Savory Vegetable Strata

If I had to confess one of my weaknesses, freshly baked bread would definitely be near the top of the list. Every now and then I’ll grab a loaf from the market and find a way to work it into our meals. This past weekend I had some leftover bread from another dish, so I decided to turn it into a Savory Vegetable Strata for our Sunday brunch.

Some folks might call it “bread pudding,” but for this recipe we’re sticking with Strata. Stratas are similar to quiche or frittatas, and they almost always include bread, cheese, eggs, and sometimes milk. You can easily swap out the veggies or even add veggie sausage — I do that from time to time. Additionally, it’s not required  because I typically cut the veggies in small or thin pieces, but you can sauté the heartier vegetables first to soften them a bit.

Get the Recipe: Savory Vegetable Strata

Yield: 6 servings

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 1 hour hr

Total: 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

If I were to tell you one of my weaknesses, freshly baked bread would probably be high up on that list. On occasion, I love to pick up a loaf from the market to incorporate into our meals, one way or another. This past weekend I had some leftover bread from another dish I made, so I decided to make a Savory Vegetable Strata for our Sunday brunch.

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Ingredients

• 5 large eggs
• 1 cup whole milk
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
• ¼ teaspoon onion powder
• ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• a pinch red chile flakes, optional
• 5 cups artisan bread, cut into 1 inch cubes
• ½ cup mozzarella cheese, grated
• 1 small red bell pepper, diced small
• 1 cup mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1 scallion, sliced
• ⅓ cup parmesan cheese, grated

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, salt, pepper, oregano, onion powder, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and red chile flakes, then set aside.
• Place the bread cubes, mozzarella, red bell peppers, mushrooms, and scallions in a large mixing bowl. Pour in the egg mixture and gently fold it in, making sure each bread cube absorbs the liquid. Transfer the mixture to a 10‑inch casserole dish (or whatever similar dish you have).
• Sprinkle the grated Parmesan over the top of the dish. Place the baking dish on the middle rack of your oven and bake until golden brown, around 50 to 60 minutes. (The strata will puff up slightly like a soufflé and then settle a bit once it comes out of the oven, so don’t be alarmed.) Serve warm and enjoy!

Notes

If your bread/crust is soft, then it will not need additional soaking time. But if your crust is hard, then you may want to let it sit for 30 to 60 minutes so that the wet mixture can soften your bread. You can also prepare this the night before and refrigerated, just be sure to wrap it up tight.

Serving: 8ounces, Calories: 683kcal, Carbohydrates: 98g, Protein: 32g, Fat: 18g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 0.1g, Cholesterol: 171mg, Sodium: 1350mg, Potassium: 498mg, Fiber: 8g, Sugar: 14g, Vitamin A: 850IU, Vitamin C: 17mg, Calcium: 438mg, Iron: 8mg