Foodie Friday...or...Easter Brunch

Welcome to Foodie Friday with our multi-talented hostess, our dear Gollum at Designs by Gollum! Be sure to visit her beautiful blog to see what she has cooking and to see a list of this week's participants!
We have had several beautiful days of warm, sunny weather which have me longing for Spring and planning for Easter! Yesterday, I presented my Easter tablescape and today I am showing you the brunch that goes with it!

There will be four of us, so it is a simple menu, but a favorite with my family:

Country Grits and Sausage Casserole

Fresh fruit

Southern style biscuits

Orange juice

Coffee

First a word about the biscuits...I venture to say that there is an entire generation of Southern cooks who cannot make the first biscuit because of these...Pillsbury Grands! Southern Style Biscuits. Oprah even featured them on her Favorite Things show several years ago! I know they are waaaay better than mine...and no mess to clean up! I am sure that you dyed-in-the-wool Southern cooks are cringing, but for a lazy person like me, they are a godsend!

And here is the casserole! It came from Southern Living magazine's My Recipes website and those of you who are familiar with it know that means it is automatically good! I made only half of the recipe because there will only be four of us. The full recipe serves ten.

Country Sausage and Grits Casserole
Ingredients2 pounds mild ground pork sausage
4 cups water
1 1/4 cups quick-cooking grits, uncooked
4 cups (1 pound) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
Paprika
Garnish: fresh parsley sprigs
PreparationBrown sausage in a large skillet, stirring until it crumbles. Drain well, and set aside.
Bring water to a boil in a large saucepan, and stir in grits. Return to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; add cheese and next 3 ingredients, stirring until cheese melts. Stir in sausage and eggs.
Spoon mixture into a lightly greased 13" x 9" x 2" baking dish; sprinkle with paprika. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 1 hour or until golden and heated. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Garnish, if desired.
Make-Ahead: Prepare grits mixture as directed above, but do not bake. Cover and chill overnight. Remove from refrigerator; let stand, covered 30 minutes. Uncover and bake as directed.

Serves ten.

For those of you who are not fans of grits, my son-in-law loves this casserole and he doesn't usually like grits! What I like most about the recipe, other than it's delicious, is the fact that you can make it ahead of time and then just pull it out and cook it when you need it! I also love it on a cold winter night when my family has what we call breakfast for supper!

And there you have it...my simple Easter brunch! Be sure to visit Gollum to see one of her beautifully prepared dishes and to find the list of the other participants!