Brinner. If it isn’t an official word in the dictionary, it should be. It is in our home for sure, due to the fact that it happens at least once a week. We simply can’t resist having breakfast for dinner. Brinner! It’s quick, it’s easy, and like most people, somehow we’ve always got breakfast ingredients in the fridge and pantry (why is that not the case for dinner?). And tonight’s brinner was one of our best in a long, long time.
Yeah, I could have gone with pancakes and bacon, which we always love, maybe waffles, french toast or some scrambled eggs, toast and fruit, but I am craving Mexican food all the time lately. Summer does that to me for some reason. Maybe it’s a Southern California thing. So I went with my cravings and got a little more creative and came up with this Chorizo Breakfast Bake. And it was amazing!
Don’t be mislead by the humble look of this dish. It is literally bursting with flavor in every bite. And the key to this being so full of flavor completely lies in the high-quality beef chorizo. With this, there is so much flavor that you won’t need to add any additional seasoning. It’s kind of like when you cook with bacon and how the flavor is left behind in the drippings. Same thing with a good chorizo!
And to give this Chorizo Breakfast Bake and added dose of flavor, texture and color, I added some crusty Italian bread, some summer squash (my favorite ingredient), and some diced green chiles. Quick & easy and made everyone here smile with full bellies. And it’s always nice to take over meal duty while Naomi continues to recover from giving birth to our new baby boy less than 2 weeks ago.
And I can’t wait to wake up in the morning to have the leftovers for breakfast. I bet it will be even better then!
Chorizo Breakfast Bake
By Published: June 3, 2014
- Yield: 8-10 Servings
Brinner. If it isn't an official word in the dictionary, it should be. It is in our home for sure, due to the fact that it happens at …
Ingredients
- 10 oz. high quality Mexican chorizo
- 1 lb crusty Italian bread, cut into 1-inch squares
- 2 medium summer squash (9 oz. total), sliced
- 4 tablespoons diced green chilies (from can), well drained
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 7 large eggs
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- In a saute pan over medium heat, add chorizo and cook, crumbling with a wooden spoon until browned. Drain off fat. In the same pan add squash and cook until edges become translucent. Transfer squash to a bowl; set aside.
- In a separate bowl mix chilies, whole milk, heavy cream, eggs and cheese. Mix in the chorizo, squash and bread. Pour mixture into a 12 inch cast iron pan or a 4 quart baking dish.Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight or for at least 2 hours.
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Remove pan from refrigerator. Keep foil on and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake for another 40-50 minutes or until top is browned and the strata is cooked through.
Brinner, what a interesting word! We already have brunch, so brinner makes perfect sense!
The chorizo casserole looks really good. However, I don’t quite understand why do you need to chill them in the fridge overnight? Is it possible to bake them directly?
Thanks Maggie. I’m sure you could bake them directly, but soaking it for 2 hours or even overnight ensures that the milk, cream and eggs are soaked through the bread.
Great mix of ingredients for a savory “brinner” (love that term) dish!
Thanks Liz! Brinner is the greatest!
“Brinner” is my favorite meal, and word! I am kind of freaking out over the nom factor of this! My hubby is OBSESSED with chorizo, and I am obsessed with summer squash..perfect! Pinned 🙂
Time to make this for him soon Taylor!
Whoa….Matt, you’re making my attempts at brinner look pretty lame. I’ll have to up my game with this. I too love Mexican a little too much.
I’ve just got to change things up here sometimes, thanks Bri!
We had brinner just last night! My fav. This looks fantastic!
Love that! Always fun for the kids too, thanks Holly!
I love Mexican food, morning, noon, and night, and I love that you added summer squash to this! So hearty and perfect for brinner 😉
Same here, Allie! And I love the squash in this, my favorite:) Thanks!
I am all for a good Brinner! This looks awesome and I love chorizo + Summer squash!
Thanks Tieghan! They do make a great combo in this:)
Nice one! I’m with you on the Mexican food cravings. We had chicken enchiladas last week, and tacos and refried beans last night. I could eat it every night of the week.
Totally agree, Justin! Bring it on any time
We had brinner last night but I wish it was this amazing dish! Chorizo anything makes me happy. Looks like we might have brinner once again tonight 🙂
I don’t know why but I love that everyone loves brinner like we do. It’s the best sometimes. Thanks so much Amy!
Brinner…I love it! Breakfast for dinner is the best, because yes, there’s always eggs and bread and possibly bacon hanging around. I crave Mexican food almost constantly, and this sounds so delicious with that spicy chorizo and summer squash!
Thank you Marcie! Somehow we’ve always got those items in the fridge calling out to us:)
What a tasty breakfast!
Thanks so much, Kevin!
Loving all of these flavors! Perfect for any meal Matt.
Thanks so much Toni!
Totally my kind of breakfast. I always love having leftovers for the next day 🙂
Just had some leftovers now and it was actually a little better!
I have never heard of this word before, maybe because I am French 🙂 But we do have breakfast for dinner, once in a while. Yesterday I made bacon egg McMuffin. The Chorizo must had such a nice flavor to this this. And she must like it that you are helping in the kitchen while she recovers. What a cute baby!
Thanks Helene, I could live on bacon & egg mcmuffins, need to actually stop myself from eating them too often!
Brinner is 100% totally a thing!! This looks and sounds amazing!!!
Right?! Thanks Beth!
If it was up to me, every dinner would be brinner – and it’s been far too long since I’ve had chorizo. Mexican food all day, every day.
All day, every day, I’m with ya Todd. A bloody mary with this and we’d be all set. Thanks!
Brinner should be an official word!!! That’s one delicious bake, hope Naomi and the baby are doing well.
Totally agree Nik! We are all doing well and loving our new addition. Hope you guys are getting settled in after your long trip!
I’m so happy that you went with this chorizo bake instead of pancakes because it rocks.
Definitely the right decision! 🙂
Brinner…hehe…that’s awesome. My husband and I love chorizo so this is totally going to be a winner for breakfast, dinner, or any time of the day!
Tina from http://www.tinaschic.com
Thanks Tina, hope you give it a try!
im from tijuana, mexico, and here is a must to have mexican chorizo on or fridge..you can make, (huevos con chorizo) eggs with chorizo, (queso fundido) monterrey cheese melt with chorizo, (molletes), bread, chorizo, beans and cheese, and melt in the oven), potatoes with chorizo …I like a lot your easy recipes..thanks.
Kudos to you for taking over the meals! I’m a dinner for dinner and dinner for breakfast sort of weirdo, but this might make me change my ways. Loving the zucchini and chorizo!
You’ll have to give it a try Kayley, trust me on this one:)
Brinner is our fave 🙂 This chorizo bake looks amazing, love all the summer squash in here! That’s awesome that you are helping out with meal duty too 🙂
Thanks Kelly! The squash was definitely my favorite part, always reminds me of summer.
I saw this one this morning and have not stopped drooling Matt. This looks right up our family’s alley and I am looking forward to trying it out this weekend.
Thanks Sandi! I hope you do, really to make and is just as good, if not better the next day:)
These are a few of my favorite things 🙂
Me too Jennifer!
Love it! This looks so delicious! We love breakfast for dinner in our house! In fact, my four little ones beg for it at least once a week! May have to start using your word! Super cute!
Brinner rocks! I think I should submit it to Webster:) Thanks so much!!
I love Brinner! I’m always looking for new ways to use the summer squash from the garden, pinning it for later!
Thanks Serena, so cool that you grow squash in your garden! We seriously need to do that.
Chorizo is the best. This could easily become a weeknight dinner staple.
Thank you Tanya! Hope you try this:)
oh… that sounds delicious Matt! Love the zucchini and green chili addition. We totally do brinner at least once a week too… my favorite meal of the week! Pinned… great pics Matt. Hope your new little one is doing great!
Krista @ Joyful Healthy Eats
Thanks Krista, he is doing awesome. And he has no idea what yummy stuff he’s missing out on:)
I love Brinner! I can eat eggs any meal of the day! love the summer squash and Mexican chorizo!!! delicious, Matt!
I’m totally the same way, thanks Alice!
Love brinner! This looks fantastic, Matt!
It’s the best! Thanks Anna!
Looks absolutely delicious Matt! I haven’t had chorizo is forever. I can’t even remember what it tastes like. Haha This would be a perfect meal anytime of the day. Totally awesome of you to take over while mom and baby are resting 😀
It’s the least I can do, Naomi is the greatest mom to our boys and she needs a break sometimes, especially now. Thanks so much Cindy!
This looks so so tasty!!
Thank you Ami!
Hubs loves chorizo, this will get me points! Great dish and very creative, Matt!
Time to score some points, Paula!
I need this for breakfast!!
Yes you do! Or dinner!
We do breakfast for dinner quite often around here as well! I love this chorizzo breakfast bake, Matt. Perfect for breakfast, dinner or anything in between!
My kind of people! 🙂 Thanks Shinee!
What a perfect breakfast bake, love the summer squash!
Thanks Laura!
We absolutely love chorizo, but until today I had never heard of Mexican chorizo. My husband is Portuguese so that is the only kind I’ve used. I’ll have to keep an eye out for the Mexican version. Looks amazing!
Thanks Sherri! That would probably be so good in this! Next time for sure:)
Daaaang, this is awesome! Viva la Brinner!!! And chorizo! 🙂
Haha, love that Kate!
I love the addition of squash. And oh how I love brinner too! I am not usually a big weekend breakfast kind of person (my husband is the resident pancake master around here), but I do make breakfast for dinner a lot. Gotta give this a try. : )
You totally should:) Thanks Crystal!
that’s so true about always having breakfast food in the house, but never dinner, and this brinner needs to happen ASAP
I knew we weren’t the only ones! Thanks Heather:)
Totally love the smell of chorizo cooking, and you’re so right tons of flavor! Great photos, Matt!
Thanks so much Sandra. Hope you have a great weekend!
Now this is a breakfast I can sink my teeth into, complete with a veg. Gorgeous photos!
Thank you so much, Brooks! Glad you stopped by and I hope you have a great weekend.
I love the rustic look of this dish! And the fact that it needs to sit for a couple of hours at least means I can make it the night before and have a ready-to-go brunch option. Those are the best! I see Chorizo everywhere but I don’t buy it much because I never know what to do with it (I’m more comfortable with bratwurst, ha ha ha). Thank you for the inspiration!
You have to make this for hubs and kids, Meggan. So easy to make and you can definitely make it the night before:) Just make sure you get good chorizo, the cheap stuff isn’t usually good at all.
Yum! Pinning! This looks crazy good! I love zucchini and chorizo. Score!