Italian Sausage Strata

Italian Sausage Strata

½ cup butter or margarine, softened, divided
12 to 16 slices day-old bread, crusts removed
½ pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 cups sliced onions
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound bulk Italian sausage, cooked and drained
3 cups (12 oz) shredded cheddar cheese
5 eggs
2 ½ cups milk
1 tablespoon Dijon mustartd
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground mustard
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Using ¼ cup butter, spread one side of each bread slice with butter. Place half of the bread, butter side down, in a greased 13x9 inch baking dish.

In a large skillet, sauté the mushrooms and onions in remaining butter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spoon half of the mushroom mixture over bread in prepared pan. Top with half of the sausage and cheese. Layer with the remaining bread, mushroom mixture, sausage and cheese. In a bowl, combine the eggs, milk, Dijon mustard, nutmeg and ground mustard. Pour over cheese. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake, covered at 350 for 50 minutes. Uncover; bake 10 to 15 minutes longer or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Sprinkle with parsley.

Yields: 12 servings

O’Brien Sausage Skillet

O’Brien Sausage Skillet

1 package (28 oz) frozen O’Brien hash brown potatoes
1 pound fully cooked kielbasa or polish sausage, cut into ¼ inch slices
2 medium tart apples, peeled and chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup (4 oz) shredded cheddar cheese

Prepare potatoes according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, sauté the sausage, apples and onion in oil for 10 minutes or until apples and onions are tender; drain.

Spoon the sausage mixture over potatoes, sprinkle with cheese. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Yields: 6 to 8 servings

Savory Bread Pudding with Sausage and Mushrooms

Recipe courtesy Sandra Lee 2009

.Prep Time:15 minInactive Prep Time:30 minCook Time:45 minLevel:
EasyServes:
12 mini bread puddings.Ingredients
•Nonstick cooking spray
•1 tablespoon canola oil
•1 (8-ounce) package sliced white mushrooms
•1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage, removed from casing
•4 eggs
•2 cups milk
•1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
•1/2 baguette, day old, cubed
Directions
Spray a 12 cup muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

Heat the canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat and saute the mushrooms. Add the sausage and stir over the heat until browned and cooked through.

In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, Italian seasoning and salt and pepper. Add the cubed bread to the egg mixture and let the egg and bread mixture sit for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator to allow the bread to absorb the liquid.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Remove the egg mixture from the refrigerator, add the sausage and mushrooms and stir to combine. Ladle the bread pudding mixture into the muffin tins and bake until set, about 30 to 35 minutes. Remove the puddings from the muffin tins to a serving platter and serve. Reserve 3 puddings for the Round 2 Recipe, Savory Bread Pudding Bites with Apple Mustard Sauce.

Use the leftovers from this recipe to make Savory Bread Pudding Bites with Apple Mustard Sauce .