All of your favourte breakfast flavours in one delicious casserole. This easy, healthy and delicious dish will become a weekend regular.
Growing up in Poland Christmas morning wasn’t anything special. A hash brown and egg casserole definitely was not on the menu. We celebrated Christmas Day, but only with a family dinner. As a kid, the big day was Christmas Eve; and by big day I mean presents day. As kids, that’s all we cared about after all, isn’t it?
Since my husband is Canadian, we now celebrate both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Christmas morning is one of my favourite traditions that I adopted since coming to Canada. Since I’m now an adult, it’s not the presents that make it my favourite but the amazing family breakfast that comes with it.
In comes the hash brown egg casserole with Veggies! It’s tasty, healthy, hearty and you can prep everything the night before. In fact, I recommend it! Even if you choose to make it on any old Sunday morning, prepping it ahead is definitely the way to go.
It’s also great for meal prep. Make it on a Sunday afternoon and you have breakfast, or even lunch, taken care of during the week.
Preparing the Hash Brown and Egg Casserole
Ingredients
Bacon: Bacon is salt cure pork from different cuts of the back. It is typically sold in slices. There are also non-pork alternatives such as turkey bacon can also be used.
Button mushrooms: Button mushrooms are immature fungi that come in two colours – white and brown. These mushrooms are one of the most popular mushrooms around the world and as such have many different names. Button white and cremini are the names I’ve come across most often here in Canada.
Cheddar Cheese: I like to use old cheddar in this recipe to add a bold flavour. The longer the cheese is aged the sharper the flavour will be. Medium cheddar will also work, but you may need to play around with the spices a bit to ensure enough flavour.
Egg: Eggs are laid by many different animals but chicken eggs are what we use in this recipe. Eggs provide protein, fat and many other nutrients and therefore are a healthy part of our diet. Here they are used as a binder.
Fresh Spinach: Spinach is a leafy green vegetable. It is loaded with nutrients and antioxidants and is often sold pre-washed and ready to eat.
Hash Browns: These small flat patties are made from diced tomatoes. They are usually rectangular in shape and are cooked frozen.
Milk: I use full fat (3.25%) or partly skimmed (2%) cow’s milk for this recipe. The milk makes the toast more fluffy.
Oregano: Oregano is a plant from the mint family. It’s used as s herb and has a very potent flavour. Dried oregano is the leaves of a fresh plant that has been air-dried.
Red bell pepper:
Yellow Onion: Onion is a very common vegetable that is used both raw and cooked in food preparation. It has a sharp flavour raw that often sweetens once cooked. There are many varieties of onions, some that are milder than others. We use the common onion or yellow onion in this recipe.
How to Make a Hash Brown and Egg Casserole
Let me start with the clarification that at first glance the recipe may seem complicated. I assure you that it’s not! There are a lot of things happening at once but it’s all really just to save time.
If you’re a novice chef, just take your time and make each component separately.
There are only four components: hash browns, bacon, veggies and cheese, and eggs. That’s it!!
The first thing you want to do is cook the hash browns.
Grease a 9”x13” baking dish. I like to use cooking spray to avoid the extra mess but butter or oil work just as well.
Fill the bottom of the dish with hash browns in one even layer. Follow the package instructions for baking. For mine, I baked them for 10 minutes at 400°F. Set the oven to preheat and put the hash browns in once it’s ready (keep going until you see the prompt below).
Next, chop up the bacon into ½ inch pieces. I like a rough chop to get nice big bites of bacon in the casserole. I also use thick-cut bacon for this recipe to really make sure the flavour doesn’t get lost.
Add the chopped bacon to a hot pan, cover and cook for 5 minutes.
Note: Right about now, it’s likely time to put the hash browns into the oven.
Now it’s time to prep the veggies and cheese. Chop onion, bell pepper and mushrooms, and grate the cheese. You can put all the chopped veggies in a bowl until you need them. Keep the cheese separate.
Uncover the bacon and stir. Partially cover and cook for another 5 minutes stirring often to prevent burning.
If you prefer your bacon less crispy you won’t need the whole 5 minutes. I find that the crispier the bacon the more the flavour comes through in each bite.
Once the bacon has reached your desired doneness, remove it from the pan and put it on a paper towel-lined plate to remove some of the fat.
In the same pan that you used for cooking the bacon, add the veggies and sauté for 3-4 minutes.
Remove the hash browns from the oven and adjust the temperature to 375°F. Leave them in the baking dish as we will be assembling the casserole in it.
Now add the spinach to the veggies and stir just until wilted. Remove the pan from the burner.
Finally, crack 10 eggs into a medium bowl. Add oregano, salt, pepper, and milk. Whisk until well combined.
Now it’s time to assemble the casserole.
Assembling the Hash Brown and Egg Casserole
Top the hash browns in the baking dish with a third of the grated cheese.
Spread the sautéed veggies over the cheese, followed by the bacon and then another third of the cheese.
TIP: If you have some picky eaters in your home you can spread the veggies over half of the casserole leaving the other half veggie free.
Lastly, pour the egg mixture over everything in the baking pan and top with the remaining cheese.
TIP: If you are making this Hash Brown Casserole the night before, this is where you want to cover it with a lid or foil and store it in the fridge until you are ready to bake.
Bake uncovered at 375°F for 30 minutes. Make sure the eggs are set before removing them from the oven.
Substitutions
Veggies: You can substitute the veggies for anything you have in the fridge. Some other veggies that would work great are tomatoes, zucchini and broccoli. You can also skip the veggies altogether if that’s more aligned with your taste. If you do skip them add a couple more eggs.
Cheese: I personally like medium or old cheddar but if I don’t have any I reach for marble, mozzarella or even feta. I always have at least one of these in my fridge.
Bacon: Instead of pork bacon, you can use breakfast sausage, ham or turkey bacon. If you prefer a vegetarian version skip the meat altogether.
Serving the Hash Brown and Egg Casserole
There is so much flavour in the casserole that it’s more than enough on its own. But, if you want to freshen it up a little, add a tomato salad or a bowl of fresh fruit.
You can also kick it up a notch and top the casserole with red hots or sriracha, or any hot sauce of your choice.
We also can’t forget the ketchup. For all those picky eaters out there, ketchup is probably a must-have.
If you’re looking for similar recipes try our Egg Omelette Muffins. They are just as delicious but with fewer steps. They also make the perfect breakfast to-go or a healthy snack.
Let us know in the comments if you have any questions. And if you like this recipe be sure to leave us a five-star rating below.
Are you looking for dinner ideas? Check out our recipes:
Hashbrown and Egg Casserole Recipe
Equipment
- 9” x 13” baking dish
- Large frying pan with lid
- Medium bowl
Ingredients
- 10 eggs
- 1 cup milk or cream
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 400 g hash browns
- 374 g thick-cut bacon one package
- 200 g cheddar cheese half a block
- 100 g mushrooms one small package
- 1 bell pepper
- ½ onion medium
- 1 cup spinach fresh
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to bake hash browns according to package instructions. Lay out the hash browns in a single layer on the bottom of your baking dish. Set aside until the oven is ready.400 g hash browns
- Meanwhile, chop up the bacon into 1/2” pieces. Add the bacon to a hot pan, cover, and cook for 5 minutes.374 g thick-cut bacon
- Remove the hash browns from the oven and adjust the temperature to 375°F.400 g hash browns
- Chop onion, pepper and mushrooms, and grate the cheese.100 g mushrooms, 1 bell pepper, ½ onion, 200 g cheddar cheese
- Uncover bacon and stir, partially cover for remaining 5 minutes stirring often. If you prefer your bacon less crispy you won’t need the whole 5 minutes. Remove bacon from pan and put it on a paper towel lined plate to remove some of the fat.
- In the bacon pan, add the veggies and half the salt, and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add spinach and stir just until wilted. Remove from heat.100 g mushrooms, ½ onion, 1 cup spinach, 1 tsp salt, 1 bell pepper
- Crack 10 eggs into a medium bowl. Add oregano, remaining half of the salt, pepper, and milk. Whisk until well combined.10 eggs, 2 tsp dried oregano, 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp ground black pepper, 1 cup milk
Assembly:
- Spray the glass dish with oil. Place the hash browns on the bottom of the pan.
- Top with a third of the cheese.
- Add the sautéed veggies, bacon, and another third of the cheese.
- Pour the egg mixture over the whole pan and top with remaining cheese.
- Bake on 375°F for 30 minutes or until the eggs are set.
