For a Crowd: Breakfast Casserole

Sunday the Braves game started at 1pm. My friends and I had high expectations of arriving around 11am so we could have a few cocktails, hangout and enjoy the crowd. When tailgating before noon I like to arrive with some sort of brunch inspired dish, this time it was breakfast casserole, a traditional southern favorite. My boyfriend always says, “Casseroles are great because you take things you know are good, mix them together, and the combination is even better.” I think he is right; at least he was this time…

Breakfast Casserole
1lb breakfast sausage
3 C frozen hashbrowns (defrosted) or can shred your own potatoes if you like but this is easier
½ a stick of butter
12 ounces Mexican shredded cheese (can substitute cheddar or anything you like)
½ onion finely diced
16 ounces small curd cottage cheese
7 eggs
1 tbl hot sauce (can be omitted if you don't like it)
salt and pepper

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 9x13 inch casserole dish and then melt the remaining butter. Brown the sausage over medium-high heat, then drain and crumble. I used sage sausage and it was awesome but any will work. Put the hashbrowns in the casserole dish and pour the melted butter over them, stirring a little so each potato is covered, then line the bottom and sides of the dish with the buttery hashbrowns. In a bowl mix together the sausage, cheese, onion, cottage cheese, eggs, hot sauce and salt/pepper until just combined and pour over the potato mixture. Bake for one hour or until eggs are set and brown on top. Let cool at least 5 minutes before cutting.

This casserole can be made ahead of time, refrigerated or even frozen and baked when needed, and that makes it a great one dish breakfast. I hope you enjoy it and GO BRAVES!

Check out more tailgating tips here.