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The BEST Southern Cornbread Breakfast Casserole Recipe

The BEST Southern Cornbread Breakfast Casserole

This southern cornbread sausage & egg breakfast casserole is TO DIE FOR. This cheesy casserole is loaded with hearty ingredients and is certain to become a family favorite!
5 from 6 votes
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Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Servings: 12 servings

Ingredients

  • 1/4 c dry grits
  • 1 c water*
  • 1 lb breakfast sausage
  • 1 stick unsalted butter
  • 1 8.5 oz box Jiffy corn muffin mix
  • 4 eggs
  • 1.5 c grated jalapeno cheddar cheese regular is fine
  • 1 can diced green chiles
  • 1 ¾ c whole milk

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325.
  • *Prepare grits according to package. (Every time I've made grits, it calls for 1/4 c of dry grits + 1 cup of water. I bring the water to a boil, reduce the heat, add the 1/4 c of dry grits, stir, cover, and then let them sit for 5-7 min over medium-low heat. I imagine the process will be fairly similar for you.)
  • Brown sausage in 12" cast iron skillet. Move sausage to a mixing bowl after it's finished cooking. (see notes)
  • Place stick of butter in the cast iron skillet and place skillet in oven while it continues to preheat. (See notes at the bottom if you're preparing this in a casserole dish.)
  • In the meantime, while the grits are cooking, you can start mixing together some of the other ingredients: pour the Jiffy mix into the bowl with the sausage, and then add the eggs and stir with a fork until eggs are incorporated into the mixture. Add cheese & green chiles.
  • When the grits are done cooking, uncover, stir, reduce heat to low, & pour milk into the same pan to allow it to warm up for a few minutes.
  • Once the milk is warm, pour the grits & milk into the sausage mixture & stir.
  • Remove cast iron from oven (careful, it's hot!), swirl the melted butter around the pan to coat the bottom of the pan and up the sides, and then pour the butter into the sausage mixture & stir.
  • Once everything is fully incorporated in the mixing bowl, pour the mix into the cast iron and place the cast iron back in the oven to bake for 40-45 minutes. (Mine needs right at about 45 minutes.)
  • Remove from oven, allow to sit for a few minutes, and then serve up!
  • Store in an airtight container in the fridge - it'll still taste great for a few days!

Notes

Note: just to clarify - you want about 1 c of cooked grits to mix in with the other casserole ingredients. In order to get about 1 c of cooked grits, I usually need about 1/4 c dry grits cooked in 1 c of water.
To make in a 9x13" casserole dish:
  • Cook the sausage in a large skillet vs. a cast iron.
  • Instead of melting the butter in the cast iron, simply add the stick of butter to the pan when you add the milk to the grits. (After the grits are done cooking.) Keep the heat on low and stir occasionally, allowing the butter to melt. Then pour everything into the mixing bowl with the sausage & eggs.
  • Use cooking spray to grease a 9x13" casserole dish, and then pour the sausage mixture into the casserole dish. Cook time should be the same.
You may have noticed this recipe doesn't call for salt. I really don't think it needs it. Between the breakfast casserole, cheese, and cornbread mix, there's plenty of salt for flavoring!