Yummy Breakfast Casserole

We had a garage sale this morning.  I know, yuck.  I hate garage sales.  But, the silver lining is that now I have a child, I get to stay in the house and watch her instead of haggle sales out on the lawn.  Yay!  So, I thought I'd be nice and cook up some breakfast for my hardworking family.  I found this original recipe here while searching for something to make for a brunch get-together the week before.  I really like this recipe because it can be altered so many ways to fit your own tastes.  Instead of sausage, you could use bacon or ham, or all 3!  Green onions instead of sweet white.  Add some bell pepper or jalapeno for a little spice.  Whatever you like!  Also, the measurements are approximate.  It will still turn out delicious if you want a little less (or more) cheese or if you want to add more eggs.  The possibilities are endless.  Play around with it and find the way you like it.  Okay, enough talk...Here it is:

Ingredients
1 package breakfast sausage links (8 links)
6 eggs
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
4 cups shredded hash brown potatoes, thawed
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups small curd cottage cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella, Swiss, or jack cheese
butter

Cook sausage.  Set aside on paper towels to drain.

Beat eggs in a small bowl.  

In a large bowl, add onion, hash browns, and all cheeses.  Some people don't like cottage cheese.  I personally love it.  Either way, don't worry.  You won't be able to pick out that individual flavor once everything is said and done!

Chop up cooked sausage.  Mmmmm....sausage.

Add eggs and sausage to hash brown mix and mix together thoroughly.

Grease 9x14 dish with butter.  Spread mixture evenly in dish.  Don't try to eat it now.  I know you want to!

Bake in oven at 375F for 35 - 40 minutes (more or less depending on the size dish you used).  When the top gets a little crispy and starts to brown and bubble, you should be good to go!  I couldn't snap a picture before everyone wanted to start digging in!

Like I said, this dish is so simple and delicious and can really be varied.  It's definitely a keeper!  Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

"Chopped" Challenge!

We like to watch the show "Chopped" on the Food Network.  If you haven't seen it, the contestants are given a basket with mystery ingredients and then have to create a dish using those ingredients.  Around the Olive Juice Mama house, we like to have our own Chopped challenges from time to time.  Last night, it was my husband vs. my stepdad.  My mom and I judged as well as picked the basket ingredients:  ground pork sausage, instant cheddar mashed potatoes, patty pan yellow squash, mini Baybel cheese, and Nutter Butters.  In the end, everything that was made was edible, and actually pretty good!  (We bought a frozen pizza, too....just in case!)

Competitor #1:  Jonathan, my hubby

Competitor #2:  Dan, my stepdad

The basket ingredients

Time Limit:  45 minutes......Begin!

Nutter Butters in the food processor

Chopping some red bell peppers and squash

Uh-oh!  30 minutes to go!

Adding some cheese to the potatoes and sausage patties grilling in a pan.

Cheese in the sausage?  Interesting!

Fry, baby, fry!

Squash and onions 

Believe it or not - Mole sauce made from Nutter Butters.

22 seconds left!  Get your dishes plated!

Dan's completed dish:  A duo of potato.

Jonathan's completed dish:  Sausage meatballs with mole dipping sauce.

In the end, Jonathan won!  And the winner gets to....clean the dishes!  Dan's dish was pretty good, too, but word to the wise - Nutter Butters blended with Baybel cheese and instant mashed potatoes are not a good mix.  Don't try it at home!