Breakfast Sausage Cheese Squares
The Peoples of the South have a thing about breakfast casseroles. We are not yogurt and granola-eating people. Well, some of us are. But they’re no fun.
We like our breakfast casseroles cheesey, loaded with sausage and with some kind of sinful bread component. We add vegetables for fiber. Sometimes. The preferred sausage in Tennessee is Tennessee Pride, Wampler’s, Goolsby’s or Swaggerty’s – all made in the Volunteer State. We may not be number one in much, but we know our sausage.
Appropriate accompaniments for breakfast casseroles are cheese grits and biscuits. And Bloody Marys or Mimosas. Occasionally we add a bowl of fresh fruit but nobody eats it.
Southern women are the only species I know of that routinely accessorize with a monogrammed casserole carrier. We all have them. I am reminded of the line from Steel Magnolias: The only thing that separates us from the animals is our ability to accessorize. And our wildly inappropriate love of breakfast casseroles.
- 1 pound of hot bulk sausage
- 1 medium Spanish onion, diced
- 1 yellow pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 8-ounce package of cream cheese
- 2 cans (8 ounces) of refrigerated crescent roll dough
- 2 cups of sharp shredded Cheddar cheese
- Put the sausage in a skillet and saute over medium high heat, breaking into bits, until browned. Remove to a bowl with paper towels in it to drain the grease.
- In the same pan, add the onion and pepper (there should be enough residual grease to fry the vegetables - add a little vegetable oil if you need more lubrication). Saute until the vegetables are translucent and beginning to brown.
- Add the sausage and the cream cheese to the pan. Melt the cream cheese over medium heat and combine the mixture thoroughly.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Roll out one sheet of the crescent dough and stretch it to fit the bottom of an ungreased 13-by-9-inch casserole dish.
- Bake for 7-8 minutes to set the bottom crust.
- Top the bottom crust with the sausage mixture. Sprinkle with the shredded cheese.
- Add the top layer of the crescent roll dough and stretch to fit the dish.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the top of the crust is browned.
- Cool for 15 minutes and then cut into squares.
wooooo, yes!
WOW Catherine!!!!
This was absolutely fantastic!!!!
Thanks! I really enjoyed making them for the crew at Barnes and Noble.