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This easy, flavorful gluten free breakfast casserole is made with eggs, milk, vegetables, and smokey meat, plus pancake mix and hash browns for structure.
I make this classic dish the night before a special brunch like Mother's Day, then bake it before everyone arrives. The perfect canvas for your family's favorite meats and vegetables!
“This breakfast casserole is really good! My family loves it. We put some maple syrup on top after baked and it was delicious!”
“This is a great base, we’ve made it with both home made and store bought hash browns. We usually add some leftover meat and/or veggies.”
my take
Nicole's Recipe Notes
- Texture: Similar to gluten free quiche, but thicker and more satisfying with added hash browns and pancake mix. And no crust to worry about!
- Flavor: Lots of savory depth of flavor from cooked mushrooms, onions, and pancetta.
- Quick & easy: Just sauté the vegetables, let them cool, then mix everything together and bake fully in about 30 minutes.
- Make ahead: Combine everything, refrigerate until morning and then bake fresh.
- Versatile: Replace the mushrooms with more meat, the meat with more vegetables, and add savory leftovers. Serve with a salad for dinner, or as breakfast or brunch.
Recipe ingredients
- Gluten free pancake mix: Adds structure to the casserole. I use my homemade dry gluten free pancakes mix, but if you can use your favorite packaged brand.
- Eggs: Provide structure, flavor, rise, and moisture.
- Milk: Adds moisture and richness.
- Hash browns: Help add structure and creaminess.
- Cheddar cheese: Adds a ton of flavor and helps bind the whole casserole together.
- Pancetta: Adds smoky flavor and a bit of texture.
- Onion: Adds depth of flavor.
- Mushrooms: Add texture and that savory umami flavor.
- Olive oil: Adds richness and helps you sauté the vegetables.
- Salt: Brightens the other flavors.
How to make a gluten free breakfast casserole
First, sauté cubed pancetta or chopped bacon until it's cooked through and has released its fat. Remove it from the pan and set it aside to cool. Cook the onions and mushrooms in the rendered fat and some olive oil and salt until soft, then set aside to cool.
Whisk 3 eggs, 1 1/4 cups milk, and pancake mix until smooth in a large mixing bowl. Mix in hash brown potatoes and about 7 of 8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese.
Mix the cooked and cooled pancetta, mushrooms, and onions into the egg mixture, then transfer to a greased casserole dish.
Sprinkle the rest of the shredded cheddar cheese on top, and bake at 375°F for about 30 minutes or until firm to the touch and browned on top.
Ingredient substitutions
Hash browns
For frozen hash browns, I usually buy Alexia or Ore Ida brand since they're reliably gluten free. You can also replace the hash browns with Ore Ida tater tots, or try cauliflower rice.
Dairy free
Replace the dairy milk with your favorite unsweetened unflavored nondairy milk, as long as it has some fat. I like almond milk best. For the cheese, my favorite dairy free cheese brands are Daiya, Violife, Follow Your Heart, and So Delicious, like the ones we discuss in our dairy free mac and cheese. Cheddar-style shreds have the most flavor and tend to melt the best.
Egg free
I don't know that an egg replacer would work in this recipe, but I think Just Eggs plant based egg replacer, found in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, is worth a try.
Pancake mix
I prefer to use my homemade gf pancake mix as the base of this recipe since I always have that mix on hand. If there's a store-bought gluten free pancake mix you like, use that.
Meat
Cook bulk sausage instead of bacon or pancetta or add leftover ham. The meat is for flavor, bulk, and rendered fat. You can also skip the meat altogether, and cook more vegetables with the mushrooms in olive oil, like diced sweet peppers. Just drain any excess liquid after cooking so your casserole isn't watery.
Vegetables
You can replace the mushrooms with any other sautéed vegetable, like diced sweet peppers or carrots. The yellow onion could be shallots or leeks instead.
Cheese
I like to use sharp cheddar cheese for its strong flavor, but you can use any semi-hard cheese you like. Other good choices are Gouda, Gruyère, Havarti, Monterey Jack, and Colby cheeses.
My Pro Tip
Expert Tips
Shred your own cheese for the top
Pre-shredded cheese works great in this recipe. But if you go through the trouble of shredding your own, especially for sprinkling on top, it melts and browns better for extra flavor.
Use less or more pancake mix
If you're using my homemade gluten free pancake mix, the dry mix makes 1 5/8 cups (a couple tablespoons over 1 1/2 cups). It makes a slightly thicker casserole that way, but I've also made this recipe with as little as 1 1/4 cups (200 grams) pancake mix, and it still works great.
Make your own hash browns
If you're having trouble finding frozen hash browns or diced potatoes that are safely gluten free, make your own. Wash, dry, and pierce about 2 pounds of Idaho potatoes. Microwave then for about 2 minutes on high power or until a fork or knife pierces into the center readily, but not easily. Cool briefly, then peel and shred on a box grater.
Gluten Free Breakfast Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 ounces cubed pancetta or diced bacon
- 2 tablespoons (28 g) extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and diced
- 8 ounces white or baby bella mushrooms, sliced
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ¼ cups (10 fluid ounces) whole milk, at room temperature
- 3 (150 g (weighed out of shell)) eggs, at room temperature
- 1 ⅝ cups (230 g) gluten free pancake mix, (See Recipe Notes)
- 2 cups (240 g) frozen hash brown potatoes, (See Recipe Notes)
- 8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375°F. Grease a 9-inch x 12-inch baking dish and set it aside. You can use an oval dish, which has less volume, and your casserole will be a little thicker.
- In a medium, heavy-bottom sauté pan, cook the cubed pancetta or diced bacon over medium-high heat until the fat is rendered and the meat is cooked through (about 3 minutes).
- Remove the cooked meat from the pan, leaving behind any rendered fat. If you’ve used cubed pancetta, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan. If bacon, add just 1 tablespoon of oil.
- Add the diced onion, sliced mushrooms and salt to the pan, and stir to combine.
- Cover the pan and cook until the onions are translucent and the mushrooms are tender (about 5 minutes). Remove the cooked vegetables and set them aside to cool until no longer hot to the touch.
- In a large bowl, place the milk and eggs, and whisk to combine well. Add the dry pancake mix and whisk until smooth.
- Add the hash brown potatoes and about 6 ounces of the shredded cheese, and mix to combine.
- Add the cooked and cooled pancetta or bacon, onion and mushrooms. Mix gently to combine.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Scatter the remaining shredded cheese evenly on top.
Make Ahead Option
- At this point, the dish can be covered tightly with plastic wrap and stored in the refrigerator overnight. Uncover and allow to sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes before baking the next morning.
Bake
- Place the baking dish in the center of the preheated oven and bake until lightly golden brown on top, and firm to the touch (about 30 minutes).
- Remove from the oven and allow to set for 5 minutes before slicing and serving warm.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
make ahead/leftovers
Storage instructions
You can store the baked and cooled casserole in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. You can eat the leftovers cold or warm them up in the microwave or oven.
You can also make the casserole ahead of time. Prepare the entire dish, leave it in the casserole dish in the refrigerator overnight, then bake it the next day.
You can also freeze it raw. Keep it wrapped up tightly in the freezer. Just be sure that your hash browns are still frozen, since thawed and refrozen food tends to get icy and develop freezer burn.
FAQs
Yes, some hash browns are gluten free, but if you're going for store-bought ones, make sure you check the ingredients or that they're labeled gluten free. Sometimes, wheat flour is used to keep the potatoes from sticking to one another.
Yes, you can use frozen hash brown potatoes in place of hash browns (if you can find them; they tend to be difficult to find) or even frozen tater tots.
This breakfast casserole is really good! My family loves it. We put some maple syrup on top after baked and it was delicious!
So great to hear, Janice! Maple syrup is a great idea. Thanks for sharing that!
This is a great base, we’ve made it with both home made and store bought hash browns. We usually add some leftover meat and/or veggies as suggested above.
Great ideas all around!