Our 35 Best Christmas Morning Breakfast Ideas
We consider these special Christmas breakfast recipes a gift.
Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Ana Kelly
Family and guests look forward to Christmas morning breakfast almost as much as they do unwrapping presents. You probably already have your holiday main and side dish recipes ready to go. So now what to fix for Christmas morning without spending all day in the kitchen? You can still make it special with this lineup of delicious breakfast casseroles and breads, many with make-ahead options. While breakfast is baking, whip up a mug of cozy hot chocolate or blend a pitcher of festive cocktails for a mid-morning brunch.
Here are our favorite breakfast recipes for Christmas morning.
Pancake Casserole
If you want to serve pancakes for Christmas morning breakfast but don't want to spend the whole morning by the stove flipping them, this casserole is the ideal recipe. It can be made the night before and stored in the refrigerator overnight. then all you have to do is pop it in the oven on Christmas morning.
Sausage And Egg Casserole
A surprisingly short ingredient list comes together to create this casserole for a crowd. Plus, you can prepare the casserole and store it in the freezer for up to two months before baking. Just make sure to fully thaw if before baking on Christmas morning.
Chocolate Breakfast Wreath
This silky dough is a dream to work with, so even beginning bakers can make this beautiful wreath. The dough is rolled up jelly-roll fashion and formed into a wring. Cuts at 2-inch intervals expose the chocolately filling inside. If you prefer fruity breakfast pastries, we have instructions for making a cranberry-orange wreath instead.
Cinnamon Roll Casserole
Transform frozen cinnamon rolls into a crowd-friendly casserole with this recipe. It needs to be chilled for at least 4 and up to 24 hours before baking, so it should be prepared in advance.
Biscuits-and-Gravy Casserole
Using frozen biscuits helps this casserole come together with just 15 minutes of hands-on time. You'll then have plenty of time to spend with your family while the casserole bakes.
Stuffed Ham-and-Cheese Croissant Casserole
Reviewers agree that this recipe is a keeper that they'll make again and again. While the recipe is written with ham, you can also use bacon or sausage if your family prefers.
Stuffed Ham-and-Cheese Croissant Casserole
Christmas Morning Cinnamon Rolls
Nothing says Christmas like the smell of cinnamon wafting from the kitchen. This recipe, perfect for a holiday breakfast or brunch, can be made up through Step 6 and frozen for a month. When Christmas Day rolls around, bake and slather with Cream Cheese Icing.
Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole
Photographer: Jen Causey, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely, Food Stylist: Ana Kelly
Tater tots aren't just for dinner. Turn them into a Christmas morning breakfast that kids and adults will love. From start to finish, the whole casserole comes together in under an hour.
Cheese-And-Sausage Quiche
This savory quiche is sure to impress your holiday guests. We call for a frozen pie crust, but you can always make your own if preferred.
Pancake Bake with Cinnamon Streusel Recipe
Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Ana Kelly
Give pancake casserole a holiday-worthy upgrade with the addition of a cinnamon streusel. Not only does it add a sweetness to each bite, but it will also fill your kitchen with warm aromas while it bakes.
Baked Oatmeal with Apple, Cranberries, and Pecans
This make-ahead oatmeal loaded with spices, fruits, and nuts is a healthier take on all our favorite flavors from the holiday dessert table. The dish is slightly sweetened with brown sugar and seasoned with apple pie spice, baked until set, and topped with a sprinkling of dried cranberries. Your guests will feel wholesome and indulgent at the same time.
Sausage-Stuffed Honey Buns
If you happen to have any leftovers (and we seriously doubt it), these sweet honey buns make great treats for a late afternoon coffee break. Filled with caramelized bits of sausage melted together with honey and brown sugar, this recipe is like having a side of sausage with pancakes. Hang onto leftover Honey Glaze to drizzle on top when you serve.
Smoky Sausage-and-Grits Casserole
Grits are baked with smoked sausage, Cheddar cheese, and herbs and spices in a delicious and filling breakfast casserole. The dish can be assembled up to four days ahead and stored in the refrigerator. Let it stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.
Bacon-and-Cheddar Grits Quiche
Skip the pie crust and substitute grits for a Southern twist on quiche. Spread cheese to the edge of the grits crust to prevent any custard from seeping out while the quiche bakes. Bake up to two days ahead and chill.
Cheesy Sausage-and-Croissant Casserole
Why not combine all your breakfast favorites into one satisfying dish? The addition of Gruyère cheese elevates this recipe from good to great. You can use Swiss cheese, if you prefer.
Christmas Morning Coffee Cake
In our Christmas-Morning Coffee Cake, a crunchy, cinnamony streusel topping sits atop a soft, buttery cake. But this cake also offers a few surprises for Christmas morning. The recipe includes dried tart cherries folded right into the cake batter and roasted, salted pistachios, which grace the top of this cake.
Cheesy Grits Soufflé
This recipe turns a classic Southern dish into a light, fluffy soufflé for the ultimate holiday brunch. Feel free to substitute frozen corn kernels for fresh in this easy and delicious dish. Jalapeno peppers add a touch of heat.
Cranberry Eggnog Bread
This recipe makes good use of a half cup of leftover eggnog from your Christmas Eve festivities. Add dried cranberries, orange zest, and walnuts to a quick bread batter for a sweet and hearty breakfast treat. Serve alongside a plate of scrambled eggs and your holiday brunch is complete.
Overnight Eggnog-French Toast Casserole
Here's another Christmas morning recipe that brings all the flavor of the festive beverage into a sweet one-dish breakfast. When you wake up in the morning, simply pop the pre-made casserole into the oven and whip together the decadent maple syrup-bourbon sauce to accompany the dish. Sprinkle a light dusting of powder sugar over the sweetened layers of challah and you're ready to serve.
Sausage-Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole
This mixture of sausage, eggs, hash browns, and cheese will definitely feed a crowd. A package of frozen, pre-shredded hash browns makes the process easy. Sprinkle with parsley and chives for extra flavor.
Trisha Yearwood's Pecan Sticky Buns with Bacon Caramel
Trisha Yearwood takes sticky buns to another level with a decadent bacon-caramel sauce. First, puff pastry sheets are filled with a mixture of butter, cinnamon, bacon, and pecans. Then they are pressed over a layer of the bacon-caramel sauce in a muffin tin, which is baked until it bubbles. This recipe is the very definition of indulgent.
Eggs Benedict Casserole
This recipe is a simple and sophisticated way to achieve Eggs Benedict without all the hassle of poaching eggs and whisking hollandaise. The result is elegant twist on a breakfast casserole that is perfect for entertaining. Most of the prep happens ahead of time—all that's left to do the morning of is to bake the casserole and make your hollandaise.
Sausage Gravy Casserole with Cheddar-Cornmeal Biscuits
Is there anything more satisfying than sausage gravy and biscuits? This dish is made to be frozen but you can also bake and serve it immediately. The homemade biscuits are outstanding, but the recipe also offers a shortcut with store-bought biscuits.
Apple Cinnamon Bread
If there is anything that fills the kitchen with a comforting aroma more than apple pie, it is a loaf of fresh homemade yeast bread. Why not combine the two? This apple cinnamon bread is delicious sliced straight off the loaf, or try it toasted, smeared with butter, and sprinkled with flaky sea salt.
Gingerbread Muffins
Package the beloved holiday flavor of gingerbread in a breakfast muffin. Skip the sweet cream cheese frosting if that tips too far into the cupcake category (or add it later, when you serve the leftovers as dessert). Not to mention, a muffin is easy to carry in one hand while you distribute gifts with the other.
Leek and Mushroom Grits Frittata
This velvety rich dish blends cheesy grits, eggs, sausage, leeks and mushrooms into one delicious package. To get a head start on this recipe, prepare the grits a day in advance and refrigerate. Let them come to room temperature before adding to the egg mixture. Bake with a sprinkle of Parmesan on top until irresistibly golden brown.
Cherry-Pecan Swirl Bread
This looks so darn pretty and most definitely tastes good enough to serve for Christmas. A yeasty dough is filled with a sweet mixture of dried cherries and pecans, rolled up like a jelly roll, and sliced longways. Then the pieces are arranged side by side in a cast-iron pan in a wreathlike design.
Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread
As much fun to eat as it is to bake, each rich, buttery layer of Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread has a cap of crunchy, caramelized cinnamon sugar. When layering the dough rectangles, don't worry if they're not all exactly the same size or if you don't get them perfectly straight. This pull-apart bread is very forgiving and it just adds to the character.
Breakfast Enchiladas
Hector Manuel Sanchez
Prepare this one ahead of time so you can focus on the fun. Roll the sausage egg-mixture into tortillas, place in your baking dish, and refrigerate the night before. Then, all that's required the next morning is a quick bake, and breakfast will be served in no time.
Spicy Sausage-and-Cheddar Kolaches
Kolaches are beloved in Texas, but have Czech origins. Our savory spin on this classic Czech pastry is filled with a combo of smoky Conecuh sausage and sharp Cheddar cheese. Serve with coffee and a fruit salad on Christmas morning for a simple yet satisfying breakfast.
Cinnamon-Pecan Breakfast Bread Pudding
This custardy, sweet bread pudding is cooked for an hour in a slow-cooker. The active time for the recipe is only 12 minutes, but you'll want to prepare it the night before so the bread slices can absorb the flavors. Use the nicest loaf of French bread you can find—it's Christmas, after all.
Creamy Egg Strata
This strata recipe full of buttery, cheesy goodness that is also elegant enough for a holiday meal. Onions, garlic, and dry white wine deepen the flavors of the dish, which can be prepared up to 24 hours in advance. The rich smells from the oven are certain to draw your family back to the kitchen.
Bacon-Hash Brown Quiche
In this crowd-pleasing recipe, we replaced the usual pastry shell with a golden crust made from shredded potatoes and bacon. Blind-baking the crust is key to getting it crisp. We also gave the filling a flavorful boost with Gruyère cheese and a touch of Dijon mustard, and topped it with fresh asparagus.
Grits and Greens with Brown Butter Hot Sauce
Prepare a pan of buttery grits, roast greens in a cast-iron skillet, and combine. Then bake the cheesy, creamy mixture in the oven. You can substitute any hearty winter green you like, but don't skip the hot and tangy Brown Butter Hot Sauce—it makes the dish.
Christmas Morning Strata
This simple recipe pulls together sausage, bread, cheese, and eggs in one dish. You can assemble this breakfast strata the night before and refrigerate. Pop it in the oven while you brew a pot of coffee and assemble a fruit salad, and you won't miss a bit of the Christmas morning action with family.
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