Creamy, smoky gouda cheese grits and spicy sausage come together to make the perfect brunch or dinner in this Easy Sausage & Cheese Grits Quiche recipe.
If you love cheese grits, you’ll want to make my Baked Gouda Cheese Grits too!
Why You’ll Love Sausage & Cheese Grits Quiche
- It’s a complete meal recipe loaded with rich, savory flavor.
- It combines 2 southern brunch classics– cheese grits and quiche.
- You can serve it for breakfast and brunch topped with fruit (like in the photos) or for dinner topped with tomatoes and thinly sliced radishes.
- You can double this recipe and bake it in a 9×13 casserole dish to feed a crowd during the holidays or to take to a potluck.
- I’ve fine tuned this recipe to make it as quick and easy as possible. The two major shortcuts– quick cook grits and precooked sausage crumbles.
Ok, to be fair, this is more of a frittata than quiche. A frittata is a quiche without a crust. Or we could call it a crustless quiche.
And if you wanted it to have a crust, you certainly could use one of those refrigerated, roll out pie shells. It would be delish but an added step to the recipe. And that’s why I eliminated it.
And while we’re talking about ingredients, let’s talk about grits in quiche. Does it go? The answer is a definite yes. Adding a starch to your quiche is not unheard of, i.e. potatoes.
And my all-time favorite breakfast is a plate of scrambled eggs with side of sausage (or bacon), grits and fruit. Classic. So Sausage & Cheese Grits Quiche is nothing more than the best of breakfast in one amazing dish.
Not only that, it’s stunning- a showstopper at brunch and at showers. You’re going to love eating and serving this recipe.
Recipe Ingredients & Overview
I’ll walk through an overview of ingredients & steps in these next sections along with helpful tips!
Look for specifics at the end of the post in the recipe card.
- quick cook grits
- ground breakfast sausage (*recommended shortcut: pre-cooked sausage crumbles)
- large eggs
- gouda cheese
- cheddar cheese
- heavy cream
- butter
- chicken broth
- minced garlic
- dried chives
- salt & black pepper
- red pepper flakes
- arugula salad mix & fruit
Recipe Additions & Substitutions: If you don’t want to use the quick cook/5 minute grits, feel free to use the “old fashioned” grits. Just know they will take about 20-25 minutes to cook.
Half and Half cream can be used instead of heavy cream. I do not recommend milk, especially not skim milk.
Sharp cheddar cheese can be used in the grits instead of gouda.
Use 2 tablespoon of fresh chives instead of dried chives.
Any dark salad greens (like baby spinach) can be used to top the quiche instead of arugula.
How To Make Sausage & Cheese Grits Quiche
Make the Cheese Grits. In a small sauce pan on the stove top, bring chicken broth and garlic to a simmer over medium heat. Whisk in grits, making sure there are no lumps. Allow grits to simmer, whisking occasionally for 8 minutes or until they are very thick. Set aside to cool.
Whisk the Egg Mixture. If you need to brown sausage, brown it now. Otherwise, whisk together eggs, cream, cheddar cheese, chives, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.
Make the Quiche. Assemble quiche by filling the bottom of the pie plate with the sausage. Next, spoon dollops of cheese grits over the top of the sausage and use a rubber spatula to gently spread the grits out to the edge of the pie plate. Pour the egg mixture over the grits. Use the spatula to even out any places where the grits are sticking up over the top of the eggs.
Bake. Place in preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the quiche is puffed up and there is no jiggle in the middle. Remove from the oven and allow to cool 15 minutes before topping with arugula and fruit and slicing.
Pro Tips
- Always grate your own cheese for the quickest, smoothest melt.
- Wipe away over spray from the cooking spray from the top of your baking dish to keep it from browning all around the rim.
- Let your grits cook a little longer than the package directions call for. You want them to be stiff, even a bit stodgy so they make their own layer in this recipe.
- Don’t skimp on the cool time. It helps the ingredients set and will create better slices when you serve your Sausage & Cheese Grits Quiche.
Make Ahead, Storing and Freezing
Make the grits the day before. Store them covered in the fridge until you’r ready to assemble your sausage grits quiche. If you’re browning your own sausage, you can brown it the day before too.
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Heat individual servings in the microwave (but it’s yummy cold too).
Freeze baked quiche in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
More Breakfast Casseroles & Quiche Recipes
- Secret Ingredient Ham & Swiss Quiche
- BLT Quiche
- Sausage Mushroom Quiche
- Bacon & Egg Croissant Breakfast Casserole
- Overnight Breakfast Burrito Casserole
Sausage Cheese Grits Quiche
Ingredients
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ¼ teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ cup quick cook grits
- 1 tablespoon butter
- ⅓ cup shredded Gouda cheese
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ pound pre-cooked sausage crumbles
- 5 large eggs
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ⅓ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 1 tablespoon dried chives
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¾ cup arugula salad mix
- berries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉. Spray 9 inch, deep dish pie plate with non stick cooking spray and set aside.
- In a small sauce pan on the stove top, bring chicken broth and garlic to a simmer. Whisk in grits, making sure there are no lumps. Allow grits to simmer, whisking occasionally, for 8 minutes or until they are very thick. Set aside to cool.
- If you need to brown sausage, brown it now. Otherwise, whisk together eggs, cream, cheddar cheese, chives, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.
- Assemble quiche by filling the bottom of the pie plate with the sausage. Next, spoon dollops of cheese grits over the top of the sausage and use a rubber spatula to gently spread the grits out to the edge of the pie plate. Pour egg mixture over the grits. Use the spatula to even out any places where the grits are sticking up over the top of the eggs.
- Place in preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the quiche is puffed up and there is no jiggle in the middle. Remove from the oven and allow to cool 15 minutes before topping with arugula and fruit and slicing.
Video
Notes
- Always grate your own cheese for the quickest, smoothest melt.
- Wipe away over spray from the cooking spray from the top of your baking dish to keep it from browning all around the rim.
- Let your grits cook a little longer than the package directions call for. You want them to be stiff, even a bit stodgy so they make their own layer in this recipe.
- Don’t skimp on the cool time. It helps the ingredients set and will create better slices when you serve your Sausage & Cheese Grits Quiche.
Nutrition
I can’t wait to make this for supper with hot buttered biscuits! Thanks for sharing!
Hi, Mary! Love it!! I am excited to hear what you think!
I doubled the recipe and made this for a breakfast at work this morning! Turned out fabulous! Everyone loved it! This will be a regular for me now!
Hey, Bobo! Oh, this makes my day! I am so glad you saw the tip about doubling and making in a 9×13. Perfect for taking and sharing like you did! Thank you!!