There’s something about an egg dish you can prepare the night before that makes breakfast seem more celebratory. This Broccoli and Red Pepper Breakfast Strata brings color, a variety of vegetables, and big flavors to the morning table. It’s perfect for mornings when friends or family are gathered at your table and you want to enjoy their company as well as the food without wearing yourself out. I’ve made this strata for many holiday mornings, festive brunches, or just when the house is full of people and I want an easy but impressive breakfast or brunch dish to share.
Variety of Vegetables
I found the inspiration for this recipe via Ellie Krieger many years ago. Krieger’s original recipe offered a broccoli and mushroom strata that combined whole eggs and egg whites and two types of low-fat cheeses. It was baked in a (very full) 13 X 9 pan and served 8-10 people. Over the years, I switched red bell peppers for the mushrooms. I also changed to using whole eggs and experimented with various cheeses. 
With our breakfast table having fewer people at times, I came up with a smaller version that had a higher percentage of broccoli and a bit more cheese. We’ve found this to be a winning combination.
The night before you dazzle your breakfast guests, you can assemble the strata, layering cubed bread, small steamed broccoli florets, cooked onions, bell pepper, and garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, and thyme leaves.
The sun-dried tomatoes bring a vegetarian umami note to the dish that crumbled bacon would usually offer. (But if you want to substitute cooked crumbled bacon or breakfast sausage, go ahead and do it!) After beating eggs with milk and seasonings, you gently pour the egg mixture over the vegetables and bread cubes. Then you simply slide the whole dish into the refrigerator. 
Overnight the bread soaks in the eggs and flavorings, becoming silky soft.
Easy Mornings
The next morning you pop the baking dish in the oven. Less than an hour later, a beautiful, puffed, golden-topped strata is ready to share. 
The brightly colored broccoli and peppers along with the cheesy topping beckon to be tasted. Each bite of strata offers a nice mix of vegetables and protein. The strata is filling and satisfying, but light. It’s less rich than a traditional quiche, but still has many layers of flavor.
Add some mixed fresh fruit or a simple green salad, and you have a light but filling breakfast for all gathered around your table.
Broccoli and Red Pepper Breakfast Strata
Sunnyside Cook
Ingredients
- 8 ounces broccoli florets steamed, cooled, drained and cut into bite-size pieces (or use a packet of frozen broccoli, thawed and cut into bite-size pieces)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 large onion diced (about 1 cup)
- 1/2 large red bell pepper diced (about 3/4 cup)
- 1 clove garlic minced
- Cooking spray
- 3/4 whole wheat baguette crusts removed, and cubed (about 2 1/2- 3 cups)
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup milk I used 2%
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 3/4 cup grated or finely diced Swiss or low-fat mozzarella cheese
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced sun-dried tomatoes drained first, if packed in oil; rehydrated if plain
- 1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or more to taste
- Dash of Tabasco
Instructions
- Prepare broccoli and set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet and sauté the onion and bell pepper over medium high heat for about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and onion is starting to turn golden. Add garlic and cook one more minute. Transfer onion mixture to bowl and allow to cool off.
- Spray a ceramic or glass baking dish with at least 2-inch sides (I used a 10-inch deep pie dish) with cooking spray. Arrange the bread cubes in the bottom of the casserole. Place broccoli florets and pieces over and among bread cubes, distributing evenly. Spoon onion mixture around broccoli, then follow with cheeses, sun-dried tomatoes, and thyme.
- In a medium bowl (with spout if possible), beat eggs, milk, mustard, salt, pepper, and Tabasco. Pour mixture around edge of baking dish so that eggs seep in without disturbing arrangement of vegetables and cheese.
- Cover baking dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or at least 8 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the plastic wrap from dish and bake strata for 45 minutes. The top of the strata should be golden brown. You can test for doneness by inserting a knife into the middle; it should come out clean.
- Allow to rest 15 minutes at room temperature before serving.
Sounds good to me!