Pair the meal with a fruit compote topped with your favorite yogurt.
Ingredients:
- 8 purchased large croissants
- 3/4 lb. Italian sausage
- 1 cup onions, diced
- 1 cup mini red and yellow peppers, diced
- 1 cup sliced mushrooms
- 1/2 teaspoon each basil, parsley, oregano
- 2 cups lightly packed spinach leaves, stems removed
- 2 cups shredded Monterrey cheese
- 6 large eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- Cook sausage, crumble, and set aside.
- In the same pan, saute onions, peppers, and mushrooms. Add torn spinach leaves and spices for the last 3 minutes of cooking time. Add sausage back to the pan and mix all ingredients well.
- Preheat the oven to broil. Slice croissants and place them on a baking sheet, cut side up. Broil for 1 minute, watching carefully so they don't burn. You just want them lightly toasted.
- Lightly grease the bottom of the baking dish.
- Arrange croissant bottoms, cut side up in a single layer overlapping slightly in the baking dish. Sprinkle cheese over croissants, topping with sausage mixture. Add croissant tops and cut sides down over the sausage mixture.
- In a blender, mix eggs, milk, mustard, and pepper. Carefully pour the egg mixture over the strata and gently press down on the croissants with a sheet of wax paper. Remove wax paper and refrigerate covered overnight.
- Cover and chill overnight. Uncover and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Bake uncovered for 55 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Covering with foil for the last 15 minutes of baking time avoids over-browning. Let set for 10 minutes before cutting.