Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 whole package of Jimmy Dean “Sage” Sausage
- 1 lb. Italian sausage (spicy is fine if you prefer it)
- 16 oz. cubed hash brown potatoes
- 1/2 stick butter
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 baskets of sliced mushrooms
- 2 – 8 oz. jars roasted red peppers (use fresh/frozen if you have them), drained and chopped
- 1 small bag of baby spinach
- 10 jumbo eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup half and half, or heavy cream
- 3 cups mild cheddar cheese, grated (leave 1 cup to the side and use alone to top the casserole)
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
- 2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. dried basil
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
- 1 tsp. salt (yes, this really needs some salt)
- 1 tsp. pepper
Instructions
- Prepare/bake the potatoes in the oven according to package instructions until they are nice and golden brown and crispy.
- While the potatoes are in the oven, in a large skillet, brown the ground Italian sausage and ground Jimmy Dean (Sage) sausage.
- After a good, dark browning, remove the sausage and set aside.
- Add the butter to the pan.
- Add the mushrooms and onion, saute in the butter until done (about 5 – minutes).
- Spray a large 9″ x 12″ baking pan.
- Begin to layer the ingredients.
- Lay the baked, crispy browned potatoes in first
- Mix all of the cheeses together (leaving 1 cup of cheddar to the side) and layer ½ of the cheese on top of the potatoes.
- Divide the sausage mixture in half. Spread half of the sausage on top of the cheese and potatoes.
- Layer the roasted red peppers on top of the sausage.
- Layer the sauteed mushrooms and onions on top of the red peppers.
- If you like: sprinkle a layer of grated cheese on top of the mushrooms and onions.
- Layer the second half of the sausage.
- Layer the spinach on top of the sausage layer, leaving a lot of openings so milk/egg/cheese mixture in the next layer will be able to seep through to the potatoes on the bottom.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the milk, cream, eggs, herbs and spices, and all the remaining cheddar cheese (except for 1 cup of cheddar cheese).
- Pour this mixture evenly all over the top of the spinach layer.
- Sprinkle the saved cup of shredded cheddar cheese all over the top.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes with aluminum foil covering the baking pan.
- After 50 minutes, remove the aluminum foil and bake for another 10 minutes, keeping a very good close eye on the casserole so no burning takes place. If it begins to burn, remove it immediately. If it looks like it needs more baking, then do so while watching it closely.
- Let the casserole rest for 10 minutes to firm up a bit.
- Serve and enjoy!
