Farmer’s Casserole
Our Farmer’s Casserole is the best hearty and filling breakfast recipe. It’s made with hashbrowns, pepper jack cheese, and Canadian bacon seasoned perfectly then baked with a mixture of evaporated milk and eggs. This recipe takes just 10 minutes to prep and is a great make-ahead meal!
Easy Breakfast Casserole with Canadian Bacon
This Farmer’s Casserole is one of my favorite easy breakfast recipes! It’s hearty and delicious and so easy to prepare.
This recipe is loaded up with your favorite breakfast foods baked into a delicious, creamy, oh-so-flavorful casserole. I love to make this Canadian bacon casserole on a slow Sunday morning, then keep leftovers for breakfast all week long.
It can also be made ahead of time and stored in the freezer so it can be thrown in the oven whenever you need a quick meal!
Enjoy it for breakfast, lunch, or even dinner!
Tips and Notes
- You can use hashbrown style potatoes with peppers or swap them out for plain frozen hashbrowns. We like the added texture and flavor of the peppers, but either will be delicious!
- Don’t forget to grease the pan! This helps prevent the casserole from burning on the bottom as it bakes.
- If you notice the top of the casserole browning too quickly before it’s fully baked, cover it loosely with a foil tent and continue to bake until set completely.
- To check if your casserole is done, give the pan a gently shake. The center should jiggle just slightly, but it shouldn’t be watery.
- Let the casserole cool off for 20 minutes before serving. This gives it time to set up
Variations
- Swap the meat. Feel free to swap the Canadian bacon out for cooked and crumbled traditional bacon.
- Add veggies. Want to bulk your casserole up with some extra nutrition and color? Feel free to add in whatever cooked veggies you like! Try tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach, bell peppers, onion, you name it. Basically, anything you can add to an omelet or frittata would work in this recipe.
- Use another cheese. I love the subtle spice that pepper jack adds, but you could also use mozzarella, cheddar, Monterey jack, you name it.
- Spice it up. If you like a little extra heat, try adding Sriracha or hot sauce, cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes, or even chopped green chiles or jalapeños.
Serving Suggestions
I love to garnish this bacon casserole with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of freshly chopped green onions. It’s perfectly filling all on its own, but you can also totally serve it up with any of your favorite breakfast recipes.
Additionally, if you’re serving it up for dinner, you could enjoy it with a side of oven-roasted broccoli or brioche rolls!
Storing and Freezing
Refrigerator: To store leftovers, let the casserole cool completely, then store it in an airtight container or cover it tightly and keep it in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Reheating: To reheat leftovers, warm in the microwave, on low on the stove, or covered in the oven until heated through.
Freezer: To freeze your casserole, I recommend doing so unbaked. This is a great way to prep ahead for busy mornings or weekend guests. Simply combine everything in the casserole dish like you normally would, but don’t bake. Instead, cover with plastic wrap and store in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to serve, thaw overnight in the fridge and bake as directed.
Why Is It Called Farmer’s Casserole?
It’s called a farmer’s casserole because it’s made with a bunch of classic “farm” ingredients! Eggs, bacon, hashbrown style potatoes, cheese, milk…okay, and a couple of additional things to spice it up.
Why Is My Breakfast Casserole Soggy?
If your breakfast casserole seems soggy, then it likely isn’t baking properly!
Make sure you preheat the oven to 375ºF before baking and give it plenty of time to cook. There’s a lot of liquid, so it will likely need the full 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
More Breakfast Casserole Recipes You’ll Love
Ingredients
- 3 ½ cups hashbrown style potatoes with peppers, frozen
- 8 ounces pepper jack, or mozzarella cheese, shredded off the block
- 6 ounces Canadian bacon, diced
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 8 large eggs, beaten
- 24 ounces evaporated milk, 2 (12 ounce) cans
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F, and lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish or 8-inch casserole pan.
- Add the hashbrowns, cheese, Canadian bacon, chili powder, salt, and pepper to the prepared pan.3 ½ cups hashbrown style potatoes with peppers8 ounces pepper jack6 ounces Canadian bacon½ teaspoon salt½ teaspoon ground black pepper½ teaspoon chili powder
- Toss to combine, then add the eggs and evaporated milk. Stir to combine.8 large eggs24 ounces evaporated milk
- Bake for 1-1 ½ hours or until the center is slightly jiggly but is not watery.
- Let it cool for at least 20 minutes to let it set before serving with sour cream and freshly chopped green onions for garnish if desired.
Suggested Equipment
Notes
- The calories listed are an approximation based on the ingredients in the recipe card and a serving size of 1 cup of casserole. Actual calories will vary.
- There is a large gap in the cook time due to the type/size of pan options. Start checking the casserole around the 1 hour mark but know that it could take up to 1 1/2 hours to fully cook.
This sounds like a perfect breakfast for company. Is that the 30-ounce bag of hash browns? I use the rehydrated, so am trying to figure out how much I need. Probably add some chopped-up onion and half a pepper too.
Hi Barbara!
Yes, it is! It would be similar to the diced Ore-Ida O’brien Potatoes with Onions and Peppers. I’ve seen it sold in both 28-ounce and 30-ounce bags depending on the brand, so either amount would probably work. 🙂
Hi, I can’t wait to try this recipe! I’m wondering if I could freeze this in a muffin tin for single servings and how long to heat in a microwave. I love your recipes!
Diki
Hi Diki!
Thank you so much! We haven’t tried to bake this casserole in a muffin pan, but I think it should work fine. The cook time needs to be reduced quite a bit. I’d start checking at them at around 30-35 minutes and add additional time from there.
In regards to freezing, the individual, baked muffins would probably freeze best wrapped in plastic wrap, then foil and dropped into a large plastic bag. To reheat, remove the foil and plastic wrap and wrap the muffin in a damp paper towel. Microwave on half power in 30 second intervals until it’s warmed through.
If you want to freeze an entire muffin tin of unbaked casserole, that might work, too. Although, I’m not 100% sure. Allow it to sit flat in the freezer until frozen, then wrap it in plastic wrap and foil. It would need to thaw in the fridge before being baked. Hope all that helps! Have a wonderful week! 🙂
@Kimberly,
Thank you for replying so quickly! I will try as you suggest. Have a wonderful day!
Diki