Everything Bagel Breakfast Casserole

The everything bagel is the bagel. With its frenetic crust of salty, oniony, nutty, garlicy-ness, I believe it is the only bagel that properly satiates that “I could go for a bagel” feeling. For me, that feeling is for weekends. It’s for hangovers. It’s for early-stage relationship breakfasts. It’s for juicy debriefs. I don’t buy bagels at the grocery store, because the point of a bagel for me is to not have one on a Tuesday and to always have it dressed for me. Bagels are a treat. Bagels make me smile.

There had to be a way to bring bagels into your house, though. So here it is. It’s a an everything bagel sandwich, repurposed into the most home-centric food there is: a casserole.

everything bagel breakfast casserole

Everything Bagel Breakfast Casserole 

4-6 Everything bagels, three days old, torn into bite size pieces 

12 eggs

1 ½ cups whole milk, divided

Nonstick cooking spray

1 tsp ground mustard 

Salt and pepper  

2 tsp Everything But The Bagel seasoning (Trader Joe’s)

8 pieces of bacon, cooked and chopped

¾ cup sliced cherry tomatoes, sliced in half  

1 ½ cups grated sharp cheddar

2/3 cup jalapeño cream cheese 

Garnish:

A few shakes of Everything But The Bagel seasoning (Trader Joe’s)

Chopped green onions 

Soak the bagels. Whisk 6 eggs and one cup of milk together and season with salt and pepper. Put the torn bagels in the egg mixture and set to one side for 30 mins to an hour. 

Spray a casserole dish with nonstick cooking oil. Preheat oven to 375. In a separate bowl whisk the remaining 6 eggs, ½ cup of milk, mustard powder, everything seasoning and salt and pepper. 

Pour half of the egg soaked bagels into the base of the casserole dish. Spread the tomatoes and the bacon pieces over the bagel mixture. Pour 1/3 of the remaining egg mixture over the bagel pieces. Sprinkle evenly with half of the cheddar, and dot with small dime-sized blobs of the jalapeño cream cheese, using half. Top with remaining bagel pieces, dot with remaining cream cheese and pour reserved 2/3 egg mixture over the top. Allow to stand for one minute to settle. Sprinkle remaining cheddar cheese over the top and dust with as much more bagel seasoning as you would like. 

Bake for 35-45 minutes until cooked through. Top with chopped green onions if you have them.

Coupla notes:

·      This casserole can be assembled ahead of time and put in the refrigerator or freezer. If cooking from frozen, thaw the casserole in the fridge overnight before cooking. 

·      The bagels work best if they are slightly stale, so if you bought fresh just leave them out overnight. I have also made this with mini everything bagels which works well, just use your judgment and buy enough that your pieces will fill up a baking dish. 

• Don’t cut your bagels, make sure and tear them. This leaves lots of nooks and crannies for the egg mixture to soak in to and makes for a MUCH better casserole. 

·      I buy Everything But The Bagel seasoning from Trader Joe’s. I know there are others. If you would prefer to make your own it’s:

• 2 TB poppy seeds

• 1 TB white sesame seeds

• 1 TB black sesame seeds

• 1½ TB dried minced garlic

• 1½ TB dried minced onion 

• 2 tsp flaked salt