Two Baked Breakfasts You'll Want To Make Every Weekend Slice of Jess

Weekend Goal: Wow that out-of-town family.

Two make-ahead breakfast dishes that are equally impressive as they are flavorful.

I’ve decided to get a little more personal on my blog and include some of our daily adventures here at the Bentley Casa. I’m not quite sure why I haven’t included more tidbits of our day-to-day adventures, but like my dad always says… there’s no better time than the present.

Our schedules have been a whirlwind lately and things are finally calming down to our normal routines.

Not Normal Routine: Guest Contributor on WCCB News Rising

Julianna ~ Michelle ~ Nomi ~ Jess

Our son recently turned two, so some of our family came to visit from California.

We enjoyed outdoor adventures at the lake, sipping on cocktails in Uptown, and an extravagant party celebrating Dylan’s 2nd Birthday and fun times down by the pool.

With a full household, I wanted a quick breakfast we could all enjoy… yet made with minimal effort.

Bingo, overnight casserole was the answer!

Here you’ll find two recipes I crafted to satisfy both my own savory cravings and my in-law’s sweet tooth’s.

Overnight Brioche Casserole

Ingredients:

Small loaf of Brioche Bread torn into 1-inch pieces, about 5 cups
8 strips of Bacon, cooked & crumbled (Sausage works well with this recipe too)
2 cups Cheddar Cheese (or you can sub whichever cheese you prefer here)
5 Eggs
1 cup Milk
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
S + P to taste, about 1/2 tsp. each

Optional: Add 1 cup of your favorite veggies (spinach, broccoli, mushrooms) or your favorite herbs.

Directions:

In a medium sized, greased baking dish: layer the Brioche Bread, cooked & crumbled Bacon, and 1 cup of the Cheddar Cheese. (If you are adding veggies or herbs, add them here.)
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the Eggs, Milk, Heavy Cream, Salt & Pepper and pour over the contents in the baking dish.
Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight.
In the morning, preheat the oven to 350F.
Uncover the baking dish and sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup of Cheese.
Bake for 55 minutes, uncovered, or until golden brown.
Serve immediately with 3-minute Pico De Gallo, Guacamole, and Greek Yogurt.

3-minute Pico De Gallo

To Garnish Brioche Casserole

Ingredients:

1 small container of Cherry Tomatoes (about 1.5 cups chopped)
1/2 medium Sweet Yellow Onion
1 fresh Jalapeño Pepper
3/4 cup fresh Cilantro
Juice of 1 Lime
Salt to taste, about 1/2 tsp.

Directions:

Dice Tomato and Onion into small bite sized pieces. Place in a large mixing bowl.
Grab the Jalapeño and carefully remove the seeds; mince into very small bits.
Separate the Cilantro leaves and roughly chop.
Place the Jalapeño & Cilantro into the large bowl and squeeze over the Lime Juice. Season with Salt to taste.

Overnight French Toast

Ingredients:

1 loaf French Bread torn into 1 inch pieces, about 5 cups
5 Eggs
1 cup Milk
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
2/3 cup Brown Sugar
1 tsp. Cinnamon
Dash of Nutmeg
Fresh Berries & Syrup, for topping
Powdered Sugar, for topping (optional)
Syrup, for topping (optional)

Directions:

Prepare a large, greased baking dish.
Tear the French Bread into small pieces. Note: This recipe goes from a 9 to a glorious 10 when you let the bread sit out for a few days to get crusty. If you don’t have a few days, pop it in a 350F oven for 10 minutes so it develops a nice crunch on the exterior. Then let cool and pull apart into pieces.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the Eggs, Milk, and Vanilla Extract.
In a small mixing bowl, stir together the Brown Sugar, Cinnamon and dash of Nutmeg.
On the bottom of the greased baking dish, sprinkle half of the Brown Sugar mixture (this creates a gooey, awesome curst on the bottom). Cover with torn French Bread and then sprinkle with the remaining Brown Sugar mixture.
Pour over the Milk mixture and cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
In the morning, preheat oven to 350F.
Bake, covered, for 30 minutes.
As the French Toast is baking, wash the fresh fruit and set in a serving bowl.
Uncover, and bake an additional 15-20 minutes, until browned.
Serve immediately with fresh fruit, powdered sugar and syrup.