Ham, Cheese and Croissant Breakfast Casserole

 

Ingredients

For the vegetables

• ▢1 medium onion chopped
• ▢2 cups chopped broccoli (optional)
• ▢8 oz mushrooms chopped (stems removed if using shitake)
• ▢2 tbsp olive oil
• ▢½ tsp kosher salt
• ▢¼ tsp black pepper

For the casserole

• ▢10 large eggs
• ▢1 cup whole milk
• ▢1 cup heavy cream
• ▢2 tsp Dijon mustard
• ▢½ tsp kosher salt
• ▢½ tsp black pepper
• ▢4 large croissants roughly cubed
• ▢4 oz Swiss cheese shredded
• ▢1 ½ cups diced ham

Instructions 

For the vegetables

• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• On a large parchment-lined baking sheet, combine the chopped broccoli, mushrooms, and onion. Drizzle with olive oil, salt, and black pepper, and mix to evenly coat the vegetables in the oil. Spread to an even layer and roast in the preheated oven until the vegetables begin to brown and the broccoli is tender, 20-25 minutes. Once the vegetables are roasted, remove them from the oven to cool.

For the casserole

• Grease a 9×13 baking dish and set it aside. Once the vegetables are done roasting, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.
• In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until they are evenly combined. Add the milk, heavy cream, Dijon mustard, salt, and black pepper. Whisk to combine.
• Fold in the cubed croissants and add ¾ of the Swiss cheese. Mix everything together and let soak while the vegetables finish roasting.
• Once the vegetables are finished roasting and have cooled slightly, add the ham and cooled roasted vegetables. Fold gently and pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining Swiss cheese and place in the 350°F oven. Bake until the eggs are set with a slight jiggle in the center, 45-55 minutes. Once baked, remove the casserole from the oven and cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

• When chopping the broccoli, do not discard the stems. Since the broccoli will be roasted and then added to all of the other ingredients, the somewhat hard stems will roast down, become soft, and make a great addition to the casserole. The stems have nutritional value, including fiber, and it’s all about preventing food waste when possible.
• Alternatively, when chopping the mushrooms, if there are stems, simply remove them. The stems of mushrooms, if large, can be tenuous. Thus, I would recommend removing the stems and using them in astock.
• When choosing a type of cheese to add to this egg casserole, opt for a block of cheese rather than the pre-shredded versions. A block of cheese will allow you to control the level of shred that occurs and usually means that the cheese will not have additives that could prevent it from melting as nicely.
• Allow the croissants to sit out at room temperature for a day or two so that a bit of dryness works into their texture. This will slow how quickly the croissant soaks up the egg mixture once added the croissants are added.