Finding it hard to find time to put a good breakfast on the table on Christmas morning? Here are some ideas for breakfast foods you can make ahead or overnight that will reduce your time in the kitchen on Christmas day.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.
So how about some inspiration for the breakfast on the biggest day of the year - Christmas.
Most of us find ourselves pretty busy on Christmas morning, unwrapping presents. Or having to travel somewhere later in the day. It can be hard to get the meal on the table.
But you can't just serve a bowl of cereal on Christmas, right?
We are here to help.
We have several ideas for foods you can make for breakfast on Christmas. These are all things that you can either make ahead and finished the morning or can be cooked overnight.
The ideas can be broken down into 3 categories - overnight yeast dough, make ahead casseroles, and overnight cooking.
Overnight Yeast Dough
Let it rise overnight with these make ahead, yeast breakfast ideas .
Yeast Waffles
Using the power of yeast you can make waffle batter the night before and have delicious waffles for breakfast with little work.
Instead of using baking soda and/or baking powder as a levener use yeast. I did this with my pumpkin waffles. I substituted 4 teaspoons of baking powder with 2 1 ¼ teaspoons of dry yeast.
It worked to perfection 🙂
How do Gingerbread Oat Waffles sound? Get the recipe at the bottom of this post.
Yeasty waffle batter can slowly rise overnight in the fridge. A slow rise will actually develop more flavor than a fast one. It's why breads that take 18 hours to make are so delicious.
When morning comes you just have to turn on the waffle iron and cook your waffles. Save you the time and mess of having to make the batter in the morning and you still get something better than store bought.
Another option is that you could cook your waffles the night or even a week before too. Just don't let them get too brown. Then freeze them. When morning arrives pop them in the toaster to heat up.
Cinnamon Rolls
Want to make cinnamon rolls, but don't want to have to make them the morning of? Or have to get up really early? Make your cinnamon rolls the night before, just stop before you allow the dough to rise in the pan.
Place the uncooked cinnamon rolls in your fridge covered with plastic wrap overnight. They will rise in the fridge but it will be a much slower process.
When morning comes all you need to do is turn on the oven and bake them.
This is actually what Alton Brown's recipe calls for. His recipe is one of the most popular on the internet.
Make Ahead Casseroles
Casseroles are one of the easiest things you can make ahead and then bake on Christmas morning. Pretty much any breakfast casserole can be prepared and baked the next day.
Our favorite is a Cheesy Grits Casserole. We just make the grits as normal. Add in cheese, we like Gruyere, then add in an egg. Cover and put in the fridge until morning. Let come to room temperature before baking.
You could add sausage, ham and/or bacon to make it more of a complete meal. If ya like spicy foods, use Chorizo.
A French Toast Bake or a Hash Brown Casserole would also work well as a make ahead, bake the next day.
Overnight Cooking
For even less work the morning of consider making something that cooks overnight. Oatmeal is the obvious and easiest choice.
To make oatmeal just combine 1 cup of old fashion oats with 3 cups of water. Place in your Crock Pot or slow cooker overnight and it will be ready in the morning.
No reason to make this boring old oatmeal. You can jazz it up for Christmas with these ideas:
- Use brown sugar and ground ginger to make a "gingerbread" flavored oatmeal. Or use molasses and add white sugar to taste.
- Add freshly rated nutmeg to the oats and serve it with leftover egg nog for a real indulgence.
- Serve with dried cranberries.
- Make "Wassail oatmeal" by adding diced apples, apple cider, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and orange zest
- Mix chia seeds with milk then add to the oatmeal. Great if you don't like your oatmeal to be too thin. It will give it a more pudding like texture.
Alternative "Oatmeal" Ideas
Here are some other ideas you can try that would be perfect in a slow cooker
- Use steel cut oats instead of old fashion oats.
- Bump up the nutrition of your oatmeal by adding some quinoa.
- Try a different grain all together like teff, buckwheat, spelt, millet or wheat berries
What do you like to eat for Christmas breakfast? Leave a comment below. Merry Christmas!
Now as promised, here is our recipe for Overnight Gingerbread Oat Waffles.
Overnight Gingerbread Oat Waffles
Ingredients
- 5.5 ounces old fashioned rolled oats
- 4 ounces all-purpose flour
- 3 TBSP pure cane sugar
- 1 ½ tsp instant dry yeast
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 3 large eggs beaten
- 2 ounces butter melted, cooled slightly
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk room temperature
- ½ cup molasses
Instructions
Making the Oat Flour
- Toast the oats in a frying pan set over medium heat. Stir ocassionally until toasted, you should be able to start smelling them slightly. Should take about 3 minutes.
- Remove oats from heat and allow to cool.
- Add the oats to your food processor. Process until they are the same consistency of your all-purpose flour. It should take no more than 3 minutes.
Making the Batter
- In a medium or large mixing bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, the homemade oat flour, sugar, ginger, cinnamon, and kosher salt.
- In a second mixing bowl, beat the eggs. Then slowly drizzle in the melted butter as you whisk it. Add in the buttermilk and molasses, thoroughly combine. Sprinkle the yeast on top.
- Add the wet ingredients on top of the dry ingredients. Using a wooden spoon, stir to just combine. Don't over mix. Any small lumps will work their way out when you cook them.
- Cover and allow the batter to rise in the fridge overnight.
Cooking the Waffles
- Preheat your oven to 200 degrees for keeping the cooked waffles warm.
- Using a ½ cup measuring cup, scoop the batter onto the waffle iron towards the center. Close the iron and cook until brown. Adjust the amount of batter you use depending if the first waffle filled the iron or not. Using a smaller amount if overflowing or using more if the waffle didn't completely fill the iron.
- Place the finished waffle into your oven, directly on the rack. Do not stack. This will keep your waffles hot and crispy.
Notes
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janet peters
Merry Christmas Eric, I make the night before, bacon, spinach, gryuere cheese with heavy cream and eggs for a decadent quiche. That and some fresh fruit...your waffles sound yummy!!
Eric Samuelson
Sounds really good. Thanks for sharing. Merry Christmas Janet.