• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Elle & Pear
  • Recipes
  • Travel
  • About
  • Home
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • Travel
  • About
  • Home
×
Home » Recipes » Main Dish » Italian

Italian Eggs Casserole with Fontina

By Lauren | Updated: Oct 24, 2023 | Published: Oct 13, 2022 | Leave a Comment

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

In this Italian Eggs Casserole with Fontina eggs are cracked over a simple San Marzano tomato sauce and topped with fontina cheese and crispy breadcrumbs. It is savory, cheesy, melty, and crispy, and can be served with crusty bread to sop up any extra sauce.

We have two go-to meals when we want to make dinner for just the two of us after the kids go to bed. The first is Gnocchi and Baby Broccoli in a Brown Butter Sage Sauce, and the second is this one: Italian Eggs Casserole. Both are really easy to make, super savory, a bit indulgent, and neither take too long or too much effort. We’re usually pretty wiped at this point in the night after the kids are in bed, and while sometimes we want a great meal to enjoy just the two of us, we usually don’t have it in us to put in a ton of effort to make it.

Eggs baked in tomato sauce topped with fontina and bread crumbs in a casserole dish.

For this dish we typically have the sauce on hand already since we make this sauce for Grandma Pie and freeze extra, which we probably have a couple times a month. But putting the sauce together takes very little time, just a few easy ingredients in a blender. The eggs make this dish filling, and combining the cheese and the eggs in the tomato sauce gives you that decadent savory bite that makes you slow down to enjoy it. Make sure to eat it while it's hot.

You certainly don’t need to have crusty bread on hand to serve with this (it’s definitely not a light dish), but it’s really nice to sop up the extra sauce. We usually eat this on the couch and throw on some TV.

Italian Eggs Casserole with Fontina Recipe Inspiration:

My husband made this Italian Eggs Casserole the first time one night after the kids were in bed. It was such a success, that we now regularly make it when planning an at home date night. It’s not too dissimilar from our Spinach and Egg Breakfasts cups, but with an Italian spin and made in an 8x8 square baking dish rather than ramekins. We always have this for dinner, but it could easily be made for breakfast too.

Great for Date Night at Home

  • Its quick and easy.
  • It can be made later at night when the kids are in bed for an at home date night.
  • The eggs are cooked in a tomato sauce that is so simple and so good and made with San Marzano tomatoes.
  • The fat from the eggs and the cheese combines with the sauce to make it extra savory.
  • The panko breadcrumbs on top add a crispy crunchy top.

Tomato Sauce

We use a can of San Marzano tomatoes to make the sauce. Its important to use a can of San Marzano tomatoes imported from Italy. These canned tomatoes have a very unique taste as they are grown in the fertile land around Mt. Vesuvius. They can usually be found at a regular grocery store, Trader Joes, Target, or Whole Foods.

Using 1 ½ cups sauce is just the right amount. If you use 1 cup, there will not be enough sauce. Use 2 cups and there will be too much sauce. 1 ½ cups = perfect in an 8x8 ceramic baking dish.

Fontina Cheese

Fontina cheese works best in this dish, with just the right amount of flavor and intensity to taste great but not overtake the tomato sauce and eggs. We've also made this with Monterrey Jack cheese which is a good substitute if you can't find Fontina.

Italian Eggs Casserole with Fontina Adjustments

  • You can make this for dinner or breakfast.
  • It’s great for date night after the kids are in bed, but if your kids are little and you want to serve this for a family dinner, its usually enough for 2 adults and 2 young kids.
  • You can also put in fewer eggs if you don’t think you’ll eat all 8 eggs.
  • The amounts and timing are based on using an 8x8 square ceramic baking dish. If you’re using a different sized dish or a metal or glass baking dish you may need to adjust the timing and the amount of sauce and cheese.
  • This dish can easily be scaled up. You could use a larger dish with more of all the ingredients to serve a larger group.

If you’re looking for other ideas, here are 3 dishes that I love:

Gnocchi and Baby Broccoli in a Brown Butter Sauce: Great for an easy date night at home.

Grandma Pie - Quarantine Pizza: For any leftover sauce, use this recipe for a great easy pizza to serve a crowd.

Spinach and Egg Breakfast Cups: Small portions for a weekday or weekend breakfast

If you make this casserole, I'd love to hear from you and learn how it went. Leave a comment down below and let me know how it turns out! Your feedback means a lot!

Date Night Dinner for Two: Italian Eggs Casserole

In this dish eggs are cracked over a simple San Marzano tomato sauce and topped with fontina cheese and crispy breadcrumbs. It is savory, cheesy, melty, and crispy, and can be served with a crusty bread to sop up any extra sauce.
5 from 3 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 26 minutes mins
Total Time 36 minutes mins
Author Lauren
Course Breakfast, Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Servings 2
Calories 611 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 28oz can San Marzano tomatoes
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 6 tbsp and 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
  • ⅓ lb fontina, shredded
  • 8 eggs
  • ¼ cup panko bread crumbs
  • crusty bread optional

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 375°F.
  • In a blender combine the San Marzano tomatoes, garlic, and 6tbsp olive oil. Set aside 1 ½ cups of the sauce. The remaining sauce you can freeze or use for another recipe like Grandma Pie Pizza.
  • Add about a tablespoon of olive oil to an 8x8 square bakingdish and brush to coat the insides of the baking dish.
  • Using a spoon add 1 cup of the tomato sauce to the dish, 1 spoonful at a time, so as to not combine with the olive oil.
  • Crack each egg over the sauce. Gently break the yolks (do not mix/combine with the sauce).
  • Top with the fontina cheese, panko bread crumbs, and a crackor two of salt and pepper.
  • Bake at 375°F for 22-26 minutes or until eggs are set to your preference. If you want eggs over hard bake for 26 minutes. Reduce the time from there if you want your eggs softer/runnier.
  • Serve immediately with a crusty bread (optional).

Nutrition

Calories: 611kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 44g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 742mg | Sodium: 911mg | Potassium: 319mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1642IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 534mg | Iron: 4mg
Keyword Eggs, Tomatoes
Have you tried this recipe? Leave a comment below and share a photo on instagram and tag @elleandpear or #elleandpear. I'd absolutely love to hear from you and see what you're making!

More Breakfast

  • Comparison of a loaf of banana bread made with ripe bananas vs a loaf made with overripe bananas.
    A Complete Guide to Baking Banana Bread
  • Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed muffins with turbinado sugar on a cake stand.
    Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
  • Leek and Bacon Frittata with Asparagus overhead shot.
    Leek and Bacon Frittata with Asparagus
  • Overhead shot of a blueberry french toast casserole with fresh blueberries and powdered sugar.
    Blueberry French Toast Casserole

Breakfast, Italian, Main Dish, Our Family Favorites, Recipes, Weeknight

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Primary Sidebar

I'm Lauren, I've worked in Finance, earned an MBA, and lived and traveled throughout Europe and the US. I love to cook and bake, and bring our family together around the table. Recipes shared here are real family recipes with real fresh ingredients inspired by our travels.

More about me →

Most Popular

  • Banana Bread in square baking dish on a light background.
    Banana Bread without a Loaf Pan
  • Several crispy chocolate chip cookies laying flat on a counter with a glass of milk.
    Small Batch Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies
  • Round pizza with a thick chewy crust layered with thinly sliced potatoes and topped with rosemary with rosemary garnish on a white background.
    Potato and Rosemary Pizza
  • Overhead shot of slices of lemon pie without meringue on white plates with pink flowers and the remaining pie above.
    Lemon Pie Without Meringue
  • Homemade Pita Bread: Oven vs. Stovetop
  • Crispy salted caramel cookies layered on a dark background sprinkled with flaky sea salt.
    Crispy Salted Caramel Cookies

Holiday Recipes

  • Arrangement of glazed molasses cookies on a half dark half light background with some greenery.
    Maple Glazed Molasses Christmas Cookies
  • Overhead view of a salted caramel chocolate tart with one slice slightly removed.
    Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart with Biscoff Crust
  • Krumkaker cones on a light background with a wooden dowel with a clip, raspberries and whipped cream on the side
    Krumkaker Norwegian Waffle Cookies
  • Gingerbread Whoopie Pies
  • Snowball Cookies
  • Swedish Apple Pie in a round fluted dish with two scoops of ice cream melting into the pie.
    Crustless Swedish Apple Pie

Footer

Search for a recipe or travel destination

  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Footer

↑ back to top

Recipes

  • Breakfast
  • Sides & Appetizers
  • Soup
  • Main Dish
  • Dessert

Travel

  • US
  • California
  • Europe
  • Spain

About

  • About

COPYRIGHT © 2023 ELLE & PEAR