Mediterranean Bread Casserole With Sausage, Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Spinach

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13-inch casserole with butter. Heat a tablespoon of oil or butter in a skillet over medium heat. When hot, add slices of Texas toast and cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes, then flip and cook an additional 2 minutes.

Cut each piece of bread into 6 even pieces. Continue until you have 8 cups of bread cubes.

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add sausage and sauté, breaking it into bite-size chunks with a wooden spoon until cooked through and lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in spinach. Cook until just wilted. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Whisk eggs and milk in a bowl. Season with salt, pepper and cayenne.

Spread one-third of the bread cubes in the casserole dish. Top with 1/3 of the sausage-spinach mixture. Sprinkle with one-third of the sun-dried tomatoes and basil. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the cheese. Repeat two more times, layering the bread, sausage-spinach, tomatoes, basil and cheese. Pour egg mixture evenly over the dish.

Bake, uncovered, until puffed, golden brown and egg is cooked through, about 45 to 50 minutes. Set aside 5 to 10 minutes before serving.