Amazing Mexican Breakfast Casserole

Aunt Linda’s wedding was Saturday afternoon in Tulsa. I flew in Friday afternoon from Tulsa on a forty-five-dollar flight Aunt Linda had bought for me as a wedding-bridesmaid gift, made it to the rehearsal dinner Friday night at seven PM at an Italian place in midtown Tulsa called Mondo’s that was Nana’s pick because Nana had been going there since 1989, and stood up as the only bridesmaid Saturday at three PM at the Methodist church on Boulder Avenue where Linda’s parents had been married in May of 1971. The same sanctuary, the same brass cross above the altar, the same stained-glass windows down both walls.

Mama walked Linda halfway down the aisle in a navy mother-of-the-bride dress she’d bought at JCPenney in August. Cody walked Linda the rest of the way in his charcoal suit and gave her to Roy at the altar with the kind of formal hand-off that older brothers traditionally do for younger sisters in churches across America, except Cody is Linda’s nephew and is fifteen years younger than her, so the formal hand-off had a different flavor. He kissed Linda on the cheek and shook Roy’s hand. Roy’s twin fifteen-year-old sons stood as the groomsmen in matching navy suits and looked terrified the whole time. Mama stood as the matron of honor in the matching navy. Forty-two people total at the ceremony. The pastor was a woman in her sixties who’d known Linda since 1995. The vows were the standard Methodist vows. Linda cried during “till death do us part.” So did I.

Reception at a small Italian restaurant three blocks from the church. Dinner of stuffed eggplant and chicken piccata and white-wine pasta and tiramisu. Dancing until midnight in a small ballroom on the second floor. Mama danced with Cody three times. Roy danced with Mama once. I danced with Cody twice. Nana sat at the head table with her cane next to her chair and watched the whole thing with the kind of approving smile that seventy-eight-year-old Sicilian grandmothers give weddings they’ve approved of in advance.

Sunday morning, the post-wedding brunch was at Mama’s house in Sapulpa — about twenty people, the smaller close-family-only group, because Linda and Roy had specifically wanted the Sunday morning to be at Mama’s kitchen instead of at a restaurant. Mama and Linda had been cooking together in Mama’s kitchen on holiday Sundays since 1985, and Linda had insisted that Mama’s house was the right place for the post-wedding meal because that’s where the cooking-DNA in the family lived. Mama agreed instantly.

I made the centerpiece — an amazing Mexican breakfast casserole — because brunch for twenty needs a casserole and Mama and Linda were running the rest of the meal (cinnamon rolls, fruit salad, biscuits, gravy, breakfast potatoes, a giant pot of coffee). The casserole feeds twelve to fifteen people on its own and assembles the night before, which made it the right call for a brunch I’d be assembling Saturday night after the reception ended.

The technique: a pound of fresh Mexican chorizo browned in a skillet, drained and reserved (the rendered chorizo fat is gold — save a tablespoon of it for the next step). One large yellow onion diced, two cloves of garlic minced, two diced bell peppers (one red, one green) sweated in the chorizo fat for ten minutes. The chorizo returned to the pan, then twelve eggs whisked with a half-cup of milk, salt, and pepper poured over the top and scrambled gently until just set (do not overcook the eggs — they will cook more in the oven, and overdone scramble in a casserole goes rubbery).

The casserole assembly in a deep nine-by-thirteen baking pan: a layer of large flour tortillas torn into rough pieces (six to eight tortillas, depending on size) lining the bottom; a layer of warmed refried beans spread evenly; the chorizo-egg scramble spread over the beans; a generous cup of grated Monterey jack and sharp cheddar mixed; another layer of torn tortilla; another layer of beans; the rest of the cheese mixture on top; a pour of homemade roasted-tomato salsa over the cheese (about a cup, drained slightly so it doesn’t pool). Cover with foil. Refrigerate overnight.

Sunday morning, pull from the fridge thirty minutes before baking. Bake at three-fifty covered for thirty minutes, then uncovered for fifteen more until the cheese on top has bubbled and browned and the casserole is heated through to one-sixty-five at the center. Rest ten minutes before cutting.

Served with bowls of sour cream, sliced avocado, fresh cilantro, lime wedges, and a green salsa verde. Twenty people ate. Six leftover slices went into the fridge for Mama’s Monday lunch. I flew back to Tulsa Sunday night at six PM with the wedding photos on my phone, the leftover bridesmaid bouquet wrapped in newspaper in my carry-on, and a sense of completion I didn’t fully understand until I was thirty thousand feet in the air.

Assemble Saturday night, bake Sunday morning, foil for thirty, uncovered for fifteen. Here’s the build.

Amazing Mexican Breakfast Casserole

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hr 5 min | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground breakfast sausage (chorizo-style or spicy)
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 can (4 oz) diced green chiles, drained
• 1 can (10 oz) diced tomatoes with green chiles (Rotel), drained
• 8 large eggs
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 can (16 oz) refried beans
• 8 small corn tortillas, torn into pieces
• 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese, divided
• Sour cream, salsa, and cilantro for serving

Instructions

1. Preheat and prep. Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish and set aside.
2. Cook the sausage. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the sausage, breaking it up as it cooks, about 5–7 minutes. Drain excess fat and transfer sausage to a bowl.
3. Sauté the vegetables. In the same skillet, cook onion and bell peppers over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in green chiles and Rotel; cook 1 minute more. Remove from heat.
4. Whisk the egg mixture. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper until well combined.
5. Layer the casserole. Spread refried beans evenly across the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with torn tortilla pieces in an even layer. Scatter sausage and the vegetable mixture over the tortillas. Pour the egg mixture evenly over everything. Top with 1 1/2 cups of the shredded cheese.
6. Bake. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 12–15 minutes, until the eggs are set in the center and the cheese is bubbly and lightly golden.
7. Rest and serve. Let the casserole rest for 5 minutes before cutting. Serve warm with sour cream, salsa, and fresh cilantro.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 420 | Protein: 24g | Fat: 26g | Carbs: 22g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 780mg