New Year's Morning Casserole

Greetings, readers! Let me begin by wishing you all a happy new year, and apologizing for my very, very erratic posting "schedule." I changed employment this past year, the amenities of which included a learning curve,  so it has made it hard to do much else. I resolve to do better in 2015. But I felt absolutely determined to post today in the wake of the truly sad experience of searching for a breakfast casserole recipe.

I woke up this fine New Year's Day, wanting to feed the crew that had stayed over. I had hash browns in the freezer, and my thoughts turned to  breakfast casseroles. The ideas I found on the web were, let's be honest, pretty sad. Most could be summed up as big chunks of greasy sausage in eggs topped by a bunch of gloopy cheese. It's amazing how much meat these people think is desirable, let alone acceptable. And have none of these casserole assassins heard of quiche? Quiche is an art piece of eggs, milk and cheese held in a velvety, creamy suspension. I'd say that's the perfect base for a eggy casserole. Cheese on the top is ok, but only a small amount, not the "reserve half for the top" nonsense I've been reading.

Also, if you read this blog, you know I have suffer from acid reflux occasionally. I wanted to dial down the fat while not sacrificing flavor.  I'd suggest crumbled turkey sausage. But I've gone even further over the edge by using my favorite sausage substitute, Gimme Lean! When properly browned, it passes the kid test for authenticity, high praise indeed, for no other group of diners are more finicky about weird ingredients and flavors than your own children.

I have two more beefs with the internet casserole cognoscenti. First, why just any cheese? If we're going to eat cheese, we need to get our K2, because studies show it aids in healthy digestion. And that's half the battle with reflux. That's why we are using a grass-fed cheddar and cave-aged gruyere combo. Secondly, where are the bleeping vegetables? Ten casseroles I looked at. TEN. Only two had vegetables of any sort. So I am roasting, then finely dicing some sweet red peppers for this hearty breakfast jam.



I am not going to make you wade through painstaking pictures of every step. Here you can see I've crumbled and browned a cup of Gimme Lean in some (cold pressed sunflower) oil. To that I added two cups of frozen store-bought hash browns. Read labels, some varieties list only one ingredient: POTATOES. Those are the ones you want! I just sauteed until the potatoes became fragrant. Layer them in an oblong casserole dish that has been prepped for nonstickiness.

Then I tossed  four small sweet peppers in that pan and let the outsides char a little. They got finely diced shortly thereafter.

Here is our egg mix: eight egg whites and four egg yolks. I got you covered, acid reflux people. To that I added 1 cup of soy milk- only because it's hard to find milk from grass-fed cows in our area and Abbey can't do the lactose. The peppers go in here, too.

Add approximately 3/4 cup each of gruyere and cheddar. These get mixed into the eggs- not glopped on top. This is not pizza, y'all.

 In a 350 degrees F oven it goes for 20-30 minutes depending on your mileage.

Doesn't the finished product look every bit as good as the fatty alternative? Hell yes it does. And it tastes just as good, if not better.

Enjoy 2015, and may your resolutions be achieved with uncommon ease.