Veggie Sausage Strata Recipes

SPINACH & CHEESE STRATA

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and drained spinach and cook 2 minutes more. Set aside.
• Butter a 3-quart or 9x13-inch baking dish. Spread one third of the bread cubes in the dish and top evenly with one third of spinach mixture. (Try to break it up as much as possible so there are no huge clumps of spinach.) Sprinkle with one third of each cheese. Repeat layering twice, ending with cheeses.
• In a large bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the half-and-half, mustard, salt, pepper, and nutmeg and whisk until well combined. Pour the custard mixture evenly over the strata. Cover the strata with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 325°F. Bake the strata, uncovered, until puffed, set and golden brown all over top, 70-80 minutes. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes before serving. It will settle a bit as it cools.
• Note: The cook time is based on the strata going immediately from the fridge to the oven. If it sits out at room temperature before baking, the cook time will be about 10 minutes less.

VEGGIE-PACKED STRATA

Steps:

• In a large skillet, saute peppers and onion in 1 Tbsp. oil until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain; pat dry and set aside. In the same skillet, saute the yellow squash, zucchini and mushrooms in remaining 2 Tbsp. oil until tender. Drain; pat dry and set aside., Preheat oven to 325°. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, cream, salt and pepper until smooth. Beat in eggs. Stir in vegetables, half of the bread cubes and Swiss cheese. Arrange the remaining bread cubes in a greased 10-in. springform pan. Place on a baking sheet. Pour egg mixture into pan. , Bake, uncovered, until set and a thermometer reads 160°, 80-95 minutes. Let stand for 10-15 minutes before serving. Run a knife around sides of pan to loosen; remove sides. Cut into wedges.

HOLIDAY BREAKFAST STRATA WITH SAUSAGE (OR NOT)

Steps:

• In a medium saute pan, heat the olive oil and saute the onion, green pepper, and mushrooms until soft, about 7-8 minutes. Set aside.
• If using sausage, brown it in a medium saute pan and drain.
• If using veggie sausage, heat it in the microwave for a minute or so and crumble.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, half and half, salt, and pepper.
• Spray two approximately 4" x 8'' baking pans/casserole dishes with non-stick cooking spray.
• Layer two slices of the bread in the bottom of each pan.
• Sprinkle 1/4 of the veggies over the bread in each pan.
• Spread half the crumbled sausage over the sausage version.
• Sprinkle on 1/4 of the cheese over each.
• Pour about 1/2 cup of the egg mixture over the top.
• Add a layer of the remaining bread, two more slices each, then veggies, then sausage over the sausage side, then cheese.
• Pour the rest of the egg mixture evenly over the top of each.
• Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight, or for at least three hours.
• In the morning, uncover and bake at 325 degrees for about 40 - 50 minutes, until set.

VEGETABLE STRATA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a large skillet, heat 1 teaspoon oil over medium-high heat. Add asparagus; cook and stir until crisp-tender. Transfer to a large bowl., Repeat with an additional 1 teaspoon oil and zucchini; add to asparagus. In same pan, cook and stir corn, shallots and garlic in remaining oil until shallots are tender; stir in herbs, salt and pepper. Add to asparagus mixture; stir in bread cubes., Place half of mixture in a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with 1-1/2 cups cheese. Repeat layers. In another bowl, whisk eggs and milk; pour over casserole. Sprinkle with pecans. Refrigerate, covered, at least 1 hour., Bake, uncovered, 40-50 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Freeze option: After assembling, cover and freeze. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake strata, covered, 45 minutes. Uncover; bake 10-15 minutes longer or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

VEGETABLE STRATA

Steps:

• Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
• Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Meanwhile, bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the broccoli until crisp-tender, 3 to 4 minutes; drain and set aside.
• Whisk together the half-and-half, Parmesan, eggs, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and a few grinds of pepper in a large bowl.
• Layer half of the bread cubes in the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 cups of the Monterey Jack, followed by the mushrooms, broccoli, scallions and tomatoes. Cover with the remaining bread cubes and pour the egg mixture evenly over the top. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. (This can also be assembled the day of; just let soak at room temperature 30 minutes to 1 hour before baking.)
• On the day of baking, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Let the strata sit at room temperature while the oven preheats. Remove the plastic and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup Monterey Jack. Bake until slightly puffed and just no longer jiggly in the center, 40 to 50 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.