Easy Overnight Breakfast Strata
This Easy Overnight Breakfast Strata is an all in one morning treat! Create magic with day-old bread, eggs, bacon and lots of cheese!
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.
Notes
(NOTE 1) 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).
(NOTE 2) 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.
(NOTE 3) 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.
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.
A Third-Party Application calculated the calories and nutritional information, so this is an approximate guide only.
Cooking measurements are in Australian standard spoon and cup measurements.
Nutrition
Serving: 1servingCalories: 386kcalCarbohydrates: 17gProtein: 21gFat: 26gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 233mgSodium: 676mgPotassium: 273mgFiber: 1gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 546IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 261mgIron: 2mg