Bring on the bacon! Smithfield, those purveyors of pork product who comped me not one, but two hams last year, approached me again this year to see if I would be interested in trying their Maple Thick Cut Bacon. Twist my arm!
Much sooner than I expected, a large freezer box with two pounds of their Maple Thick Cut Bacon appeared on my porch. Perusing their recipes page, I found one I wanted to try, thinking I could accomplish that savory/salty/sweet breakfast combo using the Maple flavor and it didn’t quite work out as I hoped. Not because the bacon wasn’t delicious, but because the recipe was lacking in flavor and texture. So, I tried again.
While the Maple bacon was a great addition to breakfasts with pancakes and waffles, I went out and purchased a pound of their Hometown Original Bacon and whipped up a casserole to be happy about. I hope you like it!
Smithfield Breakfast Casserole
(Serves four)
Ingredients:
8 frozen hash brown patties (baked till crispy)
8 pieces of Smithfield Hometown Original Bacon, cooked and crumbled
8 eggs
1/4 C heavy cream
1 red or green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 C shredded cheddar cheese
Salt & Pepper
2 green onions, chopped (for garnish)
Method:
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Saute the bell pepper, onion and garlic until tender or until the onion is translucent and set aside. Layer four crispy, cooked hash brown patties on the bottom of the dish. Top with half of the onion mixture. Then add about half of the cheese and sprinkle half of the crumbled bacon. Add another layer of hash browns, then onion mixture.
Whisk the eggs with the heavy cream. Add salt and pepper to taste (if you like a little heat, add a pinch of cayenne). Pour the egg mixture over the casserole. Top with remaining cheese and bacon. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes.
Remove casserole from oven when eggs are completely cooked. Sometimes that takes a little longer than 45 minutes depending upon your oven. After cooling for 15 minutes, top with chopped green onion and serve.
John and I ate it for dinner with roasted broccoli, but you could eat this any old time! Enjoy!
