 minutes, pop it straight into the oven, and enjoy it 30 minutes later.

HOW DO YOU KEEP EGG CASSEROLE FROM FALLING. Before serving your egg casserole, let it stand for 5 minutes to allow it to set before cutting into it. Do not open the oven door until 25 mins have passed.

A breakfast casserole is different than a frittata in that it is made by pouring an egg-based custard over layers of fillings and then baked. According to Southern Living, the eggs in breakfast casseroles act as a binding agent.

You can either bake breakfast casserole immediately or cover the dish with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate for up to 24 hours to bake later.

Leftover raw egg whites and yolks should be put in airtight containers and stored in the refrigerator immediately. To prevent yolks from drying out, cover them with a little cold water.

Most casseroles can be made ahead and refrigerated for a day or two or frozen up to three months. Not only is this convenient, but it also lets the flavors mingle and fully develop.

Covering the dish with aluminum foil for the first part of the bake time helps the casserole heat through to the center without drying out on top. Remove the foil for the last half of the bake time so that the top can crisp up.

If the casserole is watery, it is underbaked. You don't want to thicken it – you need to bake it longer so that the eggs firm up.

For best results, place a damp paper towel over the top to maintain moisture. Transfer the leftovers to an oven-safe baking tray, cover with foil, and place in a hot oven (350ºF). Heat for 10-20 minutes, or until hot throughout.

The Crust. Perhaps the most obvious distinction: A quiche is baked slowly in a savory pie crust (pâte brisée). A frittata, meanwhile, is crustless and cooks more quickly. Because the crust adds a certain amount of stability, a quiche can handle more cream than a frittata.

Which is easier to make quiche or frittata? ›

Frittatas take less time to make than quiche or strata. The dish is traditionally made by beating eggs with dairy—often heavy cream or half and half—together with ingredients like vegetables, meats and cheeses.

What's the difference between strata and casserole? Stratas are essentially breakfast casseroles made of eggs and bread. Stratas are often prepared the night before they are baked and served in oven-safe casserole dishes, similar to casseroles.

Adding in a small amount of cornstarch keeps the consistency of the egg base tender and glossy. Cornstarch is a thickening agent that can also stabilize fully cooked eggs.

Make-ahead meals (especially baked casseroles) are terrific because you can completely assemble them in advance and bake them just before serving. They're the ultimate comfort food as they come bubbling hot and delicious straight from the oven to the table to the delight of family and friends.

Hard-boiled eggs, peeled or unpeeled, are safe to eat up to seven days or one full week after they were cooked. To make sure they stay fresh, allow the cooked eggs cool a bit, and then store them in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

According to the USDA, refrigerated eggs should not be left out for more than two hours. “Eggs are stored cold right after the hen lays the eggs. Once a cold egg is left out at room temperature it can sweat, which facilitates the movement of bacteria into the egg and can increase the growth of bacteria,” Amidor says.

Precious minutes add up quickly, so one of the easiest things you can do is prepare scrambled eggs the night before. To a bowl, add the amount of eggs desired plus any other ingredients. I like to add salt and pepper, fresh or dried herbs, chopped tomatoes and any other vegetables on hand.

Yes. Contrary to popular belief, putting cold glass in the oven is perfectly safe. Many recipes specifically call for adding a cold glass dish to the oven to prevent the formation of bubbles or cracks.

Fresh herbs or citrus zest can also punch up flavors with a bit of welcome brightness for a long-cooked dish, as can adding some heat in the form of a dash of hot sauce, a generous pinch of minced or sliced fresh chili pepper, or a shake of red pepper flakes.

As the dish cools and sits over time, the different flavor and aroma compounds mingle together and develop more seasoned notes. The individual flavors are still there, but much less pronounced and the dish is therefore more mellow or rounded in flavor.

How do you know when egg casserole is done? ›

Baked Custards, Quiches, Casseroles, French Toast, Stratas

Cook or bake until a thermometer inserted at the center shows 160° F or a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.

Add Moisture with water dish: you can add moisture by adding an oven-safe dish with water to help steam the casserole in the oven. Add moisture with liquid: add a little bit of liquid like water, broth, sauce or milk then layer foil on top creating a steam bath to help keep the casserole moist in the oven.

If you're baking eggs in an oven, the temperature of the ramekins will continue to rise, so if you leave the eggs in the oven for too long—even just an extra 30 seconds—you will likely overcook them.

If you want to make the casserole gravy thicker, after the full cooking time. Mix 1 tablespoon of cornflour with 1 tablespoon of water, mix until lump-free, then and add to the pot.

Cover the casserole tightly with a cover or aluminum foil to help retain moisture. Simply reheat, not recook the casserole. Most casseroles require at least 20 minutes to reach a temp of 165 in the center.

Let the casserole sit to let it set

According to Allrecipes, letting your hotdish cool for about 20 minutes before digging in will help any liquids be reabsorbed and help firm up any creamy ingredients like soup, sauce, or melted cheese. This chance to rest helps the casserole set, which makes it also easier to serve.

Should you cover food when reheating it in the oven? Yes! To prevent an overcooked, dry casserole, cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil. This eliminates any moisture loss when using the oven method—keeping everything nice and juicy.

The USDA says food that has been left out of the fridge for more than two hours should be thrown away. At room temperature, bacteria grows incredibly fast and can make you sick. Reheating something that has been sitting at room temperature for longer than two hours won't be safe from bacteria.

Casseroles should be baked in a moderately hot oven

But too hot, and it won't cook evenly without some parts of it scorching first, according to KitchenSeer. A great rule of thumb, the site states, is to bake a casserole above 300 degrees F and below 400 degrees F: 350 degrees F is a great sweet spot.

What is the best milk substitute for quiche? ›

Soy milk is one of the best substitutes for milk in quiche or any recipe. This is because it has a thick consistency and taste similar to regular milk. Flax milk and rice milk are also fairly similar, though nut milks such as almond milk and cashew milk will also work.

Like so many of our classic heroes, the easy egg bake of a crustless quiche goes by many names: egg bake, egg casserole, oven omelet. A crustless quiche is just simple baked eggs — less rich than a quiche, with a little milk instead of all that cream — and literally anything else you want to throw in.

Egg to Milk Ratios: In order to keep the perfect custardy texture, for every egg you use, you need half a cup of milk. (This ratio also goes for heavy cream.) It has worked perfectly for me! It's super important to follow because if you don't use enough milk, your quiche will be dry.

Bake quiche in the lower third of the oven. The bottom crust will be crisp and the rim of the pie shell won't over-brown as readily. Quiche can be served warm or cold. Cooked quiche can be refrigerated for up to three days.

According to Real Simple, this typically occurs when adding too-wet ingredients to the quiche filling, layering the egg custard with, for example, large slices of raw tomato or raw zucchini. These vegetables, while tasty, have a high water content when raw, which will weep into the quiche as it bakes.

Macaroni and cheese is the oldest written casserole recipe found in 1250.

In the United States, a casserole or hot dish is typically a baked food with three main components: pieces of meat (such as chicken or ground meat) or fish (such as tuna) or other protein (such as beans or tofu), various chopped or canned vegetables (such as green beans or peas), and a starchy binder (such as flour, ...

The Large egg is the standard used in most recipe development. Using a different size, without making an adjustment, will affect texture, flavor balance, consistency, and in most cases will give an unsatisfactory result.

Turning down the heat and extending the cooking time slightly can help cook an uncovered casserole evenly. High heat cooks the outside faster than the inside, leaving the middle uncooked. Reducing the temperature distributes heat more evenly, allowing the middle to cook through.

Using flour as a thickener

1. It can be added to the meat as it's being fried, before liquid is added, and this way it will thicken a stew as it cooks. We use this method in our beef & vegetable casserole recipe.

Why does my egg casserole fall? ›

HOW DO YOU KEEP EGG CASSEROLE FROM FALLING. Before serving your egg casserole, let it stand for 5 minutes to allow it to set before cutting into it. Do not open the oven door until 25 mins have passed.

After baking, leftover egg casserole can be stored in the fridge and enjoyed within 3-4 days. Leftovers are delicious reheated in the microwave.

Generally, casseroles with grains, rice or pasta that will cook during the baking process are usually covered, for at least part of the time. Casseroles made of cooked ingredients are usually baked uncovered. If you like a crisper, browner top, be sure the casserole is uncovered for at least part of the bake time.

"Browning, or caramelizing, meat before putting it into a slow cooker isn't 100 percent necessary, but it is well worth the effort for the most flavorful and full-bodied end result," he says. "The caramelized surface of the meat will lend rich flavor and color to the finished dish."

Always Cook Meat Before Adding

Don't add raw meat to a casserole. Cooking the meat before adding it, or using up leftover cooked meat in a casserole, is the way to go. DeLeeuw says this is important for food safety because it makes sure the protein is fully cooked—especially key when making a chicken casserole.

Never leave cooked eggs or egg dishes out of the refrigerator for more than 2 hours or for more than 1 hour when temperatures are above 90° F. Bacteria that can cause illness grow quickly at warm temperatures (between 40° F and 140° F).

Myth: You shouldn't put hot foods in the refrigerator.

Perishable foods should be put in a refrigerator that is 40 degrees or below within 2 hours of preparation. If you leave food out to cool and forget about it after 2 hours, throw it away.

Make-ahead meals (especially baked casseroles) are terrific because you can completely assemble them in advance and bake them just before serving. They're the ultimate comfort food as they come bubbling hot and delicious straight from the oven to the table to the delight of family and friends.

According to the FDA, eggs should be left at normal room temperature (68°F to 70°F) no more than two hours; or at higher temperatures no more than one hour.

Still, as long as they remain free of contamination from bacteria or mold, they may still be safe to eat for days or weeks longer. Eggs have an average shelf life of 3–5 weeks. With proper storage, most eggs are still safe to eat after 5 weeks, though their quality and freshness will likely begin to decline.

Can I eat eggs left out overnight? ›

Unfortunately, eggs left out on the counter for too long need to be tossed. This is because eggs are susceptible to salmonella contamination due to how they're processed before they get to the grocery store. Salmonella is also the reason you shouldn't be eating raw eggs.

The USDA says food that has been left out of the fridge for more than two hours should be thrown away. At room temperature, bacteria grows incredibly fast and can make you sick. Reheating something that has been sitting at room temperature for longer than two hours won't be safe from bacteria.

It will be perfectly OK, and probably would be if you left it out all day as well. I wouldn't do that with Chicken (all day I mean) but provided you heat it up properly in the oven, or nuke it in the microwave you would be most unlikely to have a problem. It will still be fine to eat.

Many casseroles seem to improve in flavour if kept overnight (cool them quickly and keep them in a refrigerator, by the way, once they're cold). This means it's quite possible to make two casseroles while the oven is in full swing, and keep one for the next day.

Leftovers can be kept for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. After that, the risk of food poisoning goes up. If you don't think you'll be able to eat leftovers within four days, freeze them right away. Frozen leftovers will stay safe for a long time.

One of the advantages of casseroles is that you can cook them in advance. If possible, make your casserole one day ahead and store in the fridge – this intensifies the flavours of the dish. To freeze ahead, cool the cooked casserole, then freeze in an airtight container for up to three months.

Generally, casseroles with grains, rice or pasta that will cook during the baking process are usually covered, for at least part of the time. Casseroles made of cooked ingredients are usually baked uncovered. If you like a crisper, browner top, be sure the casserole is uncovered for at least part of the bake time.

As for the oven temperature and time needed to reheat, it'll vary depending on the size of the casserole dish and the density of its contents, but a safe bet is to reheat at a moderate temperature (325°F-350°F) for 20-30 minutes, or until hot throughout.