Breakfast Tortilla Strata

Sitting down to a relaxing weekend breakfast is something I cherish. I am not sure if it is because I have such limited time for breakfast during the week, or if it is the nostalgia of Sunday morning breakfasts with my family. Dad would make the bacon, mom would make the eggs, they would toast up English muffins and we would all share breakfast together at the table…those were truly special times at the Smets house. Lately I have been looking for make-ahead breakfasts so that I can relax with a cup of coffee in front of the fire with Terry and the pups instead of making a mess in the kitchen. While I was reading the “Hits and Misses” post on the Cooking Light Bulletin Board I found that nylucy4 had rated Cooking Lights Breakfast Tortilla Strata, posted by Bobmark, as excellent. Terry and I prefer to start off our day with a healthy breakfast, and CL rarely lets us down. On Saturday, while all the boys were at the UCLA vs USC football game, I prepared this meal so that we could enjoy it Sunday morning…I figured Terry might be moving a little slow…

Breakfast Tortilla Strata

Adapted from Cooking Light


Serving Size : 6



Ingredients

1 cup bottled salsa

1 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained

10 (6 inch) corn tortillas, cut in 1-inch strips

cooking spray

1 cup (4 ounces) preshredded reduced-fat Mexicanblend or Monterey Jack cheese, divided

1 cup low-fat sour cream

1 cup fat-free milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

2 large egg whites

1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions



Directions

Combine salsa and beans in a bowl.



Place 1/3 of the tortills strips in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Top with 1/3 cup cheese and about 1 cup salsa mixture.



Repeat procedure with 1/3 of tortilla strips, 1/3 cup cheese, and remaining salsa mixture; top with remaining tortilla strips.



Combine sour cream and next 4 ingredients (sour cream through egg whites); stir with a whisk. Stir in onions. Pour over tortilla strips; sprinkle with 1/3 cup cheese.



Cover and chill 8 hours or overnight.



Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Remove dish from refrigerator. Let stand at room temperature 10 minutes. Cover and bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes or until lightly browned.



292 cal, 9.2g fat, 17.7g pro, 36.5g carb, 93mg chol, 755mg sod.

Ingredients.



Black beans, after being rinsed with cold water in a strainer.

The combined rinsed black beans and salsa mixture.

Tortillas, cut into inch strips.

The first layer of tortillas, layed into an 11 by 7 inch pan coated with cooking spray.

The first layer of 1/3 cup cheese, sprinkled over the tortilla layer.

The first layer of the black bean and salsa mixture.

Two eggs, two egg whites, salt, sour cream and milk in a mixing bowl.

Whisked egg mixture.

1/4 cup of chopped green onion added to egg mixture.

Egg and green onion mixture poured over tortilla strips.

Breakfast Tortilla Strata covered before refrigerating for 8 hours to overnight.

Breakfast Tortilla Strata after refrigeration, sitting out for 10 minutes before baking.

Breakfast Tortilla Strata after baking at 350 for 20 minutes covered by tin foil.

Thank you to nylucy4 for reviewing this dish, if not for her, I wouldn’t have found my new favorite savory breakfast. The Breakfast Tortilla Strata is outstanding, I have never had an egg based breakfast dish without meat that was so satisfying. Terry didn’t even miss the meat, which was a concern of mine when choosing to try this recipe. Having just bought a huge package of flour tortillas, I subbed them for the corn. Besides that, the only change that I made was in the cooking time. Keep in mind that my oven runs cooler for some reason, but I had to cook this an additional ten minutes, uncovered, past the allotted time. This was sure worth the wait, the salsa adds a kick and the black beans round out the flavors. It is not too “eggy” which can throw me off. Kevin dropped by Sunday morning and was also a fan. Leftovers of Breakfast Tortilla Strata are just as good if not better than the dish right out of the oven. I urge you to try this meal, you will have a new wonderful option for Sunday morning breakfast!!

-Heather