Ham breakfast strata is an easy make-ahead breakfast casserole. It's filled with crusty bread, ham, spinach, and a cheesy egg filling that's baked to perfection in the oven.
A strata is a casserole dish, usually made with bread, eggs, cheese, and additional fillings and seasoning. This breakfast strata is filled with ham, spinach, and two types of cheese. However, they're very easy to customize with what you have on hand!
Your breakfast strata can be made the night before, then popped in the oven first thing in the morning. It's the perfect way to use up leftover holiday ham from Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter.
This delicious breakfast casserole can be made for breakfast, brunch, or dinner - so don't let the name stop you!
Ingredients and substitutions
- Bread - I used day-old sourdough bread, but any crusty, dry bread you have on hand will work. Italian bread or French bread are great choices. Dry bread more readily soaks up the egg mixture, which is why it's necessary.
- Eggs - A necessary ingredient in any strata. The egg mixture creates a custard that's soaked up by the bread.
- Cheese - Any cheese you have on hand can be added to your breakfast strata. Sharp cheddar, gruyere, pepper jack, or monterey jack are great choices.
- Ham - Can be substituted with cooked bacon or cooked and crumbled sausage. I've included an entire section on strata variations below for more ideas.
- Spinach - Wilts easily into the strata so there's no need to cook it beforehand. If substituting with heartier vegetables like broccoli, mushrooms, or peppers, you'll want to sauté them beforehand.
- Garlic - Adds flavor to the strata. Could be substituted with some sauteed onion for a different flavor.
- Seasoning - Salt, pepper, and sage add savory flavor to the strata. Sage can be substituted with an Italian seasoning blend, basil, or oregano.
Best bread to use
The best bread for this recipe is a crusty, dry bread like Italian, French, or sourdough bread. For this recipe, I used day-old homemade sourdough bread.
This recipe is also great for using up bread that's about to go stale. You can even use leftover dinner rolls or hamburger buns - anything you happen to have on hand.
If you have a loaf of soft sandwich bread you'd like to use, I'd recommend letting it get a little stale, or drying it out in the oven. You need a semi-dry bread for this recipe because the bread needs to soak up the egg mixture.
Rest overnight
Prepare your breakfast strata the night before, then cover and refrigerate overnight. Your strata will be ready to bake in the morning.
Resting is necessary to allow the bread to soak up as much of the custard as possible. This time also allows the flavors in the strata to meld.
Preheat your oven, then place the covered casserole in the oven and bake as directed.
If you don't have time to make your strata the night before, I recommend letting it set for at least an hour before baking.
Variations
Breakfast stratas are easy to customize and can be made with many ingredients that you probably already have on hand. Keep in mind that if you're substituting ingredients, you'll want to use the same measurements indicated in the recipe.
For example, if you're substituting the ham with bacon, and the recipe calls for 6 ounces of ham, use 6 ounces of bacon.
You'll also want to cook any meat before adding it to your strata. If you'd like to add hearty vegetables, like broccoli, you'll also want to cook and cool them before adding to the strata.
While the strata will be heated through in the oven, it will not bake for long enough to fully cook vegetables or meats.
More filling ideas:
- Breakfast sausage with sauteed onions and bell pepper
- Bacon with broccoli and sharp cheddar cheese
- Sauteed mushrooms, kale, and feta cheese
Recommended
📖 Recipe
Ham Breakfast Strata
Ingredients
- 4 cups (170 g) cubed crusty bread, about 6 ounces
- 1 cup (30 g) spinach
- 6 ounces (170 g) ham, diced
- 1 cup (113 g) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- 1 cup (100 g) shredded parmesan cheese, divided
- 16 ounces (453 g) milk
- 8 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried sage
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
Instructions
- Butter an 8x8 baking dish (or any 2 quart oven-safe dish) and fill with cubed bread. Bread should fill dish about ¾ full (do not pack in).
- Add spinach, ham, half of mozzarella cheese, and half of parmesan cheese to the bread, tossing gently to combine.
- In a bowl, add eggs, milk, salt, pepper, sage, and minced garlic, whisking to combine.
- Slowly pour egg mixture over the casserole. If casserole is too full, remove a few cubes of bread. Press down on any dry bread pieces with a spatula to soak up egg mixture.
- Sprinkle top of casserole with remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.
- Cover casserole and refrigerate for one at least one hour, or ideally overnight. This allows time for the bread to soak up the egg mixture and flavors to meld.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Transfer casserole to the countertop while oven preheats. Bake casserole, covered, for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake for another 15-30 minutes, or until center of casserole is no longer jiggly. Baking time depends on the thickness of your casserole.
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
Equipment Recommendations
Notes
- Crusty, dry sourdough, Italian, or French bread are ideal for a strata.
- Leftover strata will keep for up to 5 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
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