Christmas Breakfast Strata

 

Our traditional Christmas morning breakfast. Mom adapted the recipe from Grandma Nedra Patterson's strata recipe, and we have tried many delicious variations. This is the one Joy and I made for Christmas 2021, and it's my favorite.

Ingredients:

- Large loaf of sourdough, cubed (about 1.5 lbs)

- 8 large eggs

- 2-2.5 cups milk

- Salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, nutmeg, mustard

- bacon, cooked and chopped

- shredded sharp cheddar and smoked gruyere

- roasted red peppers, diced

Directions:

1. Cube the bread and place in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together custard ingredients. 

2. Pour custard over bread. It should all be wet with a little liquid left at the bottom.

3. Layer the ingredients in a deep 13x9 baking dish, alternating bread with meat and cheese, and finishing with a sprinkling of meat and cheese on top.

4. Cover with foil and bake immediately. Bake at 375 f for about 50 minutes. Remove foil and bake about 10 minutes longer to crisp up edges and cheese on top.

Notes:

- Can be prepared the night before. Cover and place in fridge. Place on counter while preheating oven and bake as directed above.

- This flavor combo was amazing with the truffle hot sauce Joy bought Trent for Christmas.