This Easy Overnight Breakfast Strata is an all in one morning treat! Create magic with day-old bread, eggs, bacon and lots of cheese!
The better type of Strata
When I hear the word ‘Strata’ I think of levies and whine ‘Is it due again already?’ We currently live in a townhouse that is under strata, we own our land and share the common areas with others. This means that we have to pay expensive quarterly levies for the upkeep of the common areas.
The type of strata we are making today is way more exciting and it’s not going to cost you a fortune to make it!
Strata is an American layered casserole, it’s creative, delicious and simple to make with just a few ingredients!
This easy overnight strata is a savoury breakfast cake with everything we love all in one, bread, eggs, bacon and loads of cheese!
Conveniently prepare the strata the night before and all we need to do is bake it in the morning.
Genius right? Who wants to wake up early and be stuck in the kitchen? Definitely not me, as I’m not a morning person. If I didn’t have a toddler waking me up at 7 am each morning I would sleep in until 10 am if I didn’t have any arrangements on.
How does a brekkie strata taste like? I would say it’s a savoury version of a Bread and Butter Pudding’, as it shares the same texture but tastes similar to a Quiche Lorraine.
Sold? because I certainly am! This delicious strata can be served warm or at room temperature, it’s perfect to pack for a picnic and shared amongst friends.
Our first week of lockdown
It’s now a week and a bit since hubby, Tomasi, has torn the upper muscle in his right leg. He was improving a bit but because he refused to rest up, it’s now causing him excruciating pain once again.
For months I feel like I’ve been fighting cold symptoms. I had an irritating dry cough that refused to leave me for weeks and now that’s gone, I have a sore throat all over again!
Because of Tomasi’s leg, he’s currently MIA. This means my sister, Nara and I have to pick up his house duties. I’m cooking, cleaning and looking after our little monster Kai (aka 19-month-old toddler) and an overbearing grumpy sore husband. Nara is hating life as she is currently in charge of cleaning the kitties litter and taking the bins out.
The good thing about lockdown is I’ve been cooking more than usual. So more time to test recipes and come up with more exciting posts. Even better, because we all can’t go out anywhere, all my food testers and critics are conveniently at home to taste my creations 24/7! This Overnight Breakfast Strata scored a thumbs up from everyone, including the little guy.
Small children are scary
This obviously has nothing to do with the recipe, but I had to share this. I would advise you to skip this part if you hate ghost stories.
Have you ever wondered why ghost movies have creepy little children in the starring role? It’s because small children are scary in REAL LIFE. My sister’s friend had a recent encounter with her 3-year-old and I firmly told her I didn’t want to hear about it as I knew it would scare the daylights out of me.
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This afternoon I went to get my 19-month-old toddler who woke up from his afternoon nap. I placed him on our bed and took off his sleepsuit. When I turned to grab a nappy he ran over to the heater and switched it on cheekily. Our heater was right next to our walk-in-robe, he saw something in there and started shrieking, looking terrified he ran over to me.
I hugged him and assured him everything was ok but my heart was racing because Kai still had his head turned and was staring at the same spot in the wardrobe. Pretending to be stoic, I walked towards the robe. I was hoping that one of our kitties sneaked in but nope, there was nothing amiss. I then stupidly imagined a movie scene where the parents can’t see anything but there’s a long dark haired black figure standing right in front of them.
Well, thank goodness for lockdown because I’ll be wearing the same outfit for a week. I’ll be avoiding my wardrobe for a while!
Ingredients for Easy Overnight Breakfast Strata
Bread – Use bread that is not too soft because it’ll go mushy, French baguette, brioche or challah are great choices. The bread should be at least one day old as stale bread will absorb the milk and eggs better than fresh bread. It’s quite hard to measure bread by weight as each bread weighs differently, that’s why it’s best to measure with cups. I used 8 cups (not overfilled) of chopped French baguette, which is approximately 230gm (8oz).
Bacon – If using lean bacon with less or no fat (rindless) you’ll need to heat up a tablespoon of oil in the pan before frying the bacon. Streaky bacon is my favourite because of the balanced fat to meat ratio.
Cheese – You don’t have to use 3 types of cheese as I did here, just two or even one of your favourite melting cheese(s) will do. I used a mix of parmesan, mozzarella and tasty cheddar cheese.
How to make Easy Overnight Breakfast Strata
Step by step guide with photos
Slice the bread into roughly 1.5-2cm cubes, place the bread into a large bowl and set aside. If using different kinds of cheese, mix them together in a separate bowl.
In a frypan stir and cook the bacon on medium to high heat until the bacon releases some fat. Add in the onions and garlic and continue to stir and cook for 2 minutes, do not let the garlic burn. Set aside to cool off slightly.
Reserve 1/4 cup of bacon and 1/2 cup of cheese for the topping. Wait for the bacon to cool down completely, place the bacon mixture and cheese in separate bowls, cover them with plastic film and place in the fridge.
In a bowl, whisk the eggs, milk and salt until combined. Add in the cheese(s), bacon mixture and stir to mix. Pour the egg mixture over the bread and mix well, the bread pieces should all be soaked in the mixture.
Cover the bread mixture with plastic film, softly press down on the film to flatten the surface of the bread. Place it in the fridge overnight or for at least 2 hours before cooking to allow the liquids to soak into the bread.
Bake the Breakfast Strata
Preheat oven to 200°C (390°F) or 180°C (360°F) for fan-forced ovens.
Generously grease a 20cm round tin (non-stick with a loose base) with butter. To prevent any leakage during baking you may wish to wrap the outside base of the tin with foil.
Transfer the strata mixture into the prepared tin, press the mixture down firmly using a flat spatula. Sprinkle the reserved cheese(s) and bacon on top of the bread mixture, place foil loosely on top of the tin and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. It is cooked when a skewer comes out clean when inserted in the middle. Remove the foil, switch the oven to grill/broil mode (heat element from the top) and let it cook for 5 minutes or until the strata is nice and golden in colour.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container and placed in the fridge for up to 4 days. The strata can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
If you love cheesy recipes as much as I do check out this hearty BEEF MOUSSAKA or the impressive and fancy EASY LOBSTER MORNAY
Cooking measurements are in Australian standard spoon and cup measurements.
A Third-Party Application calculated the calories and nutritional information. Please use this as an approximate guide only.
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Cheers (I’ll drink to that) – Cat Tre
Easy Overnight Breakfast Strata
Ingredients
- 8 cups day old bread (approx. 2cm cubes) (NOTE 1)
- 250 gm bacon (diced into small pieces) (NOTE 2)
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- ½ brown onion (finely chopped)
- 8 large eggs
- 1½ cup milk
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 cup shredded cheese (NOTE 3)
Instructions
- Slice the bread into roughly 1.5-2cm cubes, place the bread into a large bowl and set aside. If using different kinds of cheese, mix them together in a separate bowl.
- In a frypan stir and cook the bacon on medium to high heat until the bacon releases some fat. Add in the onions and garlic and continue to stir and cook for 2 minutes, do not let the garlic burn. Set aside to cool off slightly.
- Reserve 1/4 cup of bacon and 1/2 cup of cheese for the topping. Wait for the bacon to cool down completely, place the bacon mixture and cheese in separate bowls, cover them with plastic film and place in the fridge.
- In a bowl, whisk the eggs, milk and salt until combined. Add in the cheese(s), bacon mixture and stir to mix. Pour the egg mixture over the bread and mix well, the bread pieces should all be soaked in the mixture.
- Cover the bread mixture with plastic film, softly press down on the film to flatten the surface of the bread. Place it in the fridge overnight or for at least 2 hours before cooking to allow the liquids to soak into the bread.
- Preheat oven to 200°C (390°F) or 180°C (360°F) for fan-forced ovens. Generously grease a 20cm round tin (non-stick with a loose base) with butter. To prevent any leakage during baking you may wish to wrap the outside base of the tin with foil.
- Transfer the strata mixture into the prepared tin, press the mixture down firmly using a flat spatula. Sprinkle the reserved cheese(s) and bacon on top of the bread mixture, place foil loosely on top of the tin and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. It is cooked when a skewer comes out clean when inserted in the middle. Remove foil, switch the oven to grill/broil mode (heat element from the top) and let it cook for 5 minutes or until the strata is nice and golden in colour.
