Christmas Morning Brunch With Family

The holiday season leading up to Christmas still seemed rushed even though all shopping and preparation were online. So, we were particularly looking forward to the previously established family tradition of a Christmas morning brunch. The time together with our family was more special than ever.

For brunch, I went online, searching for recipes. I found a great French toast and sausage recipe on the Betty Crocker website. I’ve included the link below so you can check it out yourself.

Note: The image below is a screen image captured directly from the website. I thought the french toast looked appealing, and it was.

https://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/french-toast-sausage-casserole/1c8b3ca3-e9ff-4f1a-80bd-822ca407e740

Ingredients

1 roll (16 ounces) maple-flavored both port breakfast sausage. I used the Jimmy Dean sausage.
1 round uncut loaf (16 ounces) Hawaiian bread cut into eight slices
8 eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 of a cup powdered sugar
Real maple or flavored maple syrup

Steps

In a 10″ nonstick skillet, cook sausage over medium heat for approximately 8 to 10 minutes, occasionally stirring, until no longer pink; drain if necessary.
Spray 13 x 9″ (3 quarts) glass baking dish with cooking spray. In the baking dish, arrange 4 slices of bread, cutting as needed to fit the dish. Spoon sausage over the bread. Top with the remaining four slices.
In a large bowl, beat eggs, half-and-half, milk, granulated sugar, cinnamon, salt, and vanilla with whisk until well blended. Pour evenly over bread. Cover; refrigerate for eight hours or overnight.
Heat oven to 350°F. Uncover baking dish. Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown and set. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with syrup.

Note: If the casserole egg needs more time to cook, re-cover with tin foil and cook for 30 minutes more.