phyllo egg brunch casserole

See this?

This makes me love mornings. Well, coffee does, too, but this helps.

Flaky, buttery layers with vegetables and turkey and eggs and cheese? Oh yeah, I can get down with that. Or up, if you will — up in the morning with a yummy brunch bake. And coffee.

Anyhoo, what I’m trying to say is this casserole needs to be a part of your Easter brunch festivities. There is no waffling on this suggestion — my recommendation is essentially a guarantee. And that guarantee is that you will fall in love with a casserole. Specifically, this casserole. Why? Must I remind you of the flaky, buttery phyllo dough layers? And the cheese?

Or, mayhaps I can woo you with the fact that you can prep this recipe the night before, leaving you more time on Easter morning to get up, find your Easter basket (I am NEVER too old for that) and go to church without looking like the egg nest landed in your hair. Or, perchance, that the crisp, buttery layers made with Athens Fillo Dough are actually healthier than other doughs like, say, puff pastry and pie crust. Or, possibly, that it’s just downright delicious. Really, it’s all the things. Not the least of which is the fact that you get to eat it.

A few more notes to whet your whistle: If you don’t like ground turkey or want to go meatless, you can swap the turkey for sausage or extra mushrooms. You can also simplify the process by using cooking spray for the phyllo sheets instead of butter. And finally, if you need to make this a few days ahead of time, you can freeze the whole thing prior to baking — just be sure to let it thaw overnight in the fridge before you put it in the oven.

Brunch bake = me, a morning person. It’s an Easter miracle.

P.S. Athens Foods is hosting a Get Social with Mini Fillo Shells recipe contest, a monthly recipe contest with 11 monthly prizes and more than $10,000 in total prizes. You can enter here.

Phyllo Egg Brunch Casserole
A Girl Versus Dough original

Yields: About 10-12 servings

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 green pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
7 eggs, divided
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 (10 oz) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and thoroughly drained
1 cup ricotta cheese
2 teaspoons dried basil
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted OR cooking spray
1 (16 oz) twin-pack Athens Fillo Dough sheets

Directions:

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add ground turkey, mushrooms, green pepper and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until turkey is browned, about 10 minutes. Drain turkey mixture; return to skillet. Scramble 6 eggs in a bowl with some salt and pepper to taste and add to skillet along with the tomato and stir until eggs are set. Remove from heat; stir in 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine spinach, ricotta, dried basil, remaining egg, remaining 1/2 cup cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Lightly brush a 13-by-9-inch baking dish with butter (or spray with cooking spray). Layer 10 sheets of fillo dough into prepared pan, brushing each sheet with butter (or spraying with cooking spray). Top with half of the turkey mixture. Layer with another 10 sheets of butter-brushed fillo dough; top with ricotta mixture. Layer another 5 sheets of butter-brushed fillo dough and top with remaining turkey mixture. Top with 5 more sheets of butter-brushed fillo dough.

At this point, you can either cover the casserole and place it in the fridge overnight, or you can bake it right away. If storing overnight, take casserole out of the fridge 15 minutes before baking. Heat oven to 350 degrees F and bake 50 minutes to 1 hour or until golden and warmed through. If baking right away, heat oven to 350 degrees F and bake 40-50 minutes or until golden. Slice into squares and serve warm.

Disclosure: I received compensation from Athens Foods for recipe development purposes. All opinions are my own. For more Athens Foods recipes, click here.