Easy Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole is perfect for entertaining a crowd or serving up a simple weekend brunch. Made with frozen hashbrowns, eggs, bacon, and three different types of cheese, this savory breakfast casserole can be made in advance and is designed to feed a crowd. Serve with homemade biscuits and fruit salad for a simple yet delicious breakfast!
This post is sponsored by Friendship Dairies cottage cheese.
Breakfast Casserole
Without a doubt, breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. Fortunately my husband and kids are also breakfast lovers so breakfast happens a lot in our house, even at dinner time 🙂
I love to mix it up for breakfast. Sausage gravy and biscuits, blueberry scones, pancakes and bacon – you get the idea. But we always come back to our beloved casseroles.
Casseroles are one of my favorite types of food. They work equally well for dinner as they do for breakfast and are a staple in our house.
I’ve shared many casseroles before here on Mom On Timeout – some sweet like this Triple Berry French Toast Casserole and some savory like this Tater Tot Casserole. What can I say? I love casseroles!
Today I have another amazing breakfast casserole to share with all of you, one that you’ll be making for years to come – I’m sure of it! It’s perhaps one of the easiest breakfast recipes and it’s super versatile and easily customizable. And, dare I say, the best casserole recipe I have on my site. I’m not even kidding here folks.
More Must Make Casseroles
- Twice Baked Potato Casserole
- Cheesy Chicken Broccoli and Rice Casserole
- Overnight Strawberry Cheesecake French Toast Casserole
- Slow Cooker Overnight Ham and Cheese Breakfast Casserole
- Ham and Cheese Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole
What Makes This Breakfast Casserole The BEST
There are a few things that make this breakfast casserole stand out above and beyond any others that I’ve had before for a few reasons.
- Combination of cheeses. You’ll find three different type of cheeses in this casserole: cheddar, Swiss (can also use Gruyere if you’re filling fancy), and cottage cheese. I used Friendship Dairies 4% Small Curd Cottage Cheese for this recipe. The flavor is amazing and it adds a lovely creaminess to the casserole. And the funny thing is NO ONE notices the cottage cheese. It just kind of disappears into the casserole leaving your friends and family wondering what your secret ingredient is.
- Versatility. I’m sharing the bacon version today but we make it all the time with sausage, ham, turkey bacon, veggies, whatever sounds good and let’s be honest here, whatever I happen to have on hand at the time.
- Prep Time. Very minimal. It’s about 5 minutes of actual work. I mixed everything up in a bowl for the video (see below), but in reality, I would probably just toss it straight into the casserole dish and mix it in there. I’m always up for less dishes to wash 🙂 Honestly, if you were to go with ham, it would be even faster. I would still saute the onions in a little olive oil to soften them up before throwing them in though.
Why Make A Breakfast Casserole
Breakfast casseroles are the way to go when entertaining. They can be assembled in advance and thrown in the oven as your company starts to arrive. You do want to allow for about 10 minutes for this casserole to set up after removing it from the oven.
This breakfast casserole is the perfect dish for entertaining, busy mornings, or weekend brunch. Here’s why:
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Can be made in advance.
- Complete all steps except for baking, cover and refrigerate the night before. Take out of the fridge as your oven is preheating and bake for an additional 10 or 15 minutes. Easy!
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Extremely versatile.
- This breakfast casserole can be made with any type of breakfast meat or veggies to suit the needs of your family or guests.
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Feeds a crowd.
- If you have a large family or are serving brunch for your guests, this easy breakfast casserole is perfect! You can easily get 12 servings from this recipe and it’s just as easy to make up a double batch as it is to make a single casserole.
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Super easy to make.
- You guys. It really doesn’t get any easier than this. Hash browns, eggs, cheeses, salt, pepper and a little hot sauce if you want.
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Pretty darn inexpensive too.
- The casserole itself is so simple to make and most of the ingredients aren’t costly. It’s one of those meals that I consider “hearty not heavy”. You get a super protein punch between the eggs and cottage cheese and the hash browns make it extra filling.
The casserole itself is so simple and delicious but I do like to dress it up with some fresh chives. Just snip them right over the top of the casserole. It adds a subtle onion flavor and a lot of freshness. Serve with fresh fruit and juice and you’re done!
More Breakfast Recipes You’ll Love
- Buttermilk Pancakes
- Biscuit Recipe
- Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole
- Almond Bear Claw
- Cinnamon Bread
- Breakfast Burritos
How To Make Breakfast Casserole
Easy Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole
Ingredients
- 16 oz bacon diced (can also use ham, sausage, veggies, etc.)
- 1 onion diced
- 8 eggs
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp hot sauce optional
- 4 cups frozen hash browns thawed
- 8 oz sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- 6 oz Swiss or Gruyere cheese shredded
- 16 oz small curd cottage cheese either 4% or 1% is fine
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9 x 13 baking dish and set aside.
- Add bacon to a large skillet and cook over medium heat until nice and crispy. Add onions and cook until translucent. Remove and drain on a paper towel.
- In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, salt, pepper, and hot sauce.
- Add hash browns, shredded cheese, cottage cheese, bacon and onions.
- Mix until combined.
- Scoop mixture into prepared baking dish and bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until center is set. Let casserole rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
- Top with snipped fresh chives if desired.
Video
Nutrition
For all breakfast recipes, go HERE.
For all dessert recipes, go HERE.
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Auntie Betty says
I love this recipe. I substituted 3 green onions for the regular onion called for. I also added some additional cheese to the top before baking. This is a definite “10”. Thank you.
Carol says
For the make ahead recipe it says to bake an additional 10 minutes. Does this mean to bake for 45 to 50 minutes instead of 35 since you didn’t bake it the night before?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Yes, exactly. Just add 10 minutes to the baking time.
Susie says
Can you half this recipe ?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Absolutely!
Betty says
I’ve made this as a casserole and also in muffin tins. They freeze well and once thawed can be re-heated in the microwave (low temp).
Marte says
I’ve heard to fry the hash browns first before mixing together?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Nope, you don’t need to do that. Enjoy!
Kristi says
Thanks for an amazing recipe. I have had a hard time finding a hash brown/egg bake that isn’t dry. The family loved it, especially my picky eaters. I substituted grated parmesan for the swiss in the recipe and it added am amazing depth to the flavor.
This will be my go-to recipe from now on!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Ooooh! Parmesan! I love it! I bet that tasted amazing. I’m so glad you enjoyed the casserole Kristi!
Tina says
I’ve made this for my family during the quarantine at least 5 times now. It’s a huge hit with my college age boys. I use small curd cottage cheese and they have no idea it’s in the casserole. I’ve used bacon, sausage, a combination of both as well as any kind of shredded cheeses I have in the fridge. Every time it’s been delicious!! I also give it the “Midwest topping” of buttered corn flakes before I bake it which takes the casserole over the top. I do have to keep an eye on it at the end of the cooking time and cover it with foil if the corn flakes are getting too brown. Thanks for the recipe!
Sondra says
Literally just made this for quarantine breakfast day… oh who knows. Lol. Everyone enjoyed it so much! I will for sure be adding this to my regular go to breakfast offerings. Thanks for another great recipe.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
So glad you enjoyed the casserole Sondra! Have a great weekend!
Kate says
Hi Trish! How much sausage would you use if you used browned ground sausage–still 16 oz.?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Yep, I would keep it at a pound. Thanks!
Diana says
I have made 2 bacon & 2 sausage casseroles. I shared 1 bacon & 1 sausage with my co-workers. Everyone gave compliments. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Fantastic! So happy to hear it Diana!
TM Golden says
This looks delicious. Can I substitute cottage cheese for cream cheese? I dont like cottage cheese. Or What if I leave it out?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Hmmm, I think cream cheese would be an interesting alternative. I would definitely give it a try! But, to be honest, you don’t taste or even really see the cottage cheese in the casserole. It pretty much disappears.
Lynne says
I have made the same breakfast casserole for years. So I decided to find a new recipe just for a change. I’m so glad I happened across this recipe! It’s amazing! Thank you for sharing!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I’m so excited this is the one you chose to end your streak lol! Thanks Lynne!