For a savory one anything goes really. For sausage and bacon I would do onions and mushrooms and cheese of some sort. But of those, I would eliminate the mushrooms if they would take more work that you want to so. Maybe jalapenos or bell peppers depending on who would be eating it. I wouldn't add any further spices to it.

Thank-you! I know this kind of thing is similar to things you do. I have a couple of light green bell peppers. They might make a nice crunch. I could get the cheap sliced mushrooms.

Can you roast the mushrooms to dry them out a bit? If you don’t want to purchase new ingredients, thyme or rosemary both seem appropriate flavorwise. Anything else lurking in your pantry? A breakfast bread pudding with bacon or sausage is aka a strata, yes?

whatever it is called, I’m sure you will create something yummy.

My mother used to serve scrapple with syrup. i loved the combo of black pepper and sweet.

I've never made strata, which is basically a savory bread pudding, but I have collected several recipes for it over the years. You might look up the method for that and go from there. I like simple stuff like cheese, green onions and fresh herbs.

I would saute the onions and then simmer them in the milk along with a bouquet garni of herbs to evenly distribute the flavours, Remove the bouquet garni but leave in the onions when blending the milk with the other ingredients.

plllog, this may be way off what you’re asking, but I would often make something called ”Tahoe Brunch” for Christmas morning. Got the recipe years ago from the California Heritage Cookbook. Anyway, I copied this from a caterer and was wondering if it could help using any of your preferred adjustments. This looks much longer/involved than it really is!

Master Recipe for a Strata (AKA Tahoe Brunch or Savory Bread Pudding)

You can invent any combination of ingredients for the filling, according to your taste, or according to what leftovers you have in the refrigerator (or choose from the ones listed below). Make it simple or complex, homey or elegant. The best part is that the whole thing can be assembled the day before, and refrigerated until you're ready to bake it. This makes a 2 quart casserole or a 9X13 baking dish or 8 individual (8-ounce) baking dishes.

The Bread:
9 ounces, or 12 thick slices (about 3/4-inch thick)
Crust may be on or trimmed off - as you prefer
Any interesting bread will do: egg, sourdough, olive, wheat, etc.
Bread should be slightly stale OR may be sliced and baked at 300 degrees until lightly browned - about 15 minutes to oven-dry

The Custard:
3 cups milk (or cream, sour cream or creme fraiche - or combination)
6 whole eggs OR 3 whole eggs and 6 egg yolks
Salt, pepper
Fresh or dried herbs of choice
Pinch, nutmeg (if cheese is used in filling)
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
OPTIONAL: an additional 1/4-1/2 cup liquid such as wine or flavorful broth, whichever compliments the recipe.

The Filling:
Choose any combination of the following (or other) filling ingredients:
Onions - up to 2 cups, thin sliced or chopped - sauteed until soft
Garlic - up to 4 cloves, sauteed with onions (or may be roasted)
Mushrooms - up to 1 1/2 pounds, sliced and sauteed
Cheese - up to 1 pound, grated - may be mixture of more than one kind
Bacon - up to 8 slices, cooked and crumbled
Ham or cooked sausage - up to 1 1/2 pounds, sliced or chopped OR corned beef, pastrami, cooked seafood, cooked poultry or meat

The Method:
Generously butter a 2-quart ovenproof casserole, or a 9X13 baking dish, or 8 individual oven-proof dishes. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Slice the bread into thick (about 3/4”) slices. (If oven drying, place slices on a cookie sheet, in a 300 degree oven until lightly browned, as directed above, and allow to cool.)

Butter the bread slices on one side, and cut each into 4 quarters.

Arrange half the bread in the bottom of the baking dish.

Sprinkle one half of the filling ingredients of your choice over the bread.

Arrange the remaining bread over the first half of the filling ingredients, then top with the remaining filling ingredients. (Note: If you are using cheese, end the layering with a cheese layer, for attractive presentation.)

Whisk the custard ingredients together in a mixing bowl, and pour custard mixture over the bread and filling layers in the baking dish. Allow to stand for at least 30 minutes to allow custard to soak into the bread.

NOTE: Mixture may be baked immediately (after 30 minutes standing), or may be refrigerated for several hours or overnight before baking.

Bake at 325 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes (10 minutes less for individual baking dishes) or until puffed and golden (a knife, inserted near the center of the casserole should come out clean).

Allow the finished strata to stand for 15-20 minutes before serving.

Garnish with fresh chopped parsley. Serve hot - or at room temperature.

May be served from baking dish, or unmolded onto a serving platter.

May be reheated in hot oven or microwave.

Thanks, Chloebud! That's pretty much what I was talking about, but the buttered sliced bread makes it a version of what's called "bread and butter pudding", IIRC. Strata are, as the name implies, casseroles built in layers. What I have is a bunch of torn up breadish stuff, free versions of, um, cubes. :) (Makes me think of the squiggle who first attracted the dot's attention, but even a squiggle can be delicious, even if not a good long term match. One of my favorite books, but only in the original short and long version. The more square version is a travesty!) So, this kind is all mixed up togeher with little bits of this and that.

I've made a lot of bread puddings both sweet and savory. The very bestest one had a yeasted poppy seed hobo cake which was a leaden failure as a cake (though it did rise--I think it developed too much gluten). It was amazing in the pudding and completly irreproducible. The worst was savory using up leftovers from a catered party. There were, along with more regular bread, some very bready, not very sweet doughnut holes which had more sugar in them than perceived by eating straight and stale. The sugar asserted itself in the dish, and wasn't great with the smoke turkey, etc. Not awful, but the actual doughnut holes were too much after a couple. Lesson learned there. :)

Colleen, that sounds like a great technique. I've done that in other contexts, but hadn't thought of it for bread pudding.

Carol, green onions are a great idea! I had nixed spring onions because they're too sharp, but I have some little scallions that need using.

Lisa, I have to get some groceries anyway. I was just balking at putting a lot of money into a use-it-up dish. I think I will do the sliced mushrooms and sauté them the way I learned from Julia for quiche.

So I think the mushrooms and green onions have it. Maybe some cheddar. Or...I could do small dices of cheddar just on top to make melty little pools of yummy grease. :) That sounds even better.

Thanks, Everybody!!

Good news--I turned the freezer back on, after it had sat open for 24 hours, at about noon, and by 5:00 it was down to 40 degrees.

They didn't have the cheap mushrooms. I'm not spending $20 on something that’s half water for a minor role in a use it up casserole. I could try the scallions and an Anaheim pepper, both cut very small. That sounds tasty. ETA: I have a maitake. It's not enough, but I can justify it because it'll free up some fridge room, and I'm to busy cooking the freezer stuff that I can't use it as intended. I'm not sure it'll taste like much with the rest, but it'll look nice...

Dang - that's a huge amount!

It's a big freezer!

ETA: 14 two portion containers, plus what we ate today and the geometric scraps thereof.

Huge amount, for sure! Nicely done!!!

Wow! What an amazing production. Here’s hoping you have no more refrigeration issues.

Now I will dream of a pretzel bun savory casserole until I get to eat one. This is how food cravings get started I think.