Sweet Potato and Chorizo Breakfast Casserole

Family was visiting a few weekends ago, and I served a breakfast casserole for Sunday morning.

And it was good, but…

even though I had added a fair amount of spices and seasonings that hadn’t been called for in the original recipe, it was just kinda there.

So, we got to talking about ways to fix it, to make it better. We had the technology…

“How about chorizo?” my brother-in-law suggested.

“Oh, and sweet potatoes and baby spinach!” my sister-in-law added.

So, I got to thinking and, for a holidaze weekend family breakfast, I served this to (almost) universal acclaim (one nephew cannot deal with eggs).

INGREDIENTS
•2 tbsp olive or avocado oil
•6 oz Chorizo
•1 lb meatloaf mix
•1 cup diced sweet onion
•3 cloves garlic
•2 tbsp Sherry Peppers Sauce*
•6 eggs, lightly beaten
•1/2 tsp black pepper
•1/2 tsp Aleppo pepper
•1/2 tsp dried chives
•1/2 tsp dried parsley
•1/2 tsp dried mustard
•1/2 tsp Seasoned Salt
•1 bag (5 oz) baby spinach
•20 oz thinly sliced sweet potato “noodles” – or other peeled and cubed sweet potatoes
•2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
•1-1/2 cup cottage cheese – not light or fat free**
•1-1/4 cup shredded Swiss cheese

*No Sherry Peppers Sauce? No Problem! Simply add a bit of decent sherry (none of that “cooking” stuff) and a dash or three of your fave hot sauce, to taste.

**Don’t stress about using “full fat (4%)” cottage cheese. Cottage cheese is significantly lower in fat than other cheeses, and the 4% cottage cheese is usually (read the ingredients on the package) just cream, milk, and salt; so, nothing funky or weird,

Warm the oil in a large skillet or pan over medium high heat, then add the onion, garlic, chorizo, and meatloaf mix and cook,, stirring and breaking up the chorizo and meat, until the veggies are tender and the meat cooked through.

Note: I used the meatloaf mix in place of another tube of chorizo, to keep the spice levels down for those family members who have a milder palate. If you really like hot, go ahead and use all chorizo.

Stir in one tablespoon of the sherry peppers sauce and continue to cook until most of the pan juices have been cooked off.

Add the baby spinach and toss until it has wilted and is nicely mixed into the chorizo.

Set aside to cool.

Note: you can do this part ahead, then stash the chorizo mixture in the fridge until you are ready to make the casserole. This is not one of those “make the night before” casseroles.

When ready to bake the casserole, heat your oven to 350º.

Whisk the eggs together in a large bowl with the remaining one tablespoon of Sherry Peppers Sauce and the seasonings, then stir in the cheeses.

Stir in the chorizo and the sweet potatoes.

Apply cooking spray to a 13×9″ baking pan, then spread the sweet potato and chorizo mixture evenly in the pan.

Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and let rest for ten minutes before serving.

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