Italian Egg Bake

Italian Egg Bake
Makes 6 Servings
Inspired by a Pillsbury recipe

1 pound reduced fat sausage
4 cups frozen hash-brown potatoes, thawed
4 oz. (1 cup) Cabot 75% reduced fat cheddar cheese
6 tbsp diced sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil)
6 large eggs
¾ cup fat-free milk
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
¼ cup Progressso Panko Italian bread crumbs
4 tsp (10 grams) shredded fresh Parmesan cheese
¼ fresh basil, diced
Red pepper flakes, garlic powder, Italian Seasoning to taste

Heat oven to 450. Spray rectangular baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. In large nonstick skillet, cook sausage over medium-high heat until browned, stirring occasionally. In medium bowl, combine potatoes and 2.5 oz. cheese. In baking dish, layer potato mixture, sausage, tomatoes and half of the basil. In medium bowl, beat eggs. Add milk, salt and pepper; beat well. Add optional seasonings to taste (red pepper flakes, garlic powder, Italian seasoning). Pour evenly over potato mixture. Top with bread crumbs. Cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining 1.5 oz. Cabot cheese and Parmesan cheese. Bake uncovered for an additional 3 minutes until cheese melts.

Nutritional Information: 353 calories, 24 carbs, 17 fat grams and 24 protein grams.

Review: Winner! Tasted great and was very filling - didn't take long either which is always nice. I'd pre-cooked the sausage, so it was already in a box cooked and ready, and the cheese was already grated too - this helped! I loved the addition of the fresh basil, it definitely made the recipe along with the sundried tomatoes. I also liked the add of the Italian bread crumbs - the crunchy topping was nice with the softer, fluffy egg/potato layer. I will absolutely make this again, and of course it's great that it makes 6 servings AND reheats well. And I've added it to my new favorite breakfast - move over brunch pizza squares- there's a new casserole in town! (forgive my cheesy lameness) :)

Spicy Potato and Bacon Breakfast Casserole

Spicy Potato and Bacon Breakfast Casserole
Recipe adapted from Our Best Bites
Makes 4 Servings

4 c. Southern/country-style hash browns (cubes), completely thawed
12 strips turkey bacon
4 oz. Cabot 50% reduced fat jalapeno cheese
3 stalks green onions, finely diced
3 eggs
1 cup fat-free milk
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp siracha sauce

Preheat oven to 350. Begin cooking bacon on stovetop (not microwave). While bacon cooks, place potatoes in a deep-dish 9″ pie plate. Sprinkle cheese over potatoes. When bacon is done cooking, remove from pan but leave any drippings. Add onions to pan in the drippings for 2-3 minutes. Spread onions over cheese, dice bacon and then sprinkle top with bacon. Whisk together eggs, milk, salt, pepper and siracha sauce, whisking constantly, pour egg mixture evenly over the potato mixture. Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until cheese is bubbly but not brown.

Nutritional Information: 308 calories, 27 carbs, 12 fat grams and 22 protein grams.

Review: Pretty fabulous! I loved how the flavors went together and the siracha was awesome. I will say that I took the black pepper down (called for 1 tsp) - I got one too-much-pepper bite so I may even suggest saving that and sprinkling on so it doesn't concentrate in one area - just a thought. But really easy, pretty (in my humble opinion) and made very healthy sized servings. Especially for 300 calories - I felt more like it tasted like a 400-calorie meal! It's a keeper, and I think you could really make it your own with more veggies, too!

one slice - yum!

Sausage Skillet Scramble

Adapted from Real Mom Kitchen
Sausage Skillet Scramble
Makes 6 Servings

7 eggs
1 tbsp light butter with olive oil
1/3 cup fat-free milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 package reduced fat Jimmy Dean sausage
2 cups frozen cubed O’Brien hash brown potatoes, thawed
1 cup cabot 75% cheddar cheese, shredded

6 small flour tortillas OR 6 medium-size carb balance flour tortillas

Whisk together eggs, milk, and salt; set aside. In a large skillet, cook sausage until no longer pink; remove from skillet and drain. In the same skillet, cook potatoes for 5-7 minutes or until tender. Remove from the pan. Add butter to skillet and melt, then add egg mixture to skillet; cook and stir until almost set. Mix in sausage and potatoes. Sprinkle with cheese. Cover and cook for 1-2 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Nutritional Information (with small flour tortilla): 292 calories, 10 carbs, 17 fat grams and 22 protein grams.

Nutritional Information (with taco size flour tortilla): 393 calories, 28 carbs, 20 fat grams and 26 protein grams.

Review: Great recipe! The cheese really melted well into the mix and almost made the eggs taste runny - fab. While I thinks a small tortilla would work and would lower calories, you would probably need to eat it more like a tostado with fork and knife. With the larger shell, it could be eaten more like a taco, how I prefer it!

Ham Hash Brown Casserole

Adapted from Real Mom Kitchen
Ham Hash Brown Casserole

Makes 4 Servings OR 6 Servings (recipe for each)

7 eggs
4 cups hash brown potatoes
1 cup fat-free evaporated milk
1 cup 75% cabot cheese, shredded
1 tsp salt
1 cup diced onion
½ tsp pepper
1 ½ cups diced green and/or red pepper
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
12 slices Hormel Natural choice ham, diced
Mix eggs and milk in a bowl. Add remaining ingredients and stir well. Add to a 9 x 13 dish sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake uncovered in 350 degree oven for 45-50 minutes or until a knife inserted comes clean.

For 6 Servings: Add 1 cup hash browns, 1 egg and 1/2 cup evaporated milk, and use entire container of Oscar Mayer deli smoked ham (5 servings). Bake for 1 hour.

Nutritional Information for 4 serving recipe: 427 calories, 41 carbs, 13 fat grams and 35 protein grams.

Nutritional Information for 6 serving recipe: 333 calories, 33 carbs, 9 fat grams and 30 protein grams.

Review: LOVE it. Lots of food - I mean really, that pan was FOUR large servings. It had great flavor though - loved the pepper and the veggies really helped break up the eggs/potatoes. I enjoyed! I could see next time adding a bit more ham and maybe an egg or something to take this up to 6 servings! (I prefer 6 serving breakfasts so I don't have to make as many!)

Sausage and Potato Bake

Adapted from Real Mom Kitchen

Sausage and Potato Bake

Makes 6 Servings

1 package Jimmy Dean Reduced Fat Sausage
3 ½ cup frozen hash browns, cubed (447 grams)
3 oz. 75% cabot cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup of fat-free milk
6 large beaten eggs
1 teaspoon dried mustard
¼ teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray rectangular baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Cook sausage over medium heat until browned, about 7 minutes. Stir all ingredients together in a large bowl. Pour into dish. Bake 50 minutes or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes.

Nutritional Information: 299 calories, 17 carbs, 16 fat grams and 22 protein grams.

Review: We LOVED this. We think it has great flavor and love using the potatoes too – a little goes a long way. It was super filling and flavorful – definitely seemed like it was “bad” for you but really had good stats for a filling breakfast. I’ve already made this twice now – it’s going to be a regular!