This crockpot breakfast casserole is a classic breakfast made with ham, bacon, eggs, and cheese. Perfect for holiday breakfast and can be made a day in advance. This hearty dish adds a warm and hearty start to your day. With breakfast made and cooking in the crockpot, you’ll have more time to enjoy your family.
Slow Cooker Breakfast Casserole
Breakfast during the holidays is not complete for me without some type of breakfast casserole with eggs and bacon, or a sweet baked breakfast like cherry and cream cheese crescent roll danish, or French Toast Bake with Cream Cheese, and Cinnamon Nut Coffee Cake Ring.
The best part of this crockpot breakfast casserole is its ease of making and cooking it. Nobody needs a complicated breakfast during the holidays. This crockpot breakfast is easy and enjoyed by all.
What You’ll Love About This Recipe for Slow Cooker Casserole with Bread
- It is easy to make
- It’s perfect for feeding a crowd.
- This breakfast casserole has everything you need for a delicious breakfast like ham, bacon, eggs, milk, and bread
- This can be made in advance, one day before, and cooked on the holiday morning.
Ingredients
- Bacon – You can spend time cooking bacon in a frying pan or baking the bacon in the oven. Of course, the bacon grease in the skillet is used to flavor the cooked ham, so you’ll want to transfer a little grease from baking the bacon into a skillet for cooking the ham. Another shortcut is to use pre-cooked bacon and briefly fry it on both sides. Place cooked bacon on a paper towel to soak up the grease.
- Fully cooked ham – You’ll cook this ham in the bacon grease to add more flavor to it. Cook until browned.
- Water – This will be mixed and added to the skillet along with water
- Brown sugar – This will add a little sweetness to the bacon before you place it in the slow cooker.
- White bread – You’ll probably use about ten slices. You’ll need enough to layer and go across the crockpot.
- Mexican Style Cheese – This type of cheese melts well. You can also use Colby-Jack cheese in this recipe.
- Milk – Don’t use skim milk. It is too watered down. Use 2% or whole milk for this crockpot egg casserole.
- Eggs – An essential part of this recipe. Use large in-shell eggs for this breakfast recipe.
- Dry mustard ground – Dry mustard adds flavor and enhances flavor
- Black pepper ground – For added flavor
How to Make Slow Cooker Egg and Bacon Casserole
Instructions:
- In a large skillet over medium heat, fry the pound of bacon until crisp, and brown
- Place bacon on paper towels and pour out most of the bacon grease – leaving about 1 tsp. in the skillet
- Pour the ham cubes in the skillet, and cook over med. Heat, tossing until slightly browned
- Add water and brown sugar to the skillet and your crumbled bacon strips. Stir in
- Grease the slow cooker
- Layer the slow cooker with a layer of bread, cutting it where needed to make it fit.
- Next, add a layer of the meat mixture from the skillet – about 1/2 to 3/4 cup sprinkled evenly over the bread.
- Finally, add a layer of cheese – 1 cup per layer, sprinkled evenly over bread and meat.
- Repeat those layers until you have used your bread, ham, and cheese. With ten slices of bread, I made three layers of each
- Whisk the eggs, mustard, and pepper in a large bowl, preferably with a spout.
- Pour the mixture evenly over the layers in the slow cooker.
- This crockpot breakfast casserole tastes even better if you have time to let the eggs soak into the bread mixture. Cover and place in the fridge for one hour or overnight.
- Place the heat setting on high for 2-3 hours. The middle should be set, and the top edges will be browning.
Expert Tips
Make sure the casserole is completely cooked through. Nobody wants a soggy bread breakfast with raw eggs. The center will be the last part to completely cook. The top should be set and not jiggly. Check that the center is cooked by taking a piece out and checking that the eggs are cooked
Use a spray grease to grease the sides and bottom of your slow cooker
Variations
Change the meats – Add cooked sausage to this casserole. You can make it an addition or replace one of the other meats. If you take out the ham and bacon, add some salt into the casserole. Bacon and ham naturally produce salt, so you’ll need to replace it with table salt.
Try a different cheese – just be sure that it is a good cheese for melting. Cheddar cheese, Colby-Jack, or Pepper-Jack cheese would all be delicious
Add Veggies – I love sillet breakfasts with green peppers and onions. Add green pepper, onions, or fresh mushrooms to the casserole
What to Serve With
This breakfast casserole is usually served as is, but you can still enhance it with a few ideas like
- toasted and buttered bread
- sliced green onion
- pico de Gallo
- Hashbrowns on the side would be delicious.
Make Ahead and Storage
I like to make this casserole a day in advance. Cover it and store it in the fridge overnight. Take it out the next morning and cook on high for 2-3 hours, or until cooked through.
Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator
Reheating: Reheat individual pieces in the microwave for another breakfast or snack
FAQs
I like to make this casserole one day in advance. This gives the bread time to soak all of the egg mixture before cooking
Yes, cover it with foil and bake it a 350 degrees farheinheit for about one hour. Make sure the center is cooked through before serving.
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Serving Size
This recipe should serve 6-8 people
If you need to serve more, then I recommend making the recipe in a separate casserole. You can double, but divide into two crockpots for cooking
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Printable Recipe Instructions
Crockpot Breakfast Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 lb. bacon
- 8 oz. ham cooked cubed
- ¼ cup water
- ½ tsp. brown sugar
- 10 slices white bread
- 3 cups Mexican Style Cheese or a Colby-Jack blend
- 1&3/4 cup milk
- 10 large eggs
- ¼ tsp. dry mustard ground
- ⅛ tsp. black pepper ground
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium heat, fry the pound of bacon until crisp, and brown
- Place bacon on paper towlels, and pour out most of the bacon grease – leaving about 1 tsp. in the skillet
- Place the ham cubes in the skillet, cook over med. heat, tossing until slightly browned
- Add water, and brown sugar to the skillet, and your bacon strips – crumbled. Stir in
- Grease the slow cooker
- Layer the slow cooker with a layer of bread, cutting it where needed to fit the crockpot
- Next add a layer of the meat mixture from the skillet – about 1/2 to 3/4 cup sprinkled evenly over bread
- Finally add a layer of cheese – 1 cup per layer, sprinkled evenly over bread and meat
- Repeat those layers until you have used all of your bread, ham, and cheese. I was able to make three layers of each.
- In a large bowl, preferably with a spout, whisk the eggs, mustard, and pepper
- Pour the mixture, evenly over the layers in the slow cooker
- Cover and refrigerate for one hour or overnight. This gives the egg mixture time to soak into the bread.
- Place heat setting on high for 2-3 hours. The middle should be set and the edges will be browned.