Rosemary Sweet Potato Breakfast Casserole (Whole30, Paleo)

This deliciously simple recipe is a great Whole30 or paleo breakfast prep! It has the homey and earthy taste of rosemary to change up your breakfast game, and heats up easily in the microwave for an entire week of breakfasts. The sweet potatoes tie in the rosemary flavor with a hint of sweetness, and you will be so glad that you chose to pre-make your breakfast to save yourself some time!

There are so many reasons to love both sweet potatoes and rosemary. If you haven’t seen my post about how amazing sweet potatoes are, go check out my recipe for Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie. They are actually not potatoes (!), and have a variety of health benefits including being lower in calories, higher in fiber, and extremely high in Vitamin A. Check out the article to find out more!

Rosemary is also an incredibly delicious and nutritious herb. I’ve listed many of the health benefits on my recipe for Creamy Lemon Rosemary Potato Salad, so you can find out more there.

If you’re still interested in learning more about how sweet potatoes are incredibly good for you and why you might want to add them into your diet, read on!

Some health benefits of eating sweet potatoes

Sweet potatoes have high levels of vitamin A, a vitamin crucial to both growth in the human body and maintaining a healthy immune system. It can be found in a variety of places and forms. This article breaks it down nicely. Essentially, the four main ways that vitamin A can be found are:

• Preformed vitamin A, that is found in in dairy and meat products.
• Provitamin A , which is found in plants.
• Retinol, or the form of vitamin A that is found in your blood stream.
• Beta-carotene, or the “precursor” to vitamin A, which is found in many leafy green vegetables such as kale.

So why do we need vitamin A? Vitamin A plays an important role in maintaining a healthy immune system. Vitamin A plays a role in maintaining mucous membranes throughout your body, including the eyes, nose, and lungs. This mucous membrane is a primary defense against microbes that attempt to enter your body, making Vitamin A a natural autoimmunobooster. Vitamin A has even been used as an effective treatment of some illnesses and infections. If you are interested in boosting your immune system, incorporating more foods with high levels of vitamin A might be a good option.

There is a potential for consuming too much vitamin A, however. Some signs and symptoms of consuming too much vitamin A include changing skin color, psoriasis, and other skin conditions. Be sure to talk with your doctor if you are considering increasing your vitamin A intake so that you are getting proper guidance.

How to make Rosemary Sweet Potato Breakfast Casserole

This breakfast casserole is so simple to put together, but does take a bit of prep work. The ingredients you will need are:

• eggs
• almond milk
• 1-2 sweet potatoes (diced and roasted)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (or more, if you love rosemary)
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

First, preheat your oven to 350°F. While your oven is heating up, chop your sweet potatoes into smaller bits, no more than 1/2″ cubes. Place them on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, and stir to make sure they are evenly coated. Place the potatoes in the oven for about 15 minutes. Stir them, and then put back in the oven for another 15 minutes or until completely cooked through. Once your sweet potatoes are cooked through, remove them from the oven and set them aside. Don’t turn off your oven, though!

While your sweet potatoes are cooking, you can also prepare the rest of the ingredients. Chop your onion and add it to a skillet with heated olive oil. Cook the onions until they are slightly translucent. You also do not need to add onions to this recipe, but I love the prebiotic benefits of onions and try to incorporate them into most things that I make. Once the onions are completely cooked through, remove them from the stove and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, almond milk, chopped fresh rosemary, salt, and pepper. Then, once the onions are cooled, add them to the bowl.

Either spray a glass pan (or other oven-safe pan) with some non-stick spray (be sure to check if it’s Whole30 compliant!) or line it with parchment paper. I’ve found that many glass pans do just fine with the non-stick spray, but some of the darker pans need parchment paper. Once your sweet potatoes are cooler (they can still be warm), place them in the bottom of a glass pan. Then, pour your egg mixture over the sweet potatoes. Place your pan in the oven for about 45-60 minutes. Depending on the size and shape of your pan, it might take longer. To be sure your casserole is done, insert a toothpick or fork into the center and when it comes out “clean” with no liquids, your casserole is done!

That’s it! Enjoy this breakfast all week long. It freezes well for a later date, so it’s a great option for food prep.