Cast Iron

Italian Sausage Strata

by:
January  7, 2015
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0 Ratings
Italian Sausage Strata
  • Serves 8
Author Notes

This is a perfect recipe for company. It's quite easy for breakfast as it is prepared the day before and left to soak overnight, so all you have to do is pop it in the oven and let the delicious smells wake everyone up in the morning! It's also easy to make changes to if you don't like feta cheese or if you're vegetarian. Side note: I can't help but think of Christmas and The Family Stone when I make and eat strata. Hopefully you fare better than Sarah Jessica Parker and don't spill it all over yourself. Enjoy! —Kelsey Tenney

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 day-old French baguette
  • 1 medium-large yellow onion, chopped
  • 3 scallions, green and white parts chopped
  • 3 mild Italian sausage links
  • 2 cups Swiss cheese, shredded
  • 1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, shredded
  • 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
  • 14 eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 1/4 cup 2% Greek yogurt or heavy cream
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon rosemary, chopped
  • Salt & Pepper
Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 325⁰F. Cut your loaf into cubes and bake for about 10 minutes or until slightly browned and dried out.
  2. Heat a pan over medium heat and drizzle olive oil in the bottom. When hot, add your chopped onion with a generous amount of salt and reduce heat to low. Cook slowly for about 30-40 minutes. When soft and browned, remove from heat.
  3. Meanwhile, in another skillet warm 3 tablespoons of water over medium heat. Place your sausages in the pan and cover. Cook for about 10 minutes until warmed through. Take the sausage out and pour the water out if any remains. Return the skillet to the heat and drizzle in some olive oil. Put the sausages in the skillet once more and fry briefly in the oil until browned on the outside, about 1-2 minutes each side. Remove the sausages from the pan and slice when slightly cooled.
  4. Mix the chopped scallions, onions, and rosemary in a bowl and the shredded parmesan and Swiss cheese in another bowl.
  5. Grease a deep cast iron Dutch oven or a 9x13 glass dish in a pinch. Layer a third of the bread cubes followed by the onion mixture, one sliced sausage, and cheese mixture in the dish. Repeat two times to use up all of the bread, onion, sausage, and cheese. Sprinkle the feta on top of the last layer.
  6. Whisk together the eggs, milk, yogurt, cayenne, Dijon mustard, and lots of salt and pepper.
  7. Pour the egg mixture on top of the bread layers, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Don’t skip this step! It lets the bread soak up the egg mix and the flavors meld.
  8. In the morning, preheat the oven to 350⁰F. Check your strata and make sure your bread has not soaked up all of the liquid. This differs for each bread type, but if your strata seems too dry, beat a couple extra eggs and a splash of milk together and pour it on top of the strata.
  9. With your Dutch oven lid on, bake your strata. After 30 minutes, remove the lid and continue to bake for about an hour or until the top is nicely browned and it no longer wiggles. If you are using a casserole dish, forgo the lid and bake for an hour and a half. Your top may just be more browned. If you are worried about under-heating, heat until the middle of your strata reaches 165⁰F.
  10. Let your strata cool for about 15-20 minutes before cutting pieces out. Eat while warm with extra shredded parmesan if you desire!
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