Name: Breakfast Strata with Sausage
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 8 heaping cups of hearty bread cut into 1" cubes; 12 ounces breakfast sausage; 1 cup diced red bell peppers; 1 cup diced green bell peppers; 1 cup diced onion; 8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese (or a cheese blend); 6 eggs; 1 1/2 cups milk

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This easy Breakfast Strata with Sausage is great for weekends, holidays, and serving a crowd! It comes together simply using day-old bread, crumbled sausage, bell peppers and onions.

A hearty slice of Breakfast Strata with Sausage, dotted with red and green bell peppers and melted cheese.

Hi Hi Hi – welcome back after the long Thanksgiving weekend! Was it great? Did you cook? Did you eat until stretchy pants were required?

I did all of the above. #noregrets

This time of year puts me firmly in the mood for three things:

Are you with me? Cool. Feels like we are on the same team.

My all-time favorite breakfast casserole is one I call Christmas Morning Casserole. That, along with Giant Cinnamon Rolls, is a holiday tradition around here.

This recipe here though, this Breakfast Strata with Sausage, is made with leftover bread. Or bread you bought expressly for this. Either way. But I find that when we have a feast, I always buy too much bread and then it’s a mad dash to make 42 tons of croutons lets I have to throw it away.

So, instead of croutons as far as the eye can see (another day maybe), I just cubed up the leftover loaf and covered it with all the makings of my favorite omelet.

Still with me? I knew you would be.

Ingredients for the best Breakfast Strata recipe

The ingredients here are simple, and so, as with all simple recipes, quality is key. You will need:

Thick crusty bread, preferably a day old so that it will soak up all the egg + milk mixture and remain sturdy (instead of soggy). If you are feeling ambitious, OR are just looking for a really amazing and easy bread recipe, this One Hour Bread – a classic and crusty dinner loaf – is perfect.
Quality sausage! You’ll notice that I do not call for draining the sausage. If you have low quality, greasy sausage, you will need to. I love buying local when I can, and I made this recipe with sausage from Hickory Nut Gap Farm. NC friends – definitely buy this sausage (not even an affiliate link! Just really great.)
Peppers and onions because they go so well with sausage. You could also opt for mushrooms here. Or spinach. I am an equal opportunity vegetable eater.
Cheese. So important! I used Cabot’s 4-cheeseMexican Shredded Cheese. It’s rustic cut, so the shreds are big and hearty. It consists of Monterey Jack, Queso, Asadero, and Cheddar. You can really use whatever shredded cheese you like, but this blend is my breakfast strata go-to.
Milk – probably not soy or almond, etc. Using non-dairy milk can really change the texture of things. I love my almond milk in smoothies, but here I used 2%. I haven’t tested this with a dairy alternate so proceed at your own risk if you try it.

You’ll notice that I don’t call for any additional seasoning or salt in the recipe. You can add salt and pepper to taste, and even a little fennel seed and Italian seasoning can be fun. I am obsessed with Spiceology’s Greek Freak seasoning. It’s great on everything.

Anyway, good sausage is typically salty and seasoned. Paired with the onions and peppers, and the salt in the cheese, it is plenty. If you do add extra, I recommend sprinkling it over the onions and peppers as they cook in the skillet.

A close up image of a sausage strata, sliced, so that you can see the crumbled, cooked sausage, onions, peppers, and cheese spilling out into the empty space of the casserole dish

Can I make this breakfast casserole ahead?

You can make this breakfast casserole ahead! I’d only aim for about a day ahead though, if you are a planner. You don’t want the already day-old and now sliced and refrigerated bread to get too wrecked.

Traditional strata recipes call for them to sit overnight WITH the egg + milk mixture so that the bread soaks it up. Then you get a soufflé-like texture when you bake. My preferred way to make breakfast strata ahead is a little different, though.

When I make this ahead I like to prep everything except the eggs + milk. Then I mix those up and pour them over the top just before baking. You’ll see notes in the complete printable instructions below on how to prepare everything through Step 4. Then you can refrigerate and move to Step 5 just before baking.

Breakfast Strata with sausage plated with a glass of orange juice in the background. You can see the layers of sausage, peppers, egg and cheese in the baked casserole.

Other Breakfast Casserole Recipes you’ll love

Bacon Spinach Breakfast Casserole – this is also a strata-style casserole. You really can’t go wrong with bacon and spinach.
Crescent Roll Breakfast Bake – love crescent rolls? This one is DEFINITELY for you.
Easy Cheesy Enchilada Breakfast Casserole – is like breakfast tacos you can slice. It’s SO GOOD!

12 servings