This Make Ahead Christmas Morning Casserole is loaded with cheese, sausage, onions and two types of peppers – red and green – to make your Christmas morning easy and festive. It’s like a delicious cheesy omelet loaded with all of your favorite add-ons, but much easier because it can be made the night before and popped in the oven so the kids don’t have to wait to open their gifts!
Make it ahead of time
I call this recipe Make Ahead Christmas Morning Casserole but honestly…it’s convenient for any special occasion. Making breakfast ahead of time really comes in handy when you want to spend time with friends and family and not preparing breakfast in the kitchen.
If you’re preparing this casserole the day prior to serving it, assemble the ingredients in the baking dish and cover it with aluminum foil and refrigerate. The next day, remove it from the refrigerator while you preheat the oven. Give it a stir with a whisk to ensure all the ingredients are thoroughly combined and pop it in the oven for 15 minutes at 400 degrees. Turn the oven down to 300 and bake for another 20-25 minutes or until the center is no longer runny.
Make Ahead Christmas Morning Casserole isn’t just for Christmas
This make-ahead Christmas breakfast casserole is versatile. I make it throughout the year when we have company at our home, for easy entertaining. Here are a few variations I’ve tried for my guests.
- Vegetarian – To make this dish vegetarian, I leave the sausage out and add sautéed mushrooms, sautéed spinach or even fresh diced parsley. I’ve also made this with only cheese and no veggies or meat and it tastes like a delicious cheesy omelet.
- No pork. No Problem – To skip the pork I simply use turkey sausage.
- Swap out the sausage – Cubed ham or chopped deli counter ham is my mom’s favorite variation. I skip the veggies and the sausage and use only ham and cheese. Bacon is also delicious. I cook the bacon or turkey bacon in the oven at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes or until crispy. I break it up and add it to the casserole. This variation is great with only the cheese or add it to the loaded version along with cheese, onions and red and green bell peppers.
- Easter Breakfast Casserole – This variation uses herbs and green onions. I serve this casserole along with a fresh fruit salad. These fresh Spring flavors are perfect for an Easter brunch.
- To make this casserole gluten free, I swap the flour for a gluten free free 1-to-1 baking flower like Bob’s Red Mill, which is one of my favorites.
Looking for more Christmas morning breakfast recipes?
- Apple Cinnamon Upside Down Pancake
- Shortcut Cherry Almond Breakfast Pastry
- Shortcut Shakshuka
- Cream-filled Crumble Coffee Cake
Make Ahead Christmas Morning Casserole
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter
- ½ green bell pepper finely chopped
- ½ red bell pepper finely chopped
- ½ onion finely chopped
- 1 lb breakfast sausage
- 12 eggs
- 8 oz shredded Monterey jack cheese or Colby jack cheese, pepper jack cheese, sharp cheddar cheese or Mexican cheese mix
- ½ cup flour To make this recipe gluten-free replace the flour with a 1-to-1 gluten free flour.
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 16 ounces small curd cottage cheese or ricotta cheese
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and spray a 9 X 13 casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray or grease with butter.
- Sauté the onion, green and red peppers in the butter, in a large skillet, until softened. Once cooked, add the vegetables to the casserole dish.
- Add the sausage to the pan you used to cook the vegetables and crumble and sauté until thoroughly cooked. Add the cooked sausage to the casserole pan along with the vegetables.
- Add the eggs to a large mixing bowl and use a whisk to beat the eggs. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk to combine.
- Pour the egg mixture into the casserole dish and stir to combine with the toppings.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 300 degrees and bake for another 15-20 minutes. The total cook time will vary depending on the omelet fillings used but be sure to cook until the center of the casserole is no longer runny.
- If you're preparing this casserole the day prior to serving it, assemble the ingredients in the baking dish and cover it with foil and refrigerate. The next morning, remove it from the fridge while you preheat the oven. Give it a stir with a whisk to ensure all the ingredients are thoroughly combined and pop it in the oven for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Turn the oven down to 300 and bake for another 20-25 minutes or until the center is no longer runny.
Easy and delicious!