• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Kudos Kitchen by Renee

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipe Index
  • About
  • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipe Index
    • About
    • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Home » Ethnic Inspired Recipes » Italian-Inspired Recipes

    Published: Nov 17, 2014 · Modified: May 16, 2024 by Renée · This post may contain affiliate links · 13 Comments

    Lasagna Strata with Italian Sausage

    Inspired by my love of lasagna and my love of strata, I came up with this Lasagna Strata. Layers of Italian bread, Italian sausage, grape tomatoes, and cheese come together nicely with, what else? Eggs!! Sounds weird, and tastes great!

    Lasagna Strata. Layers of bread, tomatoes, cheeses, Italian Sausage and eggs.

    *Disclaimer - This recipe was originally published in 2014. I'm working hard to update all my older recipes with recipe cards, new photos, and additional recipe information. But, getting to all of them will take time. Please bear with me. In the meantime let me assure you that this recipe is still a winner and one I'm sure you'll be well pleased with when you make it at home.



    I had an idea to make this Lasagna Strata but wasn't sure how it would turn out. Either it would be a giant disaster or it would be something unusual and tasty. Time would tell, and I was up for the challenge of discovery.


    I browned, sliced, whisked, and layered. Before long I was ready to bake, so I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. As happens, the strata puffed nicely in the oven and deflated a little once removed and allowed to cool. It smelled amazing as it baked, so I was pretty pleased with how my experiment was turning out so far, but as we all know, the real test is in the taste.

    A colorful Lasagna Strata in a casserole dish with fresh basil, tomatoes, and sausage.

    I started the Lasagna Strata early in the morning because I knew it needed to sit in the refrigerator for several hours before baking so the bread could soak up all the eggs and flavors. By the time I stuck it in the oven, it was early afternoon. The baking took nearly 2 hours (to set the eggs) and by the time it was ready to come out of the oven I was completely famished and ready to eat. Not so fast. It wasn't nearly dinner time so I allowed the strata to cool slightly, took it outside for photos (curses to the wintertime change), and then popped it back in the fridge until it was time to reheat it for dinner. Yes, being a food blogger is a strange and wonderful thing. LOL

    Once sufficiently cooled, but still hot enough to enjoy, the Lasagna Strata served up nicely. The cheese layer had pretty much melded into the egg and bread so the layers were pretty much undetectable, but you definitely could taste that they were in there.

    Lasagna Strata. Layers of bread, tomatoes, cheeses, Italian Sausage and eggs combine in this tasty and unique dish inspired by traditional pasta lasagna.

    I didn't think the combination of tomato sauce and eggs would be very appetizing so that's why I went with the grape tomatoes instead, and I'm glad I did. I think they look pretty all dotted on top of the strata and the layer of grape tomatoes on the bottom of the casserole dish provided an anti-stick surface once they baked and let off their liquid.

    A colorful serving Lasagna Strata in a casserole dish with fresh basil, tomatoes, and sausage.

    Lasagna Strata can be served as a breakfast or brunch (just make sure you assemble it the night before you plan on serving it), or you can serve it for a hearty dinner as I did. Of course, you can make it meat-free as well but for my family of carnivores, I had to add Italian sausage into the mix with something that had the name lasagna in the title. 🙂

     

    LASAGNA STRATA WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE   {PRINT THIS RECIPE}
    Serves: 10-12      Prep Time:  15 minutes      Bake Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

    2 pounds of mild Italian sausage
    ¾ teaspoon dried basil leaves, divided
    ¾ teaspoon dried oregano, divided
    2 pints grape (or cherry) tomatoes, halved and divided
    8 - 16 slices of Italian bread, ½" thick, divided
    1 cup ricotta
    1 cup cottage cheese
    2 cloves garlic, minced
    1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
    8-10 fresh basil leaves, torn and divided
    1 teaspoon salt, divided
    ½ teaspoon pepper, divided
    12 large eggs
    1 cup milk
    ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

    -Brown the sausage in a large pot over medium/high heat. Stir in ¼ teaspoon basil and ¼ teaspoon oregano. Remove once browned and set aside.
    -Place 1 pint of the sliced grape tomatoes into the bottom of a 3-quart casserole dish that's been sprayed with cooking spray.
    -Top the sliced tomatoes with 8 slices of the bread, arranging to fit the dish.
    -In a medium bowl, stir together the ricotta and cottage cheeses. Stir in the garlic.
    -Spoon and spread half of the cheese mixture over the bread slices.
    -Sprinkle half of the mozzarella cheese over the ricotta mixture and top with half of the torn basil leaves.
    -Layer in half of the browned sausage and more sliced tomatoes.
    -In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
    -Pour half of the egg mixture over the sausage/bread layers and repeat with an additional layer of bread, ricotta, sausage, and eggs.
    -Top the strata with the remaining sliced tomatoes, mozzarella, and Parmesan.
    -Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight if you're serving it for breakfast or brunch.
    -Bring the strata to room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.
    -Sprinkle the top with additional dried basil and oregano.
    -Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
    -Bake the strata uncovered for 1 hour 25 minutes, and then cover and continue baking for 40 additional minutes until the center is set.
    -Cool about 20 minutes before serving.
    -Serve hot.
    _______________________________________________________________________________________________

    Brown the sausage along with dried oregano and dried basil. Set aside. Place half the tomatoes in the bottom of a 3-quart baking dish. Top with sliced Italian bread.

    Mix together the ricotta and cottage cheese. Spread over the bread slices and top with half of the mozzarella cheese, half of the torn fresh basil leaves, and the browned sausage.

    Save this for later.

    We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!

    Email forwarding service for saving information.

    Whisk the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper and pour half evenly over the contents of the casserole dish. Repeat with an additional layer of bread, ricotta and cottage cheese, sausage, and eggs. Top with additional mozzarella and Parmesan.

    Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (or overnight). Bake the strata in a preheated oven for 1 hour 25 minutes and then cover and continue baking until the center is set. Allow the strata to cool for about 20 minutes and then spoon on plates and serve hot.

    Lasagna Strata. Layers of bread, tomatoes, cheeses, Italian Sausage and eggs combine in this tasty and unique dish inspired by traditional pasta lasagna.
     
     

    More Italian-Inspired Recipes

    • Four Italian Stuffed Bell Peppers in a red casserole dish topped with cheese.
      Italian Stuffed Bell Peppers
    • A stack of Amaretto Coconut Biscotti on a red and white polka dot plate and the cookies are drizzled with caramel.
      Amaretto Coconut Biscotti Cookies
    • A delicious serving of French Spaghetti in a white bowl with a fork.
      French Spaghetti with Red Wine
    • A pretty Caprese salad with zucchini and burrata on a square decorative platter.
      Caprese Salad with Zucchini, Prosciutto and Burrata

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Please tell me what you think... Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




      By submitting this comment you agree to share your name, email address, website and IP address with Kudos Kitchen by Renee. This information will not be used for any purpose other than enabling you to post a comment. *

    1. Sarah Walker Caron (Sarah's Cucina Bella) says

      December 05, 2014 at 7:25 pm

      That looks fantastic! What a great, fresh take on lasagna. I want to dig right in.

      Reply
    2. Anita says

      November 20, 2014 at 5:29 pm

      Isn't it great when an experiment works out? I'm kind of in love with strata and mixing with lasagna is taking it to the next level!

      Reply
    3. Savory Experiments says

      November 19, 2014 at 11:07 pm

      Can we just discuss that my family would SWOON over this! Totally going to try this soon!

      Reply
    4. Aly ~ Cooking In Stilettos says

      November 19, 2014 at 11:33 pm

      OMG this is utter heaven - Renee - you really outdid yourself! This recipe is so being made!

      Reply
    5. Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez says

      November 19, 2014 at 12:43 pm

      Yes, I agree - those tomatoes look gorgeous on the top! This looks hearty, satisfying, and insanely delicious Renee.

      Reply
    6. Erin Dee says

      November 19, 2014 at 11:18 am

      I had never heard of strata before. It looks MAGICAL. Seriously.

      Reply
    7. Susan says

      November 19, 2014 at 1:10 pm

      This sounds amazing and ricotta soaked bread is right up my alley!

      Reply
    8. Nancy Piran says

      November 19, 2014 at 2:31 am

      I'm glad you combined these two dishes because it looks amazing!

      Reply
    9. Souffle Bombay says

      November 19, 2014 at 12:40 am

      I am digging this colorful dish! Great idea!!

      Reply
    10. Lana @ Never Enough Thyme says

      November 19, 2014 at 2:51 am

      Yum! I have a ham and cheese strata recipe that is our traditional Christmas morning brunch. This one sounds so good and different! Love it.

      Reply
    11. Paula Jones says

      November 18, 2014 at 7:40 pm

      Oh wowzers! I'll take two slices please.

      Reply
    12. Brenda@SugarFreeMom says

      November 18, 2014 at 8:01 pm

      The colors of the tomatoes and basil is gorgeous and the elf on a shelf glass is so cute!

      Reply
    13. Liz Berg says

      November 18, 2014 at 1:59 am

      Oh, yeah! I'd eat this any time of the day. It sounds amazing!!!

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Renee of Kudos Kitchen by Renee holding a cast iron skillet cornbread.

    Hi, I'm Renee! I've been a passionate home cook for over 40 years. I specialize in easy-to-make comfort food dishes from appetizers to desserts and everything in between.

    More →

    Fast and Easy Dinners

    • A salsa sloppy joe sandwich in a small cast iron skillet with avocado slices and a sesame seed bun.
      Salsa Sloppy Joes
    • A stack of Burrito Dogs with some ketchup and mustard in the background.
      Burrito Dogs (aka Dogs in a Blanket)
    • Four Caprese Sausage Sandwiches on a platter with tomatoes and fresh basil.
      Caprese Sausage Sandwich
    • A stack to Burgerdillas on a wooden cutting board.
      Burgerdillas - Burgers in Tortillas

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Media Kit

    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. When I find a great product or service I like to share it with my readers. For additional information please view my privacy policy.

    Copyright © 2025 Kudos Kitchen by Renee

    1 shares
    • Pinterest
    • Facebook
    • Email
    • Save
    • Flipboard
    • Threads
    • Messenger
    • Bluesky