Italian Sausage, Zucchini, And Bell Pepper Bread Pudding

What a fun and different idea for brunch or breakfast! This is an Emeril Lagasse recipe and we loved it - with the zucchini it almost felt healthy!! The best part is you can make it day before. We actually halved the recipe and made it in a 9x9.

• 1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil, plus more for greasing the pan
• 1 pound fresh Italian sausage, removed from casings and crumbled
• 1 1/2 cups small-diced onion
• 3/4 cup small-diced red bell pepper
• 1 pound zucchini, sliced into 1/4-inch half-moons
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh
• marjoram leaves
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh
• oregano leaves
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 1 pound seeded Italian bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes(about 8 cups)
• 12 ounces fontina cheese, grated
• 2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (about 3/4 cup), finely grated
• 10 eggs
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1 cup chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken
• broth
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9 × 13-inch baking dish with oil and set aside.
• Heat a 12-inch sauté pan over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring and breaking the meat into small pieces, until lightly browned, 8 to 9 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel–lined plate to drain.
• Add 1 tablespoon oil to the same pan and increase the heat to medium-high. Add the onion, bell pepper, zucchini, and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are just tender, about 4 minutes. Add the herbs and stir to combine. Transfer to a plate to cool.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cooled sausage and vegetables and stir gently to mix well.
• Spread 4 cups of the bread cubes in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with half of the sausage- vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with half of the fontina and half of the Parmesan. Repeat with the remaining bread, sausage- vegetable mixture, and cheeses.
• In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, half-and-half, stock, pepper, and remaining 1 1/4 teaspoons salt. Pour the egg mixture evenly over the top of the casserole, making sure you cover as much of the bread as possible.
• Bake the casserole until cooked through, the cheese has melted, and the top is golden and a nice crust has formed, about 1 hour. Set the casserole aside to rest for about 10 minutes before serving.
• Note: The casserole may be assembled and then refrigerated up to overnight before being baked. Allow it to return to room temperature before baking.