Thanksgiving is steeped in tradition for my family. Every year we kick things off by watching the Macy’s parade with a cold mimosa in one hand and a Cinnamon Roll in the other before losing our minds over an intense game of Scrabble or Hearts. My Mom’s traditional Thanksgiving feast is eventually served then we all snooze by the fire watching football.
Not mad about it!
Before the bubbly is even popped though, each person takes a huge scoop of Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole, which my Mom always has hot, ready, and waiting for when we all start trickling in through the door.
Forget Folgers, the best part of waking up on Thanksgiving day is a scoop of breakfast casserole in your cup bowl!
Whether you’re looking for a hearty breakfast to feed a large group for the holidays, a warming and filling tailgating recipe, or simply a crowd pleasing breakfast to feed the whole family, this slow cooker breakfast casserole is just the dish you’re looking for. It is to die for!!
Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole
Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole with hash browns is so good and easy, we plan all our family’s special occasions/get togethers around breakfast/brunch time, just so I can serve it. Birthdays, holidays, you name it – they’re all being celebrated in the morning because this dish is such a crowd pleaser and a cinch to assemble with everyday ingredients.
Ingredients Needed
- Frozen shredded hash browns: I like Ore Ida brand, which are gluten free. No need to thaw them or anything before tossing into the crock pot.
- Breakfast sausage: I like Jimmy Dean brand which, again, is gluten free at the time of this writing. Feel free to use the maple or spicy varieties, though we always go with the classic mild breakfast sausage.
- Shredded cheese: Both shredded cheddar and mozzarella cheeses ensure that each bite of this breakfast casserole is satisfying and totally irresistible.
- Green onions: Sliced green onions provide a pop of color and flavor to this dish. Some are slow cooked into the egg, hash brown, and cheese layers, while others are scattered on top of your bowl as a fresh finish before digging in.
- Milk: whatever you’ve got on hand.
- Eggs: Can’t have breakfast casserole without it!
- Salt and Pepper.
What Size Crock Pot To Use
As written, this slow cooker breakfast recipe will fill a 6 quart crock pot and feed 8-10 hungry folks. Many people have successfully halved this recipe using a smaller crock pot – you’ll just need to reduce cooking time a bit.
What to Serve with Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole
Although it is completely delicious and satisfying all on it’s own, we like to serve Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole with a toppings bar including:
- Chopped fresh green onions
- Salsa
- Bacon bits (what can I say we go big)
- Diced avocado
- Pickled jalapenos
A fresh fruit salad and pan of Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls are always nearby too.
How Long to Slow Cook It
This egg breakfast casserole cooks on LOW for eight hours, or HIGH for 4 hours. I like to assemble/layer the ingredients in the crock the night before our get together, then drizzle the eggs over the top and pop the crock onto the base before turning it on in the morning. Easy!
How To Make Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole
Start by spraying a 6-quart crock pot with non stick spray then spread shredded hash browns in an even layer on the bottom. Like I said, I prefer Ore Ida because the quality is so consistent, plus they’re gluten free.
Next add a layer of browned and drained breakfast sausage (I like Jimmy Dean.) You can brown/drain/refrigerate the breakfast sausage several days ahead of time.
The next layer is equal amounts of shredded cheddar and mozzarella cheeses.
Followed by a flavorful layer of fresh green onions.
Repeat the hash brown, sausage, and cheese layers one more time then whisk eggs with milk, salt, and pepper and pour the mixture evenly over the casserole.
Pop the lid on top then cook for 4 hours on HIGH, or 8 hours on LOW.
That’s all she wrote! This crockpot breakfast casserole will keep well with the crock pot set to “warm”, and any leftovers you have reheat perfectly in the microwave for day after serving. Whenever and however you serve it, I hope you love this easy, crock pot breakfast casserole recipe – enjoy!
More Breakfast Casserole Recipes You’ll Love
- Roasted Poblano and Sausage Breakfast Casserole
- Breakfast Taco Casserole
- Gluten Free Breakfast Casserole
- Sausage Breakfast Tater Tot Casserole
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Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole
Description
Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole is the perfect breakfast recipe to feed a hungry crowd. Cheesy, hearty, and hands OFF!
Ingredients
- 30oz frozen shredded hash browns (I like Ore-Ida)
- 1lb breakfast sausage, browned and drained (I like Jimmy Dean)
- 8oz shredded cheddar cheese
- 8oz shredded mozzarella cheese
- 6 green onions, sliced and divided in half
- 12 eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Directions
- Spray a 6-quart crock pot with non-stick spray then place half the hash browns into the bottom. Layer in half the cooked sausage, half of each kind of cheese, and half the green onions. Repeat the hash brown, sausage, and cheese layers.
- In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, salt, and pepper, then pour evenly over the top. Cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 8 hours, or until eggs are set. Serve with remaining green onions, salsa, or guacamole.
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
Video
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I made this today. Set it up in the crockpot to cook overnight ( 7 hours worked btw) Good Stuff!!! I just wanted to say I love your recipes, I make at least 1 a week (like the skillet chicken parm was last nights dinner haha!) Thanks for making it look like I know what Im doing!
This was a HUGE hit with family over the weekend. Thank you!!
This is an EPIC casserole. I can’t even.
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Could you specify what is considerd a “large crockpot.” The one in the picture looks similar in size to mine, but I am just wondering if you know how many quarts yours holds.
This looks amazing and I am going to try it soon!
Thanks!
I LOVE using Ziplist! So excited you’re pairing up with their app and website!
This is sound a great idea! My family will love it!
I love using Ziplist! So glad that you’ve added to your blog~
Anyone have thoughts on how this would work with morningstar breakfast sausages instead of sausage – I would worry about it drying out, but could put it in frozen. Let me know what you think! This looks amazing!
The original recipe from Jimmy Dean called for pre-cooked sausage crumbles, so I bet it would work fine!
I’ve been using the Catch app on my phone and computer to save all the recipes I like but I will have to try ZipList and compare.
I kinda miss your daily breakfast posts and hearing about your walks with your mom? More breakfast posts please :)
Love this recipe! Do you have any thoughts on baking it in the oven? The reason is 8 hours is not enough time for overnight and 4 hours is too long in the morning for our schedule.
I’m sure it could work! Maybe 350-375 for 45 minutes to an hour?! Let me know if you give it a try!
Works just fine in the oven at 350 degrees for an hour.
You can always plug your crockpot into a timer , I used a timer that we had been using to cut our Christmas lights on and off . It worked great .
This looks good, but since I am not going to be feeding any large amount of people soon, I wonder if I can cut it in half, like just do one set of potato, sausage, cheese layers? Would you adjust the cook time?
I would adjust the cooking time to 2 hours or so on high. Might just need to watch it to see when it’s done!
Thanks! I am making it this weekend :)
Did your cutting the recipe in half and changing the time to 2 hours on high work? I want to make too, but for smaller group.
Thanks.
This looks SO good. I cannot wait to try. Do you think that it would work to cut the recipe in half and cook on low for 4 hours? I only need to feed 4 people, and if I could throw it in before church and it be almost done when we get back, that would be amazing. Thoughts?
Hey Amber! I’m not sure as I’ve never tried. I don’t see a HUGE problem with doing that it, but let us know how it turns out!
I have to admit, I’ve always been afraid of breakfast casseroles in the crock pot, thinking they would burn. But yours sure looks like it won’t! I will have to try!
Love the ease of this – too bad Thanksgiving has already passed here in Canada, but this could be a top contender for Christmas morning!
Yummmm, looks delish! My friend has been telling my how great Ziplist is also. Guess this is now my time to try it out!
This is sooooo perfect. I’m making this this weekend. Can’t wait. I’m going to use chorizo in place of the sausage for some extra kick. Thank you!
Love this breakfast casserole!! I make a similar recipe (but with bacon) for special occasions and it comes out great!! I want to warn you though NOT to try shredding your own potato and using it in this recipe (except if maybe you cook it for first). Even if you try squeezing it dry, it won’t cook up well in the slow cooker (not that I’d know from experience or anything! haha).
Thanks for the tip about the potato Chelsea. I live in New Zealand and we don’t have anything as impressive as those shredded hashies looked in the picture and I was going to grate some potato but now I won’t bother! I will just try pulling our usual hash browns apart. Cheers :)
I’m always looking for good breakfast casserole recipes, and I’m always looking for good crockpot recipes. Hence, I LOVED this post. I can’t wait to try this recipe. :)
This is great and will be perfect for Thanksgiving morning! Thanks so much!