Pumpkin Cream Cheese Breakfast Casserole
We have a lot of variations of our Breakfast Bread Casserole (White Cloud Breakfast Casserole, Blueberry Ricotta Breakfast Casserole) But I think this is my favorite. While most internet recipes call for whole milk or heavy cream, this version is a low fat, high protein alternative that is also minimally sweet. Perfect for people to add their own maple syrup or whip cream afterwards if they desire.
Ingredients
- 9 Eggs (One egg will mix with the pumpkin later)
- 21 ounces French Bread ((Assuming a 14 ounce loaf, that was about 1½ loaves))
- 16 ounces Cottage Cheese (We used Good Culture Classic Simply Cottage Cheese Tub, 2% Milk Fat, 14 g Protein)
- 15 ounces Pumpkin
- 8 ounces neufchatel cheese or low fat cream cheese
- 2 tablespoons Brown Sugar
- 1 cup Fresh Cranberries
- 1 tablespoon Sugar (Optional)
Instructions
Break up your bread into small chunks either by tearing or cutting them into cubes. Place in a 13 x 9 lightly oiled roasting pan. In a blender add 8 of your eggs and the cottage cheese and process until whipped. Pour the batter (it will be thin, that's okay) over your bread mixture making sure each crumb is well coated.
Mix your cream cheese and canned pumpkin puree with one egg and 2 TBL of brown sugar in your blender until well combined and smooth. Spoon over your moistened bread. It's okay to have this dollop around and not necessarily cover the whole top. Toss rinsed cranberries with 1 TBL of sugar and sprinkle on top. Bake in a preheated 375° oven for 45 minutes or until cooked through and the top is slightly toasted. Serve warm as it is, or with a dusting of powder sugar or maple syrup if desired.