Baked Egg and Cheese Puff: A Tasty Casserole
An easy casserole for breakfast, lunch, or supper.
This recipe for a baked egg and cheese puff has been an old faithful that I have made ever since I was about eleven years old. It is a simple recipe but always delicious and very filling. My family was never a big fan of hot breakfasts, so I think of this as a dish to make for supper, but it would be just as good for a breakfast or brunch main dish.
Ingredients:
4 slices of bread
1 small onion, or 1/2 of a large onion
1 cup diced, fully cooked ham
3/4 cup shredded cheese (I prefer cheddar or a yellow-and-white blend)
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Here's how to make it:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (Fahrenheit). Set the oven rack to the lowest position. Use cooking spray to grease an 8x8 inch baking dish. Arrange four slices of bread to cover the bottom of the pan. (You can cut the crusts off, if you wish, but I never do. I think it's one of the better ways to eat the crust!) You may have to squish the edges a little to get it all to fit in the bottom of the pan.
Dice the onion and spread the onion pieces evenly over the bread. Next, spread the ham cubes over the onion. Sprinkle the shredded cheese over the ham.
In a bowl or pitcher, combine the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper. With a whisk or egg beater, beat the mixture until it is smooth. Then pour the mixture evenly over the cheese slices.
Bake the casserole for 25-30 minutes. It should be mostly set, and nicely puffed and golden with a few touches of brown. Serve hot. Enjoy!
Tips for making this baked egg and cheese casserole:
- You can use the end crusts of storebought bread in this recipe, but it is best to use two crusts for one regular slice, and put one on top of the other, since they are thinner than regular slices.
- Homemade bread works great in this recipe too!
- You can substitute browned sausage for the ham in this recipe. It has also been suggested that tuna could be a meat used in this recipe, but I think I will stick with the ham.
- This casserole should be moist when finished baking, but not runny. You may need to adjust baking time depending on your oven.
