Take your favorite egg and cheese bagel sandwich and turn it into a make-ahead breakfast casserole instead! This breakfast bake is an easy crowd-pleaser.

Photography Credit: Marta Rivera

I’ll be the first one to admit that I am not a breakfast person. The thought of having to wake up and begin working to feed myself (or others) just makes me want to roll over and go back to sleep.

Just give me a cup of coffee around 10 a.m. and I’m good to go.

That was fine and dandy when I was single, but now I have a big, burly husband and two tweenagers who are perpetually hungry. They just so happen to think breakfast is the best meal of the day.

Easy-to-assemble morning meals, like this Breakfast Bagel Casserole with Sausage, Egg, and Cheese, are now a necessary thing for me.

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Turn bagels into a make-ahead casserole

Instead of laboring over individual sandwiches for the entire family, I’ve tossed together the ingredients from my favorite breakfast bagel sandwich and baked them together in a casserole.

The slightly sweet, chewy bagels get crisp right along the edge of the casserole, while the hints of sage in the sausage and the sharp cheddar meld to give a savory tang that makes it a hallmark breakfast dish.

The beauty of a breakfast bake

Breakfast bakes like this make mornings bearable because they require minimal effort to prepare, and they can often be prepped the evening before you want to enjoy them. They are ideal if you have to feed a morning crowd.

The night before, just chug along with the recipe’s instructions, wrap the dish in foil, and put it into the refrigerator. In the morning, pull the dish from the fridge and let it warm for a few minutes on the counter while the oven preheats (this takes the chill off). Then just put it into your hot oven, and bake as directed.

Adapt this recipe to your own tastes!

This casserole is not only economical, it’s one of the most filling and versatile meals I’ve ever created.

Alter the flavors by using chorizo instead of sage sausage; or use Swiss cheese instead of cheddar. If you’re allergic to seeds, swap out the everything bagels for the plain or whole wheat instead. The combos you can create from this basic recipe are virtually endless.

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