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Christmas Morning Strata

Christmas Morning Strata

This Christmas casserole includes eggs, chèvre, herbs, artichoke hearts and ham and can be prepared the day before. 

This Christmas Morning Strata is adapted from a version published in Bon Appetit in 1997. It's delicious and perfect for a crowd especially because it can be made the day before; just pop it in the oven an hour before breakfast time.

Ingredients: 

2 cups whole milk
¼ cup olive oil
8 cups 1-inch cubes sourdough bread
1-1/2 cups heavy cream
5 eggs
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
¾ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon dry mustard
12 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1-1/2 teaspoons herbes de Provence
12 ounces smoked ham, cubed (I cube Niman Ranch ham that has been sliced about ¼-inch thick)
1-1/2 12-ounce jars marinated artichoke hearts, drained and halved lengthwise
1 cup grated fontina
1 cup grated parmesan

Recipe directions: 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9” x 13” baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Whisk milk and oil together in a large bowl. Stir in bread, and let it sit to absorb the liquid, about 10 minutes. 

Whisk the cream, eggs, garlic, salt, pepper, nutmeg and dry mustard in another large bowl. Add the goat cheese, sage, thyme and herbes de Provence. 

Layer the ingredients in the baking dish: half of the bread, half of the ham, half of the artichoke hearts, half of the fontina and parmesan. Pour half of the cream-goat cheese mixture over. Repeat the layering with the remaining bread, ham, artichoke hearts, cheeses and cream-goat cheese mixture. At this point, you can cover the pan and refrigerate for a day. Or, bake the strata uncovered until browned, about 1 hour.

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