Pioneer Sausage, Cheese and Bell Pepper Strata

Ingredients

• 6 large eggs
• 2 ½ cups whole milk
• 2 cups green onions, sliced
• ½ cup whipping cream
• ½ cup Romano cheese, finely grated
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 lb Pioneer Sausage, casing removed
• 1 large red bell pepper, halved, seeded & cut into ½ inch wide strips
• ½ lb asparagus
• 1 1-pound loaf Rustic French Bread, cut into ½ inch thick cubes
• 2 cups coarsely grated cheddar/sharp cheddar cheese, loosely packed

 

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 ºF. Butter 13x9x2 inch ceramic or glass baking dish. Whisk first 7 ingredients in large bowl; sprinkle generously with pepper. Set aside.

Place sausage in large nonstick skillet; push to 1 side. Add bell pepper to other side of skillet. Sauté acute; over high heat, breaking up sausage with fork, until sausage is cooked through and bell peppers are brown in spots, about 7 minutes.

Arrange half of bread slices in prepared dish. Pour half of egg mixture over. Sprinkle with half of cheese, then half of sausage-pepper mixture. Repeat layering. Refrigerate overnight, occasionally pressing on bread to submerge. Bake strata until puffed and brown, about 1 hour. Cool slightly.