This Cheesy Sausage and Croissant Casserole is a southern classic and great for a crowd. This casserole is easy to make the night before, just pop it in the oven before brunch, it is delicious!
Tip : You can easily substitute Jimmy Dean bulk sausage for the Italian sausage
Ingredients
- 1 lb mild Italian pork sausage or regular Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage
- 1 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 6 green onions (scallions) sliced
- 1 13 oz package stale mini croissants
- 3 cups milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 5 large eggs
- 1 cup grated good quality Swiss Gruyère cheese
Instructions
Day Before or 2 Hours Before Serving
- Gather all ingredients before starting the recipe.
- Heat medium skillet over medium high heat, remove 1 lb mild Italian pork sausage from casings and crumble into pan. Cook until sausage turns brown and forms a bit of a crust about 10 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add 1 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese.
- Spray the bottom of a 13x9 glass baking dish and pour in crumbled sausage/cheese mixture, spread mixture evenly over the bottom of dish.
- Slice 1 13 oz package stale mini croissants in half lengthwise and layer over sausage/cheese mixture.
- Whisk together 3 cups milk, 1 cup heavy cream and 5 large eggs and pour over the mixture, season with 1 tsp kosher salt.
- Cover and chill up to 8 hours, but at least 2 hours.
Day of Serving
- Pre heat oven to 350°F
- Allow casserole to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.
- Grate 1 cup grated good quality Swiss Gruyère cheese and spread over the top of the casserole and sprinkle with 6 green onions (scallions).
- Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is golden.
- Allow to rest for 10 minutes and then serve with a garden salad.
Author Notes
Like all bread puddings, this recipe must be made with stale croissants or stale french baguette cut into cubes. Here is a case where fresh, buttery, fluffy croissants will not work as these will not absorb the egg/milk mixture. Also, if you cannot find really good quality Swiss Gruyère (lots of butter fat), then choose a melty creamy cheese like Colby or Monterry Jack.
