The egg casserole was invented in 1866 by French-Canadian immigrant Elmire Jolicoeur in Berlin, New Hampshire. Unlike American dishes such as the hamburger and pizza, the egg casserole is a dish that was invented in the U.S and not brought over by immigrants from other countries.

Many serve egg casseroles for breakfast, but with the right twists they can be wonderfully hearty for lunch and dinner as well.

To give your casserole a spicy California upgrade, look no further than this chorizo and egg mini casseroles recipe.

These cupcake-sized creations will give your morning a kick it has never seen, with savory flavor combinations that are sure to please any palette. If you’re serving vegetarians or are vegetarian yourself, Soyrizo – which is a vegan soy-based chorizo – can be found at most grocery stores such as Safeway, Grocery Outlet, Raley’s and Winco.

With a preparation time of 10 minutes, the oven will be the one doing most of the work.

Mini Chorizo Egg Casseroles

8 slices of sourdough bread

2 1/2 cups of milk

1/2 cup of buttermilk

1 (10 ounce) can of cream of chicken soup

1 cup of mozzarella cheese grated

4 eggs

1 (10 ounce) package of chorizo

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a skillet, cook the chorizo until it breaks down into smaller pieces. The chorizo doesn’t have to be cooked all the way since it will be baked in the oven.

Cut the sourdough bread into small cubes and distribute it evenly throughout cupcake pan.

Spread the chorizo uniformly over the sourdough bread.

Whisk the milk and eggs until they are completely mixed and then pour that mixture into the cupcake pans halfway.

Whisk the buttermilk and cream of chicken soup until the cream of chicken soup has dissolved into the buttermilk.

Spoon the mixture into each cupcake hole until each is 3/4 full. Sprinkle cheese equally over the mini casseroles.

Bake for 25 minutes or until casseroles have puffed and set. This recipe will make 12 mini casseroles, which is enough to feed four comfortably.

Make it a casserole party and serve these beauties with bloody mary cocktails for an awesome brunch experience.

Miguel Lopez can be reached at [email protected] and William Miles can be reached [email protected]