Bacon Spinach and Smoked Gouda Breakfast Casserole

🧂 Ingredients

• 6 slices thick-cut hickory smoked bacon
• 10 slices French bread

  cut in 1-inch thickness
• 2 tbsp. butter

  to spread on the French bread
• 1 medium onion

  diced
• 1/2 cup red bell pepper

  diced
• 8 oz. mushrooms

  sliced
• 5 oz. fresh baby spinach leaves
• 8 large eggs
• 3 cups 2% milk
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

  or more to taste
• 2 cups Gouda cheese

  shredded

Instructions

• 1 Fry bacon in skillet until done.
• 2 Remove to paper towels to drain.
• 3 When bacon is cool, break into small pieces; set aside.
• 4 Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°.
• 5 Slice French bread into one-inch slices.
• 6 Lay bread slices on a cookie sheet.
• 7 Bake at 350° for 5 minutes.
• 8 Spread with butter and cut bread up into cubes. Set aside.
• 9 Drain all but 1/4 cup bacon grease.
• 10 Add mushrooms, onions and peppers and sauté a few minutes until veggies
  soften—about 5 minutes.
• 11 Add a handful or two of the spinach on top of the mushroom mixture and stir so
  the bacon grease coats the spinach.
• 12 As spinach cooks down and wilts, add more spinach until all of the spinach has
  been added.
• 13 This will only take a minute or two.
• 14 Remove from heat.
• 15 Stir in bread cubes, bacon pieces, salt and pepper and stir well to combine.
• 16 Spray a 9x13” glass baking dish with cooking spray.
• 17 Spread bacon mixture into prepared baking dish.
• 18 Sprinkle one cup of cheese over top of bacon mixture.
• 19 Combine eggs and milk in mixing bowl and whisk.
• 20 Pour over top of casserole.
• 21 Sprinkle remaining cup of cheese over top.
• 22 Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• 23 Bake at 350° for 45 minutes to an hour, uncovered, until cheese is melted and
  mixture is bubbly.

Nutrition Info