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We have already decided this will be our special-day (often holiday) breakfast casserole FOREVER. It is THAT good. Paleo, Whole30 & AIP! — That means an egg-free, grain-free, dairy-free casserole! … that’s AMAZING! You, too, will love this AIP Apple, Pork and Bacon BREAKFAST CASSEROLE with Delicata Squash, and lovely sage and thyme.
AIP & Whole30 Breakfast Casserole: Egg-free and Dairy-free
In our grain-free, sugar-free family we have one egg-free child and one dairy-free child. Those big eggy, cheesy casseroles you see — They’re out, forever.
I made this casserole for all of my AIP and egg-free loved ones, but we (all of us, even those who can eat eggs and cheese) have been so blessed by it ourselves.
Yes, if it’s possible to be blessed by a casserole, we have been christened with Happiness, Contentment, and Pleasure, never to feel deprived or divided again, but instead to annually anticipate this culinary trove in all its rapturous yumminess each year. 🙂 (I’m not exaggerating.)
I’m sure we’ll eat it other times throughout the year, too, but it does ring of special things.
Ingredients
Please don’t skip any of the ingredients, like the bacon, the delicata or the fresh thyme.
They each make this dish SO delicious, all together, and each of them punching you in the mouth separately too, with their AWES of goodness: the sweets, the salty-tangy, the rich, the herby-good.
How to make AIP Apple, Pork and Bacon BREAKFAST CASSEROLE with Delicata Squash
The main things to note about this casserole prep are:
- The raw bulk pork gets mixed together a little like a meatloaf.
- So, you will not cook the ground pork before the casserole gets put in the oven.
- This makes the prep time for the casserole really fast, and it’s an easy one to make.
- It also means that the filling, after baking is moist and delicious, plus light in texture with crispy edges.
Order of events:
- Bake the bacon, and pre-bake the delicata squash slices.
- Mix the raw pork with the remaining ingredients, and fill your baking dish with it.
- Do an initial baking.
- Then, top with delicata and finish the baking.
- Garnish with the bacon and thyme.
- Serve!
Delicata Squash on top of AIP Apple, Pork and Bacon BREAKFAST CASSEROLE
Have you cooked or eaten delicata squash before?
If not, they’re:
- small (and inexpensive)!
- easy to cut raw, unlike other winter squash.
- SOOO sweet (like caramel when roasted)!
And, they don’t need to be peeled!
You will love what they add to your life and to this casserole.
Holiday Thyme
About fresh thyme, please re-fall-in-love with it with me! We’ve been buying it regularly this winter (and I have plans to plant and grow it!) because of just how lovely it is.
If you’ve forgotten, too, you’ll see what I mean when you make this and eat it.
(We even put it inside our homemade grain-free tortillas with whatever meat and veggie fillings and LOVE what it adds.)
Let me know in the comments how you like AIP Breakfast Casserole!
AIP Apple, Pork and Bacon BREAKFAST CASSEROLE with Delicata Squash
Equipment
- baking dish
- oven
- baking sheets
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground pork pasture-raised preferred
- 1 large delicata squash cut in half length-wise, seeded, and sliced into 1/4" slices (do not peel)
- 1-½ cups filtered water
- 1 cup pumpkin canned or leftover cooked winter squash, smashed
- 1 large apple diced and unpeeled (or diced onion, if you can't have fruit)
- ⅔ cup cassava flour
- 1 package bacon 10-12 ounces/8 pieces
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2-½ teaspoons sea salt
- 2 teaspoons dried sage
- 1 teaspoon baking soda, sifted
- several sprigs fresh thyme
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Spread bacon out on a large baking pan (a half sheet is preferred, see link below in Recipe notes, or use two pans [with bacon pieces evenly divided between the two pans] if you don't have one big one). Bake bacon 10 minutes, until fat is partially rendered but it's not yet fully cooked.
- Remove pan from oven. Move bacon over to one side of pan, the pieces very close together. Add delicata slices, *coating each slice on both sides with the rendered bacon fat* as you lay them down close to each other. The pan will be full, but it will all fit perfectly.
- Bake in 400 degree oven about 13 minutes, until bacon is cooked perfectly and squash is cooked, but not all of it is browned.
- Reduce oven heat to 375 degrees.
- Grease large casserole dish. (It can be a 9x13" or something oval, but it needs to be about the dimensions of 9x13" so the meat comes up the right height in the dish and cooks according to these instructions. It can not be a deep, smaller dish.)
- While bacon and delicata are cooking, combine in small bowl: cassava flour and sifted baking soda. Set aside.
- In large bowl combine: pumpkin, water, vinegar, sea salt, sage; mix well.
- Add pork to large bowl, and stir with long, big fork, or use hand-mixer on lowest speed. Fully mix pork into pumpkin-water mixture. It will be slightly fluffy and lovely. 😉
- Add cassava mixture and mix well. Fold in apples.
- Pour into prepared casserole dish, smoothing out the top with your finger tips or the back of a spoon/fork.
- Place casserole into oven. Set timer for 25 minutes.
- Remove casserole and decoratively arrange top with delicata slices. Return to oven.
- Bake casserole 8-10 minutes. Watch it closely because delicata can get too dark very quickly. You want them browned, (but not burned).
- Remove from oven. Crumble bacon pieces all over the top.
- Run your fingers down the tough stems of the fresh thyme, perched over the top of the casserole, topping the casserole with fresh thyme. Try not to skip this ingredient. It is LOVELY and really finishes the casserole beautifully flavor-wise (as well as visually).
- SERVE! 🙂 Or the casserole can sit for up to 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
Here are the baking pans I recommend. They're very versatile and will last a lifetime. They're large and safe for everything except citrus and tomatoes (nothing reactive). Perfect for baked goods and bacon.
Nutrition
AIP treats to go alongside holiday casserole:
- Cranberry Muffins
- Blueberry Muffins
- Apple Cinnamon Muffins
- Lemon Blueberry Coffeecake
- Gingerbread Cookies
You can Pin this recipe here:
Debbie Barford says
I believe you meant fresh THYME for the top of the casserole at the end of the recipe, not sage.
Megan Stevens says
Thank you!!! 😉 Yes! I’ll change it now!
Joni Jessica says
This looks amazing! Delicata is one of my favorites!
Megan Stevens says
Thanks, Joni! Mine too, it’s SO sweet and good in this recipe! Love what it adds!
pianofemme says
Those 2 lbs of pork – is it ground?
Megan Stevens says
Yes! 🙂 Sorry to have left out that important detail! 😉 I’ll add it in now.
pianofemme says
The casserole is, as you say, a blessing. I made half a recipe for two people + leftovers. Keep on with the descriptive words like “slightly fluffy and lovely” – it helps us know we’re on the right track with a new recipe. So tasty!
Megan Stevens says
Aw, this makes me so happy. Thank you for your detailed feedback! Love it and so glad you enjoyed the casserole!! 🙂
linda spiker says
Delicata is such a treat! This breakfast casserole is exquisite!
Fawn says
Oh yeah, I’m about to make this deliciousness. But first, any ideas on what on what one could use to replace the cassava with? Thanks for your awesome recipes!
Megan says
Hi Fawn, thanks! Yes, you can likely sub in 1/4 cup coconut flour (or 2/3 cup sprouted nut/blanched almond flour if you’re not AIP). I haven’t used the coconut flour sub myself, but I have made enough similar subs that I think it will work well.
Anna Tennis says
I wonder how this would work with ground beef, chicken, or turkey. Pork has started to not agree with me very well (a little bacon is okay from time to time though).
Megan says
Hi Anna, I haven’t tried it, but the only issue is that pork is higher in fat, which actually works nicely in this recipe. So, I think a high-fat beef would be good, or lamb, if you enjoy it. Turkey thigh might be okay if you add a couple tablespoons of duck fat to make up for it.
Dawn says
Hi Megan,
Is the ground pork cooked before mixing in and baking?
This looks delicious. Thanks for sharing!
Dawn
Megan says
Hi Dawn, no it’s raw before being baked, so one less step. Thank you! I hope you love it as much as we do! 🙂
Dawn says
Thank you Megan. This is fabulous!!! Just sat down to eat it and it is the best thing I’ve had in over 4 years?!
Megan says
AW!! That makes my morning! SO glad!! Thanks for coming back to share! 🙂
Peggy says
Any suggestions/substitutes if I can’t find delicate squash this time of year?
Megan says
Hi Peggy, this recipe would probably work well with thinly sliced acorn squash. 🙂
Peggy says
delicata squash
Carol Taylor says
I’ve never heard of delicata squash. I hope I can find it at a regular grocery store like Kroger’s or Meijer’s. It sounds a little labor intensive. I don’t use prepackaged foods and I’m use to cooking from scratch. If I would plan for meals better, I wouldn’t keep saying there is nothing to eat!
Kim says
Any suggestions for replacing the pumpkin? I don’t do well with pumpkin, butternut, acorn…none of the winter squashes except delicata. Do you think an equal amount of delicata squash that has been roasted by cutting the squash in half lengthwise (seeds removed) then scraping & masking the flesh would work???
Molly Rudolph says
Sweet potato puree?
Kimberly Ladson says
This casserole is absolutely delicious! It is now our “special/holiday” casserole as well. I miss my family tradition of homemade cinnamon rolls for the holidays but this is a great replacement and It makes me feel so much better! Thank you for developing this recipe.
Megan says
Yay, Kimberly, thank you! This blesses me, and I’m so happy the casserole blesses your family. Thank you so much for taking the time to share. 🙂
Jean says
Thank You for this wonderful recipe. I will be making it! We like delicata squash so much we decided to grow it in our garden this past year. I use a grapefruit spoon
to scoop out the flesh and seeds of the squash.
Megan says
I’m so glad, Jean, you’re welcome! 🙂 Yay for growing it; it really is the best! And thanks for sharing your tip for scooping out the seeds!
Dorothy says
I don’t know if I’ve seen delicata squash in the store, though I didn’t look for it either. This sounds and looks like a special savory dish for holidays or any time. I didn’t try to save duck fat at Thanksgiving, most likely our first time trying it, but if I make this dish, I’ll probably use ground beef and turkey bacon. We eat a lot of eggs and some cheese, but would enjoy this egg and dairy free option. ?
Megan says
Great, Dorothy, I hope you love it! 🙂
MELISSA says
This is so delicious, I absolutely loved it. I had to use Sweet Dumpling Squash because I could not find Delicata but it worked out perfectly. I also added onions and finely chopped spinach to the pork.
Megan says
Hi Melissa, so great to know the casserole works well with Sweet Dumpling squash, too! Thanks for sharing that. I’m so glad you loved the recipe. I really like the addition of spinach, yum, and onions are always nice! Thanks for commenting and rating the recipe!! 🙂
Aubrie says
Very good flavors! First time using delicatta and I am in love! I used both an apple and an onion and the sweet with the salty was great. The texture was a little interesting for me though – like you can’t quite put your finger on what you’re eating. I will try decreasing the cassava and water and see if that fits my personal tastes a little better. Thank you for your wonderful site! Making the tremendous change to a strict AIP lifestyle is hard, but your site makes it so much more joyful!
Megan says
Great to hear, Aubrie, and I’m happy you’re enjoying the recipes here and mostly liked the casserole! 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
Kate says
Hi!
My little guy can’t do squash, what would you recommend instead? Sweet potato perhaps? TIA!
Megan says
Hi Kate, I’m trying to think what would caramelize as well. Yes, either sweet potato or parsnips, or a combination of both. If you do parsnips, just be careful because they burn all of a sudden, so you have to keep an eye on them.
Kate says
Perfect, thanks so much! Planning on this for Christmas morning then 🙂
Megan says
Great!, enjoy, and Merry Christmas!
Lisa says
My delicata slices would not brown. I put it under the broiler to try to brown but still nothing after 5 minutes. Any ideas?
Megan says
Hi Lisa, I don’t know. Have you checked to make sure your oven temperatures are correct? You might have had the temp too low without realizing it. Bake longer, is my first thought, but also a higher temp possibly. Also, be sure you have fat on all the pieces as the recipe guides.
Jen says
Wow! This is hands down one of the best AIP recipes I’ve ever made and I’ve been on strict AIP for 3 years. I don’t know what kind of witchcraft is involved but the mouthfeel is like egg and the taste is like egg. My mind is blown. This is delightful. Thank you for this recipe!
Megan says
Yay!!! Thank you, Jen. That makes me happy, and I’m so glad the recipe made you happy! Delighted. Thanks for sharing your results! 🙂