Christmas Breakfast Idea: Breakfast Casserole

We all know Christmas dinner is something most of us wait all year for, and if done right, it's certainly worth the wait and effort. Christmas breakfast, though, can be a little different experience.

As a kid, I was always up early on Christmas morning trying to get my family up to open presents. That was enough of a chore, but when I had to wait for my Mom to make coffee, it drove me nuts. Sometimes we had to wait until she made some cinnamon rolls, or else we didn't eat until after all the presents were open.

At some point, though, my Mom started making a breakfast casserole, which I've found to be the perfect Christmas breakfast.

First of all, it's easy and quick to make and can even be assembled ahead of time. Secondly, you can throw it in the oven when you start opening presents and not worry about it until it's done. Thirdly, it's delicious and filling enough to usually keep you going until a mid-afternoon feast.

Ingredients2 bags Simply Potatoes (They're in a green bag in the dairy section, usually by the eggs. I like to use one bag of plain and one of Southwest style, which adds a little flavor)
1 large carton of Egg Beaters (or any egg substitute)
1 package Butterball Everyday pre-cooked turkey sausage patties (This is great, because it keeps it from being greasy)
2 cups shredded cheese, divided (I like Mexican style, but just cheddar will work fine, too)

DirectionsChop up the sausage patties into little pieces and mix everything together in a large bowl, except for some of the cheese. Dump it all into a baking dish or casserole coated with cooking spray. Top with the rest of the cheese. Bake at at least 375 for at least 45-60 minutes. The key is to make sure the eggs are cooked in the middle. If it's not, microwave it until it is, or just be patient with the oven.

NOTE: You may need more eggs. If so, just add them in one at a time until you think everything is the right consistency.

By the way, if you like things like ketchup or hot sauce on your eggs, they'll work here, too.

Veggie & Turkey Sausage Lasagna

I know, I've been very slack lately posting recipes, but I'm gonna try to do better with several in the can, as we say in TV.

This recipe is another lesson in Italian cooking, as I long ago promised, but an intermediary step. It is lasagna, but not traditional in a couple of senses. One way is the ingredient. The other is a short-cut in the cooking.

This is something I came up with kind of on the fly. We were looking for a big family dinner with leftovers that had some nutritional value. So I lasagna took care of the first part. Vegetables took care of the second. This is also another of those recipes you can tweak for whatever your taste.

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil1 lb turkey sausage (removed from casings and crumbled)
1 cup chopped onion
3 cloves garlic chopped
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup broccoli florets
1 zucchini sliced
1 cup sliced mushrooms
Handful fresh basil
2 jars tomato sauce (whatever kind or kinds you like)
1 box no-cook lasagna noodles
1 lb ricotta
1 lb shredded cheese (I believe I used one bag of Italian recipe and one Taco blend)

Directions
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or wok (a wok is actually ideal for later). Brown sausage. When it's about done, add onion, garlic, carrots and broccoli, and cook until they start to get soft. Add zucchini, mushrooms and basil, and cook until they start to get soft. Add a little sauce and the ricotta. Cook until the whole mixture is well mixed and starts to get a little bubbly.

Spread some sauce in bottom of a large roasting pan (aka lasagna pan). Place a third of the lasagna noodles (no need to cook these) on top of the sauce. Spread some more sauce on top of noodles. Spread half of the sausage/veggie/cheese mixture, and sprinkle with some of a third of the shredded cheese. Top with another third of noodles, then more sauce, then the rest of the mixture, a third of the shredded cheese, last of noodles, more sauce, last of shredded cheese. Sprinkle some Italian herbs on top if you'd like, and yes, I like!

Cover pan with foil and bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes until the whole thing is bubbly and melty. Yes, those are technical culinary terms.

Congratulations. You have made lasagna. Eventually we'll get to the real deal, but like I said at the top, this is a great intermediary step to learn some of the basics.

Serve this up with salad, garlic bread and the rest of the sauce heated.

We fed four adults and a child, and still had about half to put in the freezer for another day plus a couple servings for lunch at work the next day. I originally planned to make it with much less of the sausage, but I'm glad I used it all. It added a great flavor! You could make it without meat at all, but again, I think you'd lose a lot of flavor.