Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole

Never thought you’d eat tater tots in the AM? You will when they’re the crispy topping on a make-ahead breakfast casserole that combines all of the morning classics: browned breakfast sausage, scrambled eggs, two (count ’em) layers of bubbling melted cheddar cheese — and bacon, for crying out loud.

You know we’ve got a thing for breakfast casseroles: we’ve served up a hearty Amish Breakfast Casserole, a berry-filled Baked Oatmeal Breakfast Casserole for sweet breakfast fans, and a satisfying Sausage, Egg & Cheese Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole. If frozen hash browns work, we thought, why not put our other favorite potato in a breakfast bake?

Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole
Prep: 15 Mins | Total: 1Hr 30 Mins
Serves: 6-8
Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients
¼ Pound Fresh breakfast sausage, casings removed
2 Cups Shredded cheddar cheese or cheese mix, divided
6 Eggs
1 Cup Milk
½ teaspoon Onion powder
½ teaspoon Garlic powder
Kosher Salt, to taste
Ground Black Pepper, to taste
1¼ Pounds Frozen tater tots (20 ounces)
¼ Pound Bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 Tablespoons Chopped Fresh Parsley (Optional) (garnish)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C.
Cook sausage in a large skillet over medium high heat, breaking up the meat while browning it. Drain the cooked sausage and layer it into the bottom of an 8 x 11-inch baking pan or casserole dish.
Sprinkle 1 cup of the shredded cheese over the cooked sausage.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper, and salt. Pour the egg mixture over the cheese and sausage.
Layer the frozen tater tots over the egg mixture. At this point, you can either bake the casserole immediately, or cover it and keep it in the refrigerator overnight so it is ready to bake the next morning.
Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the eggs are just set. Remove the casserole from the oven and top it with the remaining shredded cheese and the cooked and crumbled bacon. Bake for another 5-10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
Allow the casserole to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Does arranging a Tetris of tater tots sound like way too much coordination for the early morning to you? We read you loud and clear — which is why we love that you can totally get away with assembling this casserole the night before, so that all you have to do in the morning is pop it into the oven.

We’d be really surprised if you have any leftovers of this savory tater tot casserole, but we can definitely see this turning into a breakfast-for-dinner situation.

Recipe adapted from Chew Out Loud.