Christmas Morning Breakfast

With our growing family, we’ve started to think about what Christmas traditions we want to hold in our home – discussing everything from the Elf on the Shelf, Advent calendars, to prayers before tearing open presents on Christmas morning.  One thing we were sure we wanted to continue is our Christmas morning breakfast tradition!  I love that these recipes can be prepped on Christmas Eve, so you can relax with loved ones and a great cup of coffee while they bake up in your oven!  They are also perfect when entertaining extended family.

Christmas Morning Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients:

Filling:
1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp butter, melted

Dough:
2 ½ cups flour
¼ cup sugar
1 ½  tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp sea salt
1 cup milk
5 tbsp butter, melted

Icing:
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar

4 tbsp milk

Directions:

The night before:

1.     Mix together the filling ingredients. 

2.     In another bowl, combine the dry ingredients for the dough (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt). Combine the milk and butter, and then stir into the dry ingredients until just combined.

3.     On a lightly floured surface, take half of the dough and roll out into a rectangle.  Sprinkle half of the filling mixture on top, and then press it into the dough leaving 1/4″ border.  Roll up and cut into 8 slices. Repeat with the other dough half.

4.     Place the slices in a glass 8x8” pan sprayed lightly with non-stick cooking spray.  Refrigerate until ready to bake

Christmas Morning:

5.     Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Bake cinnamon rolls until the tops are golden brown, about 15 minutes.

6.     While the rolls are baking, make the icing.  Beat the softened cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth.  Add the milk until you achieve the desired consistency, 1 tbsp at a time.

7.      When rolls have cooled slightly but are still warm, drizzle on the icing and serve immediately.

Everything Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients:

1 package spicy sausage

1 sweet onion, chopped

2 cups mushrooms, roughly chopped

1 green pepper, diced

4 cups frozen shredded hash brown potatoes, thawed

9 eggs, beaten

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

1 ½ cups cottage cheese

1 ¼ cups swiss cheese, shredded

Directions:

The night before:

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook the sausage, onion, green pepper and mushrooms until sausage is browned and cooked through.  Drain.  Transfer to a large bowl. 
2. Stir the potatoes, eggs, cheddar, cottage cheese, and swiss into the bowl with the sausage.  Pour mixture into lightly greased 9X13 baking dish.  Refrigerate until ready to bake.

Christmas Morning:

3.     Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

4.      Bake in preheated oven until eggs are set and cheese is melted, about 45 to 50 minutes.  Let stand 10 minutes before cutting and serving.