I actually had the chance to eat this breakfast casserole twice–the first time was when Juanita made it for our once-a-month snack day at work (I had taken a photo of it which ended up being way out of focus), and the second time was when Juanita’s daughter Ashley made this for breakfast for our department–what a nice surprise, and so thoughtful of Ashley! Of course, I wanted to try to get another photo of this breakfast item, because I knew how good it was and had been wanting to post it on my blog. Not having my camera handy, my co-worker Justin took this picture with his i-phone…so thanks to Justin and Ashley, you now have a photo and recipe of this yummy breakfast dish!

This is a very easy recipe…and you might be surprised to learn that it’s actually the recipe for Impossibly Easy Cheeseburger Pie, but with ground sausage substituted for the ground beef! Juanita had thought of doing that when she was in a pinch to make something quick and easy for breakfast. Just that one little change in the recipe turns a classic lunch and dinner dish into a great item for breakfast and brunch! Juanita and Ashley made a few other small changes, which I am noting in the recipe. The original recipe is made in a pie plate and serves 6; you can double the recipe like Juanita and Ashley did and make it in a 9×13″ pan if you’re making this for a larger group.

JUANITA’S BREAKFAST BAKE (based on the Bisquick® Impossibly Easy Cheeseburger Pie)

• 1 lb. ground sausage
• 1 large onion, chopped (about 1 cup; if you’re not an onion-lover, you can just use 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese (you can substitute Colby Jack or another cheese if you prefer; Pepper Jack might be nice if you like things spicer)
• 1/2 cup Bisquick® baking mix
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9″ glass pie plate with cooking spray. In a 10-inch skillet, cook sausage and onion over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sausage is brown; drain fat. Then stir in salt. Spread in pie plate and sprinkle with cheese.

In a small bowl, stir Bisquick® with milk and eggs using a fork or wire whisk; blend well. Pour this mixture into pie plate over the cheese and sausage. Bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Serves 6.

Remember, you can double this recipe and make it in a 9×13″ pan if you want 12 servings. The baking time may be slightly longer, so remember to do the knife-inserted-in-center test!