Breakfast Strata

This is a recipe I got from my sister V last weekend when she was here visiting. Talk about an interesting recipe you can make for company when you just have a variety of stuff leftover! Lots of taste combinations you could make with this. We actually decided to make this over dinner when I was talking about how to use up my tomato-basil bread that was in the freezer.

Breakfast Strata

1 lb cooked sausage or cooked bacon
12 slices bread, cubed
1 1/2 c shredded cheese
8 eggs, beaten
2 c half and half or cream
1 tsp dry mustard
3/4 tsp salt
mushrooms, onions, parsley, oregano and/or peppers

Line a 13x9 dish with bread cubes. Combine eggs, mustard, cream and salt in small mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Pour over bread. Sprinkle meat, vegetables and fresh (or dried) herbs on top to taste. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Bake for 50 minutes at 350 degrees.

What I liked about this recipe: SO versatile! The combinations are endless. Since we were looking to use up stuff, we used my tomato-basil bread, Monterey Jack cheese, red pepper, fresh parsley only, and bacon. And since I only had a cup of half and half, we used a cup of whole milk.
What I disliked about this recipe: A little too much of a strong vegetable taste for my liking that early in the morning. I like blander things and sweet things for breakfast.
Cool kitchen gadgets used: My whisk is great for this and my bread knife cubed the bread perfectly.
Tastiness factor: It was very good the first day but not so good for leftovers. Just too strong of a veggie taste in my opinion. My sister said that using cream really makes this puff up like a souffle, so maybe part of it was because we used whole milk. But I could see this being a great addition to a brunch table or for a potluck, so I plan on adding it to my recipe book.