Spinach and Cheese Strata
The quickest, easiest (and cheapest, really), make-ahead savory bread pudding! Perfect for brunch get-togethers or even as a lazy dinner option. You can really have it for any time of the day!
I love a good savory bread pudding.
They’re amazing for a crowd when you have people over for brunch.
Which never really happens in our house.
But still. I’ll make this for just the two of us.
And for Butters – he’ll have the scraps and crumbs.
But what I really love about this is the garlicky spinach and the three types of cheese here.
Yes, three!
We have Swiss, Gruyere and Parmesan in which all three play important roles.
Simply soak the challah bread cubes overnight, let it come to room temperature for about 30 minutes and bake until cooked through.
That’s it.
I also like to serve with a sprinkle of freshly grated Parm once it comes out of the oven.
Because we clearly don’t have enough cheese here.
Spinach and Cheese Strata
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups whole milk
- 5 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup sliced green onions
- 1 12-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
- 6 cups 1-inch cubed challah bread
- ¾ cup shredded Swiss cheese, divided
- ¾ cup shredded Gruyere cheese, divided
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, Dijon and nutmeg; season with salt and pepper, to taste; set aside.
- Melt butter in a 12-inch oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. Stir garlic, green onions and spinach until heated through, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Stir in bread cubes and gently toss to combine. Pour milk mixture evenly over the top. Stir in 1/2 cup Swiss, 1/2 cup Gruyere, and 2 tablespoons Parmesan.
- Cover and place in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Remove strata from the refrigerator, let sit for 30 minutes.
- Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup Swiss, 1/4 cup Gruyere and 2 tablespoons Parmesan.
- Place into oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until puffed, golden brown and cooked through.
- Serve immediately.
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I much prefer fresh spinach. Can it be substituted for the frozen? How much would you use?
1 pound fresh spinach will yield 10-12 cups of torn leaves, which will cook down to about 1 cup. One (10-ounce) package frozen spinach yields about 1 1/2 cups after cooking. Hope that helps!
This looks delicious. My only issue is with the bread. Do I lightly fill a measuring cup with the cubes or push them down to really fill up a cup? Thanks!!
Lightly filled is fine!
Tthank you so very much! I have collected a lot of half-loaves of savory challah because we have a fresh one every Friday night. There are usually sweets around, so he eats those during the week.
They are savory because I put TJ’s “Everything but the bagel topping” on it. Hubby loves that topping, but then I have all this stale bread!
This will be perfect!!! Love your recipes. Thank you.
Can you use potatoes or something other than bread?
Strata typically uses bread as their base but as always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.
I love your recipes. I want this NOW!!!