Southwest Spinach Strata Recipes

SPINACH STRATA

Steps:

• Brush a 9-inch square baking dish with olive oil. Sprinkle the baking dish with lemon zest and set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the olive oil, mustard, salt, and pepper with a splash of the milk. Whisk in remaining milk and the eggs.
• Put the bread in the prepared baking dish and top with the spinach and half of the feta. Gently toss with your hands until combined. Drizzle the egg mixture over the bread and sprinkle with the remaining feta. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees with a rack in the top third of the oven.
• Bake the strata, uncovered, for 45 to 55 minutes, until the egg is set in the middle and the edges are browned. Brown the top under the broiler, if desired. Serve warm, drizzled with a bit of olive oil and sprinkled with the fresh oregano.

SPINACH & CHEESE STRATA

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and drained spinach and cook 2 minutes more. Set aside.
• Butter a 3-quart or 9x13-inch baking dish. Spread one third of the bread cubes in the dish and top evenly with one third of spinach mixture. (Try to break it up as much as possible so there are no huge clumps of spinach.) Sprinkle with one third of each cheese. Repeat layering twice, ending with cheeses.
• In a large bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the half-and-half, mustard, salt, pepper, and nutmeg and whisk until well combined. Pour the custard mixture evenly over the strata. Cover the strata with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 325°F. Bake the strata, uncovered, until puffed, set and golden brown all over top, 70-80 minutes. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes before serving. It will settle a bit as it cools.
• Note: The cook time is based on the strata going immediately from the fridge to the oven. If it sits out at room temperature before baking, the cook time will be about 10 minutes less.

SOUTHWEST SPINACH STRATA

Steps:

• Place half of the bread cubes in an 8-in. square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Layer with beans, spinach and half of the cheese. Top with remaining bread cubes., In a large bowl, whisk the egg substitute, milk, cilantro and salt. Pour over top. Let stand for 5 minutes., Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 40 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Serve with sour cream and salsa.,

EASY SAUSAGE STRATA

Steps:

• Place sausage in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, and set aside.
• Layer bread cubes, sausage, and Cheddar cheese in a lightly greased 7x11 inch baking dish. In a bowl, beat together the eggs, milk, salt, and mustard. Pour the egg mixture over the bread cube mixture. Cover, and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.
• Remove the casserole from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake 50 to 60 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

SPINACH AND CHEESE STRATA

Steps:

• Squeeze handfuls of spinach to remove as much liquid as possible, then finely chop.
• Cook onion in butter in a large heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until soft, 4 to 5 minutes.
• Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
• Stir in spinach, then remove from heat.
• Spread one third of bread cubes in a buttered 3-quart gratin dish or other shallow ceramic baking dish and top evenly with one third of spinach mixture.
• Sprinkle with one third of each cheese.
• Repeat layering twice (ending with cheeses).
• Whisk together milk, eggs, mustard, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl and pour evenly over strata.
• Chill strata, covered with plastic wrap, at least 8 hours (for bread to absorb custard).
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Let strata stand at room temperature 30 minutes.
• Bake strata, uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, 45 to 55 minutes.
• Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
• note: Strata can be chilled up to 1 day.
• Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before baking.

SPINACH AND PANCETTA STRATA

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute until crisp and golden, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pancetta to a bowl. Add the onion to the pan drippings in the same skillet and saute until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the spinach and garlic. Saute over medium-low heat until the garlic is tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of pepper, nutmeg, and the cooked pancetta.
• Place half of the bread cubes in a buttered 3-quart baking dish. Sprinkle half of the cheese over the bread, then top with half of the spinach mixture. Repeat layering.
• Whisk the milk, eggs, remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper in a large bowl and pour evenly over the strata. Chill the strata, covered with plastic wrap, at least 2 hours and up to 12 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bake strata uncovered until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, 40 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

MAKE-AHEAD SPINACH AND MOZZARELLA BREAKFAST STRATA

Steps:

• Melt butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Add herbes de Provence, salt, and pepper; continue to cook for 1 minute more. Stir in spinach, remove from heat, and set aside.
• Spray the inside of a 3-quart (9x13-inch) baking dish with cooking spray. Layer the bottom of the dish with 1/3 of the bread cubes. Top with 1/3 of the spinach mixture and 1/3 mozzarella cheese. Repeat these layers twice more with remaining bread, spinach mixture, and cheese.
• Combine eggs, milk, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Whisk together until blended. Pour evenly over the bread and spinach layered in the baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 8 hours, up to 1 day.
• Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking to allow pan to get to room temperature.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake, uncovered, in the preheated oven until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, 45 to 55 minutes. Let stand at least 5 minutes before serving.

SARASOTA'S SPINACH AND SHRIMP STRATA

Steps:

• Base -- Spray a 13x9" pan with Pam or a non stick spray. Arrange the slices of bread on the bottom, and make sure to cover the entire bottom. Cut smaller pieces to fill in the empty spaces.
• Strata -- Spread the pesto over the bread making sure to coat everything, and then cover with 1/2 the cheese, 1 cup. Layer with the shrimp, spinach, red peppers, onion and finish with the remaining 1 cup of the cheese.
• Egg -- Mix the eggs, milk, salt and pepper well and pour over the casserole. Cover with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate over night. Eight (8) hours is required, but don't let it cover over 12 hours.
• Bake -- Remove from the refrigerator and let it warm up a bit so It isn't ice cold. Cover with foil if not already and bake in a 350 degree oven, middle rack for 30 minutes. Remove and arrange the tomatoes slices on the casserole and continue to bake covered for another 15-20 minutes (45 min) is the right time for my oven, but just check by inserting a knife in the center. When it comes out clean it is done.
• If you want - you can put the dish under the broiler for just 3-4 minutes to broil the tomatoes, but I don't mind if they aren't browned. It is a nice texture to me to have the fresh tomatoes on the top.
• Serve -- Make sure to let the strata set 15 minutes before serving. ENJOY!
• Prep time includes the overnight rest.

SPINACH AND CHEDDAR STRATA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Add spinach and cook, stirring constantly, until wilted, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a colander and drain, pressing with a rubber spatula to release as much liquid as possible. Divide bread and spinach among 4 small, shallow 8-ounce baking dishes.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, and 3/4 cup cheese. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Divide mixture evenly among baking dishes and top with 1/2 cup cheese. Set dishes on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until set in middle and golden brown on top, 20 to 25 minutes.