Breakfast

Breakfast has always been my favorite meal. As a kid, I loved pancakes, waffles piled with strawberries and whipped cream, cereal, cinnamon toast, sausage, and bacon. Now that I know better, I don’t buy cereal or bread, but I still appreciate sweet treats at breakfast sometimes. I have a go-to pancake recipe and sometimes chop up an apple and saute it in butter and cinnamon before tossing it on top of … well, anything, including just a spoon.

Another breakfast favorite was the sausage and egg casserole that my mom makes on Christmas morning (to go with the sticky buns, that involve freezer rolls and a packet of butterscotch Jello pudding, now off limits – I just don’t like bread anymore and don’t want the headache). Unfortunately, the casserole uses (stale) bread. Fortunately, I have figured out how to clean it up, and the rest of the ingredients are on the good list (except the cheese; use grass-fed cheddar). Note that it has quite a bit of fat so isn’t an “anytime” treat, but if it works with your macros…

Without further ado, here’s my holiday morning sausage and egg casserole recipe, in two steps – making the “bread” and making the casserole. It’s simpler than it looks!

 

“CORN” BREAD

If you like crispy edges, bake this recipe as about 12 mini muffins. I prefer soft edges, so I bake it in a loaf pan and slice it into 1” cubes. Same recipe goes into stuffing and can be just eaten by itself with some butter, or honey (decadent!)

INGREDIENTS

• 1/3 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick), melted
• 4 eggs
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2. Whisk together the coconut flour, salt, and baking powder.

3. In another bowl, beat the eggs. Whisk in the melted butter.

4. Add the coconut flour mixture to the egg/butter mixture and stir to combine.

5. Divide the batter among 6 greased muffin cups, 12 mini muffin cups, or spread in a loaf pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

 

SAUSAGE AND EGG CASSEROLE

• ½ lb breakfast sausage, preferably locally sourced from happy pigs (get the good stuff, not the packaged crap with corn starch added)
• ½ c shredded cheddar cheese (preferably grass fed – Trader Joe’s has acceptable cheddar)
• 6 eggs
• ½ cup almond or coconut milk
• 1 t mustard powder or Dijon mustard
• 1 t Worcestershire sauce
• 1 t salt (or to taste)
• 1 sliced green onion (optional)
• ½ t pepper (or to taste)
• 1 recipe “corn” bread (above)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350’
2. Break or slice bread into approximately 1” cubes, and arrange the pieces on the bottom of an 8×8 baking dish
3. Brown the sausage and let it cool (you can do this while the corn bread is baking); break chunks into small bits
4. Mix eggs, salt, pepper, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, milk, onion, and half of the cheese
5. Scatter sausage on top of bread, then pour egg mixture over it and top with the rest of the cheese
6. Bake at 350’ for 30 mins or until egg puffs up and top is golden brown. Let cool for 10 mins before serving.

ENJOY!