Tator Tot Casserole with Sausage

Having our family home for the machinery sale gave me the perfect excuse to try a new recipe for a breakfast casserole. 

I still use my cookbooks on occasion. However, during my Covid cleaning spree, I cleared out shelves worth of cookbooks and took them to our church's book sale. I seem to find more recipes on blogs or via recommendations from Jill or Susan these days. I found this particular recipe as I was wasting time on Facebook. (Yes, I am not immune from Facebook scrolling.)

Butter with a Side of Bread blog's link to Facebook arrived at the right time for a brunch meal before all our family returned home on Sunday. 

It used ingredients I usually have in my fridge, freezer or pantry. The next time I make it, I'll probably try using tater rounds, which are thinner versions of tator tots. I like the crunch they provide. 

The casserole was a hit, and it will likely make its way onto a family breakfast or brunch table again. 

I only ended up with one photo this time (and it wasn't that good. Oh well!) After a busy weekend, I guess I'm lucky I got that much! (So much for setting up a photo shoot in natural light by the dining room window.)
 

Tator Tot Breakfast Casserole with Sausage

Adapted from Butter with a Side of Bread blog

 

32 oz. tater tots or tater rounds, frozen

1 lb. ground sausage

1/3 cup bacon bits

1/3 cup chopped onions

1/3 cup chopped red pepper

1/3 cup chopped yellow pepper

2 cups shredded milk Cheddar cheese 

2 cups shredded Colby Jack cheese

6 large eggs

1 cup milk

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. celery seed

1/8 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. ground pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9- by 13-inch casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside. 

Chop bell peppers into small pieces; set aside for later use.

In a medium-size pan, over medium heat, heat up chopped onion, red pepper, yellow pepper and bacon bits until softened up and the onion becomes translucent. Add the ground sausage and cook until the sausage is fully cooked and no longer pink. Set aside.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk eggs, milk, garlic powder, celery seeds, salt and ground pepper. Mix until all combined. Add approximately 1 cup cheese and mix until all ingredients are blended. 

Pour the cooked sausage mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared casserole. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of cheese on top.

Pour the egg mixture over the sausage and spread evenly. 

Place the frozen tater tots on top. Sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese on top. 

Cook in a preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes until nice and golden. Serve immediately.