Cheesy Hash Brown + Egg Breakfast Casserole {Make-Aheadable}
This cheesy hash brown egg breakfast casserole is so easy to throw together and can be made the night before! It makes a perfect easy and hearty breakfast for company…or just because!
I love a good breakfast casserole!
As long as there is no soggy, egg-soaked bread in sight, of course (this make-ahead breakfast casserole being a notable, non-soggy exception).
I’ve tried a lot of breakfast bakes in my day, and have decided one of the ultimate criteria has to be the make-aheadability of the casserole.
You’ll be pleased to know this hash brown + eggs + cheese number does very, very well being made the night before.
Which basically makes the next morning a total breeze – a really awesome thing when you happen to be entertaining company or prepping a holiday breakfast.
Eggs and potatoes have lived together in happy breakfast bliss for pretty much forever, and the combo definitely works in this breakfast casserole.
With just enough cheese to keep things exciting, it is equal parts simple, hearty, and delicious.
And a quick shout out (plea) to all the cottage cheese haters out there: please just take a deep breath, and go with it!
I promise the cottage cheese (and sour cream) adds a fantastic creaminess without weird texture issues.
Plus, it gives a great boost in protein without being an in-your-face-cottage-cheese-moment.
I’ve added some notes below the recipe, but I have a very strong feeling this breakfast casserole is open to a myriad of different flavor variations.
Swap out the bacon for sausage…or ham. Or, leave it meatless!
Go for a Denver Omelet flair and add sauteed bell peppers and onions!
This just came to me, but what about a roasted red pepper and feta version? Oh my. Please invite me over; I promise to mind my manners.
I, for one, would also totally embrace a mushroom/onion/ultimate Swiss version.
But I’ll have to try that sometime when my gag-prone children are otherwise occupied so I can enjoy it in peace and serenity.
Versatility is the sign of a great breakfast casserole!
I can’t wait to see what you guys come up with. Report back!
Reading your comments makes my life complete.
With the upcoming holidays and entertaining potential at an all-time high (company staying overnight?), this cheesy hash brown egg breakfast casserole should give you some peace of mind on those busy mornings.
Here are a few of my other overnight breakfast faves in case you need just a bit more inspiration!
Overnight Creme Brulee French Toast Bake
Overnight Cinnamon and Sugar Sweet Rolls
Make-Ahead Sausage and Egg Breakfast Bake
Make-Ahead Refrigerator Bran Muffins
Overnight Maple and Brown Sugar Oatmeal
Overnight Oatmeal Cinnamon Pancakes
One Year Ago: Super Soft Chocolate Frosted Sugar Cookies {Swig Style}
Two Years Ago: Soft Eggnog Sugar Cookies with Whipped Eggnog Frosting
Three Years Ago: Bacon Wrapped Chicken Bites {Main Dish or Appetizer!}
Four Years Ago: Homemade Thin Mint Cookies
Five Years Ago: Chocolate Shortbread Fingers
Cheesy Hash Brown + Egg Breakfast Casserole
Ingredients
- 8 to 16 ounces (227 to 454 g) bacon, chopped, or sausage (see note for other options, too)
- ½ cup small diced onion or shallots
- 8 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 4-5 cups (567 to 680 g) shredded hash browns, frozen or thawed
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce, optional (but delicious)
- 1 teaspoon salt, I use coarse kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¾ cup (170 g) cottage cheese
- ¾ cup (170 g) sour cream
- 1 cup (114 g) shredded cheddar cheese (preferably sharp)
- 1 cup (114 g) shredded Swiss cheese
- Chopped green onions or chives, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9X13-inch baking pan. Set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon or sausage and onion until cooked through and crisp (for the bacon). Drain excess grease.
- In a large bowl, combine the eggs, hash browns, hot sauce (if using), salt, pepper, cottage cheese, sour cream, and cheese. Add the bacon (or sausage) and onions. Mix to combine.
- Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared pan (at this point the casserole can be covered and refrigerated overnight).
- Bake for 40-45 minutes until lightly golden on the edges, puffy in the center, and a thin knife comes out clean from the center (add 10-15 minutes to the baking time if the casserole has been refrigerated).
- Garnish with chopped green onions or chives. Let the casserole rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting into squares and serving.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted from this Taste of Home recipe
Mel, can I make my own hash browns for this or will it change texture?
I think that should work fine!
Do you think this could be made in muffin tins?
Forgot to say- I’ve made this multiple times and everyone LOVES it. I’m looking to make it into a version I can make ahead and freeze individually. I guess we could just cut slices and freeze individually. The muffin sized portions just seem like they would be nice to have. What do you think?
Yes, I think you could definitely make it in muffin-size portions. The only caution I’d give is that egg-based recipes are sometimes a pain to clean out of muffin tins – so make sure to grease the muffin tins really well.
Made this for Christmas morning brunch. Was a big hit. Thanks for sharing.
‘Great recipe!! I didn’t have cottage cheese, so just used milk, which made it it more moist. I compensated by cooking 15 min. longer.
Ok, first off, another recipe that knocks it out of the park. I serve it for dinner with a simple arugula and tomato salad with a maple mustard vinaigrette. It’s amazing. I make this as written and for my vegetarian niece I add a whole package of power greens to the casserole and bake as directed.
We love this recipe! Do you think I could double it in a 9×13 pan? If so, how long should I cook it for?
I think a double recipe would need to be split between two 9X13-inch pans (might be too many ingredients for one pan if it’s doubled).
My son requested this for his birthday dinner AGAIN this year, haha. Safe to say this is a favorite at our house. Especially with extra sausage and cinnamon rolls (Mel’s Small Batch Cinnamon Rolls) on the side, which I only do because it’s his birthday!
Does the bacon end up soggy?? I’m making this for a large gathering. Any tips for using bacon?
Could I sub ricotta for cottage cheese?
I have have been cooking for more years than I will admit to, and your recipes are my go to when I want to try something new. Never found a dud.
Thank you, Bets! And I haven’t tried it, but I think ricotta would do fine in place of the cottage cheese.
Do you bake this covered or uncovered?
I bake uncovered.
Delicious! I like ground breakfast sausage as my meat and I usually add more egg and leave out the sour cream to make it healthier. I round up on the cottage cheese. Great flexible recipe that I can make ahead of time And no it has no spicy flavor, just good seasoning.
I made this for a baby shower brunch and got lots of compliments! Terrific recipe!
I’ve made this previously for brunch occasions and it’s awesome! Could you freeze it after baking it? To reheat later?
Yes, that should work just fine!
This is one of those breakfasts that you can prep the night before when you have company over. It’s a good healthy meal that feeds your company well 🙂 Thanks Mel! PS. To those on the fence about the cottage cheese, you 100% cannot taste it in the dish.
Delicious! Voted as best Christmas breakfast ever. Made ahead last night, used Jimmy Dean Sage breakfast sausage and took Mel’s advice to add the hot sauce-right choice!! So good. Thank you, your recipes are always solid winners for our family!
Thank you so much, Heather! Glad this one was such a hit!
Absolutely delicious!! I’ve made this casserole so many times with slightly different variations and it always comes out perfect! It heats up so well and is always a crowd favorite! I always go to Mel’s when I want a show stopping, fool proof recipe and this is no exception.
Could I make this recipe 2 days ahead?
I haven’t tried it that far in advance, but I think it should work!
Oh man, so happy I found this recipe, although I have a tendency to alter most recipes expect when baking. I smoke the hot italian sausage in cast iron on pellet grill then I saute mini baby bell mushrooms, onion and garlic in butter, olive oil and pinot grigio on stove top in cast iron. Manually shred 2 large fresh russet potatoes and the cheeses. We have chickens so fresh eggs really make this dish. Mix the cottage cheese, sour cream eggs together then mix everything to set overnite in 9×13 ceramic pan. On top i also add banana peppers, more cheese and top with the green onion. In am I let the casserole sit @ room temp for one hour, then place in cold pellet grill. Once it gets to 350° i start the timer for 1 hour 20 minutes, rotating half way thru. Scratch cooking takes a long time but thats all we have in retirement and covid. My husband LOVES this. I make this almost every week and never get tired of it. Every bite is smokey deliciousness.
Can you please clarify the hashbrown quantity? 4-5 cups is only 10-12 ounces, but you alternatively list it as 20-24 ounces (twice as much). Which one is correct? Thanks!
4-5 cups of hash browns weigh about 20-24 ounces.
Hmm, maybe we have a different definition of hash browns? I’m using the long shreds. The package lists the nutritional info as 1 cup = 3 oz (4 c = 12 oz).
I made the recipe using 20 oz, which measured right at about 7 cups for me, and it turned out great! But definitely very potato-y. Maybe next time I’ll try 4 cups and see what that’s like…
Hmmm, I wonder if brand makes a difference?
Do this have the nutritional information somewhere? At least the protein, fats, and carbs. That would be helpful. Thank you .
I don’t, sorry!
Would this work with freshly shredded potatoes? Or would it change the texture too much?
Yes, I think it would!
I’ve been making this casserole since Mel posted it! It’s a family favorite! I hate cottage cheese with a passion but with this recipe I add the eggs, sour cream, cottage cheese, hot sauce, salt and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth! Then put into a big bowl with everything else and mix it all together!! Thanks Mel for another amazing recipe!!
Can I turn this into a freezer meal? Freeze without baking or bake/cool and freeze?
I’ve previously made and delicious! Many thanks
I would probably freeze it after baking.
Hi Mel, I was looking at your breakfast burrito recipe, and since it starts as a casserole, I was wondering if you have tried this one as a burrito? Thanks.
I haven’t but I bet it would be delicious!
This was fantastic! Made it last weekend for family that was visiting and everyone loved it. I used sausage instead of bacon, and 10 eggs.
Best breakfast casserole I’ve ever made, and I’ve made a bunch of them! I love the addition of hash browns in the mix with the eggs, it helps it not be too eggy and everyone in the family liked a less eggy casserole. Flavors are spot on. AMAZING.
We love this casserole. Thanks.
What kind of hot sauce do you use?
Sriracha works great.
My family is obsessed with this recipe. Do yourself a favor and use the cottage cheese even if you hate the stuff. You can’t pick it out of the final casserole but it definitely adds a creamy texture. I half this recipe for my family and make it in an 8×8 pan. Also realized this recipe is a great way to sneak veggies into my extremely picky toddler’s diet. I throw whatever I have in this: bell peppers, shredded carrots, broccoli, onions. I cut them up very small and sauté them and no one has complained. I use frozen cubed potatoes just because that’s what we prefer and it makes it easy for the baby to pick up. They love it with bacon but I just made it with maple sausage and it’s delicious too. If your family likes breakfast for dinner, this is great too because it’s easy and substantial and you still get the veggies in there. Thanks for another family staple, Mel!
Fantastic recipe! A big crowd pleaser. I made two batches (to feed 20) and kept them in separate mixing bowls, except that I cooked all the bacon and onions together. Next time, I’d do the bacon/onion in separate batches too if I was doubling the recipe. It was just too much bacon (24oz) to cook efficiently. The onions released liquid in the beginning, so the bacon wouldn’t crisp up. After about 30 minutes in a cast iron skillet, I finally moved half the bacon/onion to another pan to finish up. I was using hemplers thick cut bacon. I also used a whole large onion across the two batches. I followed everything else in the recipe (even all the specified cheeses), and it was great!
Does “make ahead-able” mean that you prepare and combine the ingredients, refrigerate, and them bake the next day? Or bake the day before and serve cold the next day?
You assemble and refrigerate and then bake the next day.
This was delicious! I made it just as the recipe was written, with bacon and without the optional hot sauce. My family loved it and I will definitely make it again.
Awesome, but I did made a few modifications. Like a lot of others I couldn’t bring myself to add the cottage cheese (sorry Mel!) and subbed another 3/4 cup of sour cream for it. I also substituted 1 teaspoon of ancho chili powder ( a milder, but flavorful chili) for the hot sauce and spice wise also added 2 cloves of minced garlic.. And finally I decided to add about 4-6 ounces of cooked portabella mushrooms, roughly cut. The results were fabulous, thank you for the base recipe, will be a staple in my kitchen for brunch and maybe dinner as well!!!!
This was absolutely delicious! I will definitely be making this again. I sauteed red pepper with the onion which was yummy. I feel like this would taste really good with some diced green chili’s in it too…maybe I will experiment next time :). Thanks for the great recipe!
If I baked 2- 9×13 pans at the same time would the baking time be the same? Can’t wait to make!!
Yes, the baking time should be the same.
We LOVE this recipe!! I did notice that when listing the instructions, you don’t say to add the salt and pepper but they are listed in the ingredient list.
Thanks for the heads up! Just edited (salt and pepper goes in with everything else) 🙂
We had this Easter morning and it was fabulous! Not too eggy and so so good! Thanks! 🙂
I’m making this for 30 people so I’m going to make a couple at a time. How does that effect the bake time/temp? Do I need to cover or do anything so top bottom or sides don’t burn waiting for centers to set up?
If they are baking in the same size pan as the recipe, you shouldn’t need to adjust anything. If you are baking in a larger pan then you might need to bake longer and watch for over browning on top.
I really cant thank you enough for your continual recipe ideas. I’ll set the scene for you today: severe blizzard in our area, kids are home, stomach flu for me, overdue for a grocery shopping trip and my husband will be home at 7 oclock tired and hungry (he would happily cook if I didn’t, but being a crummy day for all of us I would love to have a hot meal ready when he gets home). I start looking for a throw together and go back to the couch recipe that I can make with our odds and ends. And your recipe pops up, I have no frozen hashbrowns but I have half a bag of potatoes in the pantry and everything else. I dice and roast the potatoes with some oil and salt, throw the casserole together and now I can breathe a sigh of relief knowing all I have to do is toss a salad together and throw the casserole in the oven and we will have a proper dinner for all of us. I know it will be delicious, and I cant thank you enough for all the recipes of yours I have tried in the past that I have substituted, altered and they have always turned out fantastic. My kind of cooking when you never know what life will throw at you.
Oh man, Caitlin! I would have instantly ordered pizza. YOU ARE AMAZING! I hope you get feeling better!
Tonight is the second time I’ve made this casserole for dinner. I sautéed a bag of frozen chopped spinach with the onions and used a little feta, cheddar, and shredded parm totaling about a cup because this was what I had. Thank you for a great adaptable recipe! It is so good with a mixed green salad!
You know it’s good when you keep going back for more! This was delicious, and the cottage cheese added a surprisingly good taste and texture (I do not eat cottage cheese normally). I also didn’t have sharp cheddar or swiss, so I used a pre-shredded Mexican blend, and it still turned out great. Thank you for a wonderful way to enjoy my homemade turkey sausage and homemade shredded hash brown potatoes. 🙂 P.S. I don’t do spicy food, but that bit of hot sauce adds a great flavor!
All my family loved this recipe!
I made this today and I want to make it again tomorrow! It was so yummy! Not mushy or dry. This one is my new recipe. I’m planning to make a vegetarian version as well next time.