Savory Breakfast Bread Pudding

This hearty breakfast, similar to a strata, can be assembled the day prior to baking or morning of and refrigerated, covered with foil, until ready to cook off. Bring to room temperature before baking or increase the baking time by 15 minutes to make sure the middle is warmed through. This is a versatile dish: Use almost any type of crusty bread or brioche, fresh or a few days old, and almost any green, such as chard, spinach, kale or escarole.

Prep Time10

Cook Time1

Total Time1 10

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Servings: -12 servings

Calories: 417kcal

Author: Marcia W. Smart

Ingredients

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion cut in half and thinly sliced in half moons (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 leek halved lengthwise and cleaned well, then chopped
2 cloves garlic peeled and minced (about 2 teaspoons)
1 pound fresh mild Italian sausage casings removed and crumbled (about 3 links)
2 cups arugula, spinach, Swiss chard or kale (if using the last two, remove center stem and chop well)
2 cups milk (can be skim, low-fat or whole)
8 large eggs
1 cup grated Gruyere cheese
1/2 pound brioche, challah or French bread about 5 cups, cubed into 2-inch pieces (I prefer the rustic texture of leaving the crust on the bread, but feel free to remove)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg freshly grated

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 and butter a deep 9x13-inch baking dish. A glass Pyrex 9x13 might be too small, but if that’s all you have you can bake leftover filling in a small oven proof dish.
Heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and leeks and sauté until soft and slightly golden, about 15 minutes. Add garlic and stir. Immediately add sausage to pan and sauté until cooked through and no longer pink, about 5-10 minutes, using a wooden spoon to break up the meat if necessary.
Add greens to the sausage mixture, turn the heat to low and stir to wilt and soften the greens. Cover the pan with a lid, if you have one, to speed up the wilting process. Remove pan from heat.
In a large bowl, whisk together the milk and eggs. Stir in the Gruyere, cubed bread and seasonings. Add cooled sausage mixture to the bowl and stir to combine.
Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish and bake uncovered for about 50 minutes, or until the top is golden, and a knife inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean. (After 30 minutes, if the top is brown, cover the casserole with foil and continue to bake until the center is cooked.)

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