Thursday, February 26, 2009

Breakfast Casserole

When I was a child, we had some neighbors move in across the street. I don't remember anything about the people that lived there before them, but I know that I met the family when I was out selling Girl Scout Cookies. They had a young baby, only a few months old.

Over time, my family and theirs became friends. Often times, in the evenings, I would babysit for their kids - while they hung out with my parents. We eventually started taking vacations together and one time, we even headed back to their hometown with them. When we went to visit their family, we stayed with his parents. They made us a casserole one morning for breakfast. We all enjoyed it. It eventually became part of our Christmas morning tradition. Mom would make it up the night before and would put it in the oven to bake while we opened our gifts.

They eventually moved from my hometown, but we kept in touch and even would travel to visit them. We are still friends with the family. As I graduated and moved around the country (okay, not the whole country, IN, PA, NJ, OH), for a while we seemed to be on similar paths - they were never more than a couple of hours drive. They became my 'local' family during this time and over time, I have developed my own friendship with them, no longer a child of their friends, but one of their friends.

Breakfast Casserole

6-8 slices of bread
1# ham, bacon or sausage
6 eggs
2 c milk
1 tsp dry mustard
6 slices bread
1 c grated cheddar cheese

Fry meat and drain. Line bottom of buttered 9x13 pan with bread. Spread crumbled meat over bread. Cover with cheddar cheese. Beat 6 eggs with milk, salt and dry mustard. Pour over the bread, meat and cheese. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Bake uncovered at 350 for 45 minutes.

For more great breakfast recipes, check out the Ultimate Recipe Swap at Life as Mom, where today she is highlighting breakfast.

4 comments:

Mary Ann said...

I make a version of this casserole, too. It's a great way to use up day-old bread or sale-priced eggs! I often freeze it unbaked for an easy meal later.

FishMama said...

THat is a sweet story! Love it. And this recipe sounds so good. I love breakfast casseroles.

MrsCoach said...

I make something similar... I've seen so many different versions of this recipe. Thanks for sharing!

Anonymous said...

We have a family favorite similar to this as well. Ours uses ham, and it also uses crushed corn flakes mixed with melted butter--adds a little "crunch" to the dish. Thanks for the great story! Jen