For as long as I can remember, we’ve made our favorite Christmas breakfast. I discovered it at a women’s luncheon over thirty years ago and it’s a win with any guest at our feast!
We prepare it the night before, which makes Christmas morning a breeze. Our original recipe is called Eggs Portugal, but some just call it Egg/Sausage Casserole.
We serve this with Cranberry Puffs and fruit salad to create a delicious and quick breakfast. f
It gives the feel of a feast fit for a king — and for celebrating the birth of our King!
Enjoy! Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a delicious meal!
Egg Portugal (Serves about 8)
- 1 package sausage (we use turkey sausage for reduced fat)
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 12 slices of bread, cubed – we prefer a more chewy bread (sourdough or french) over the typical sliced bread
- 1 1/2 c. grated cheddar cheese (reserve 1/2 c. to sprinkle over the top just before serving)
- 1 c. sliced or diced mushrooms, cooked or canned (optional)
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- 6 eggs
- 3 ¼ c. milk
- 4 t. yellow or brown mustard (not powdered)
- 1 ½ 10 oz. cans cream of mushroom soup (we make ours from scratch to avoid additives)
- 1/3 c. sherry or cooking wine (this adds a great touch of flavor!)
Directions:
- Crumble sausage and cook until brown.
- Add onions to sausage and lightly saute’.
- Put cubed bread in greased 9×13 casserole.
- Top with cheese, sausage, onions, and mushrooms. Lightly stir with spatula to mix ingredients with bread.
- Blend liquid ingredients: eggs, milk, mustard, soup, and wine – pour over bread mixture in casserole dish.
- Refrigerate covered overnight (you can make this an hour or so before cooking and and it turns out fine 😉).
Bake uncovered for ½ at 350* — then turn oven down to 300* and bake 1 hour until firm in the center.
Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top and bake another 10 minutes. Let sit on counter for 10-15 minutes before serving.
Yum!
Cranberry Puffs (makes approx. 24 – 1 1/2″ puffs)
Scrumptious, light, and easy to make!
- 1 c. hot water
- ½ c. dried cranberries
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- 1 c. water
- ½ c. butter
- 1 t. sugar
- ¼ t. salt
- 1 c. flour
- 4 eggs
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Glaze:
- 1 T. butter
- 5 t. milk
- ½ c. powdered sugar
- 1 T. lemon juice
- ½ t. vanilla
Directions:
- Pour 1 cup hot water over cranberries – let sit 5 minutes, drain and set aside.
- In a saucepan, bring water, butter, sugar, and salt to a boil.
- Add flour slowly and mix briskly until a smooth ball forms.
- Remove from heat and beat in eggs – mix well.
- Stir in cranberries.
- Drop by tablespoonfuls, 2 inches apart, onto greased baking sheet.
Bake at 375* for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
Mix glaze ingredients together and pour over puffs.
**These make a great addition to any breakfast. Makes a healthy snack when made without the glaze.
Enjoy! 🎄
Kathi Panor says
I’ve been making this for years……however, I add the vermouth with the eggs and milk and Dijon mustard and pour over bread and cheese, then I spread the mushroom soup – directly from can – over all and let set over night.
Rick says
For the eggs Portugal what bread do you recommend?
livingabovethenoise says
We have found that if a normal sliced bread is used, the consistency can get a bit mushy, especially when we fill the casserole dish to the brim. To keep that from happening, we fill it with about 2″ of bread. You can also use a more dense bread, like sourdough or french bread. That seems to be our favorite of late. Hope that helps!
Rick says
Sourdough it is! (Our favorite with toasted with Kerrygold Butter.)
Thank you.
June Campbell says
Thanks so much for your eggs Portugal recipe. I had the recipe but lost track of it thirty years ago. So it was wonderful to touch base with this recipe again!! So again thank you.
livingabovethenoise says
Glad you found my site! Old recipes sure add comfort to our day, don’t they!
candy JO j riddick says
I add a little chopped onion, sweet red, orange, and green peppers. Adds a little zip to the recipe and makes it pretty. Some of my family really enjoys hot pork sausage instead of turkey sausage. I make 2 casseroles so they have a choice. Christmas breakfast is a snap and the leftovers are great!
livingabovethenoise says
Great idea! Thanks for sharing your ideas to make an even better family favorite.
Lois Bednarowski says
The original recipe for Eggs Portugal from 30 years ago called for mixing the wine (or vermouth) and mushroom soup together, and spreading it over the casserole just before baking. Very interesting. I will try mixing it in the casserole next time.
livingabovethenoise says
Thanks for the tip! I’m actually making it this weekend, so I think I’ll try the old way to see how we like it.