📋 Christmas Morning Wife Saver Recipe
This Christmas Morning Casserole (Wife Saver breakfast) is a savory, overnight make-ahead breakfast casserole with layers of bread, ham, cheese, eggs and corn flakes. It's easy to throw together the night before and pop in the oven for a delicious Christmas morning breakfast or brunch.
Servings 12 servings
Calories 323kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 slices white bread
- 16 slices sliced ham (sandwich meat) (approx 395 g package)
- 1.5 cups grated cheese
- 6 whole eggs
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 3 cups whole milk * it has to be whole milk or it gets too soggy
- ¼ large green pepper
- 1 teaspoon hot mustard * I use Keen's hot mustard
- ¼ cup green onion, chopped
- 2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup corn flakes, crushed a little
Garnish
- additional chopped green onion
- salsa or ketchup, as desired
Instructions
- Spray a 9X13 baking/casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray. Add 8 pieces of bread (with crusts on) to bottom of dish, overlapping slightly so they all fit.
- Cover bread with half of the ham slices.
- Then sprinkle on grated cheese.
- Then add remainder of ham slices.
- Cover with remaining slices of bread, overlapping as in the first layer. Press down to flatten a little, if it's too high.
- Beat eggs, hot mustard and milk, then add green pepper, green onion and Worcestershire sauce.
- Pour mixture over casserole.
- Cover with plastic wrap and let stand in fridge overnight.
- In the morning: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C)
- Remove plastic wrap. Melt butter and pour over casserole.
- Crush corn flakes (I put them in a Ziplock bag and roll a rolling pin over them a couple of times) and sprinkle on top of casserole.
- Bake (uncovered) for 1 hour. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.
Garnish
- Sprinkle with chopped green onion and garnish with salsa or ketchup, if desired.
Notes
Expert Recipe Tips:
- The Bread Matters: For the best texture, use day-old bread or leave your bread slices out on the counter for a few hours to dry out slightly before assembling. Slightly stale bread absorbs the egg mixture better without becoming mushy. While you can trim the crusts for a smoother texture (the traditional way), leaving them on adds a bit more structure to the casserole.
- Don't Rush the Soak: This is a true "make-ahead" recipe for a reason! The casserole needs to sit in the fridge for at least 12 hours (and up to 24 hours). This allows the bread to fully absorb the egg custard, ensuring a fluffy, souffle-like texture rather than just "wet bread."
- The Crunchy Topping Rule: Do not add the cornflakes and melted butter the night before, or they will turn into a soggy mess. Add the topping immediately before you put the casserole in the oven on Christmas morning to ensure that signature crunch.
- Avoid "Thermal Shock": Since you are taking a cold glass or ceramic dish from the fridge and putting it into a hot oven, let the casserole sit on the counter for about 20–30 minutes while the oven preheats. This helps the casserole cook more evenly and prevents your baking dish from cracking due to extreme temperature changes.
- Check the Center: Every oven is different. To ensure the middle isn't runny, insert a knife into the center of the casserole. It should come out clean. If the top is browning too fast but the center is still liquid, tent a piece of aluminum foil loosely over the top for the last 10–15 minutes of baking.
- Using Leftover Ham: This recipe is the perfect vehicle for leftover holiday ham! If you are using deli ham instead, try to buy a thicker cut. Avoid very watery, thin-sliced deli meat as it can release too much liquid during baking.
- Vegetarian Option: If you have guests who don't eat meat, you can easily swap the ham for sautéed spinach, mushrooms, or even broccoli. Just be sure to cook the water out of the vegetables before layering them in.
- Don't remove the bread crusts: I don't remove the bread crusts, as the original recipe calls for, because WHY? We're not 3-year-olds here and we can handle a little crust, right?! And so it doesn't lay perfectly flat in the pan- who cares? That's what overlapping is for. I'm all about making things easier. And bread crusts taste good!
- Whisk the eggs: It's important to whisk the eggs with the other ingredients really well or the casserole won't bind and end up runny.
Nutrition
Calories: 323kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 55mg | Sodium: 762mg | Potassium: 258mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 441IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 229mg | Iron: 2mg
