Breakfast Tortilla Pie
Breakfast Tortilla Pie is not just for breakfast! This tortilla casserole is perfect any time, with layers of tortilla, eggs, sausage, beans, and corn! Try this Mexican casserole on taco Tuesday, Cinco de Mayo, or any day of the week!
This tortilla casserole is perfect any time, with layers of tortilla, eggs, sausage, beans, and corn! It’s easily adaptable to be all vegetarian, too!
Note: This recipe post first appeared on May 5, 2011. The recipe has been updated from the archives with updated content and photographs, as well as improved kitchen notes and recipe annotation. I hope you enjoy this favorite from my kitchen.
Happy Cinco de Mayo!
By the time you see this, it will be long past breakfast, but no worries! This Breakfast Tortilla Pie is not just for breakfast, or for Cinco de Mayo, for that matter. It’s a Mexican casserole I certainly love serving for dinner any day of the week. It would even be wonderful on your Mother’s Day brunch menu.
This tortilla casserole was born years ago when I once opened a pack of tortillas to make breakfast burritos, something I often crave after a good morning work-out. There’s something about eggs and beans and avocados that my body hungers for in a post-exercise refuel. As I was assembling my ingredients on the counter and pulling pans out of the cupboard, my eyes spotted one of my pie plates on the shelf. It just seemed logical: I would make a tortilla pie!
How to Make Tortilla Casserole
Think of this as a the ultimate Mexican casserole! Layering freshly puffed tortillas with fillings such as chorizo, corn, bell pepper, beans and spicy pepper jack cheese is so simple, no rolling required! And baking the eggs in the dish gives the tortilla pie a hearty quiche-like base.
A spicy chorizo adds so much flavor to the dish, but I also like to make it vegetarian by substituting the sausage with meatless meat crumbles. You can also us more black beans or mushrooms — that all works!
If you have fresh tortillas on hand, be sure to cook the tortillas before layering. Pre-cooked tortillas makes this super quick to assemble, so I usually have that at the ready in the refrigerator for this and other quick meals.
A spicy pepper jack cheese also adds another layer of flavor, but I also make it with a simple sharp cheddar for my daughter who can’t handle the heat. When it comes out of the oven, all gooey with melted cheese, I just give it a fresh garnish of onions, tomatoes, cilantro and scallion, and it’s ready to serve!
More Mexican-Inspired Recipes
Looking for more fiesta-flavored recipes? Here are some other favorites.
Grilled Fish Tacos with Avocado-Cilantro Sauce
Grilled Fish Tacos with Avocado-Cilantro Sauce
Chipotle-Spiced Sweet Potato Tacos
Oven-Fried Crispy Shrimp Tacos with Quick Pickled Cabbage
Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Jicama Slaw
Baked Egg Taco Boats with Pulled Pork, Potatoes and Kale
Churro Doughnut Holes with Ice Cream and Cherry Chipotle Sauce
Baked Churro Ice Cream Sandwiches (Non-Dairy)
Mexican Street Corn Salad from Foolproof Living
Mexican Inspired Tofu Tacos with Chili-Lime Slaw from Vanilla and Bean
Breakfast Tortilla Pie
Ingredients
- 5 large eggs
- kosher salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 5 links chorizo or your favorite sausage or meatless meat
- 1/2 cup yellow onion diced
- 2 cups pepper jack cheese shredded, more or less to taste
- 1 14-oz can black beans rinsed and drained
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper diced
- 1/2 cup corn kernels
- 3 scallions sliced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3-4 flour tortillas pre-cooked
For garnish
- 1/4 cup cilantro minced
- 1/4 cup tomatoes finely chopped
- 1/4 cup red onion finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons green onion
For serving
- sour cream for serving
- salsa for serving
- avocado slices for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Beat the eggs with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
- Crumble the sausage into a skillet and brown over medium heat. Drain any excess oil.
- Add the onions. When the onions are translucent, mix in the beans, bell pepper, corn and scallion. Remove from heat.
- Lightly brush the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie pan with olive oil and place one tortilla in the pan. Scoop about half of the sausage and vegetable mixture and spread into an even layer.
- Pour some of the eggs over the mixture and top with cheese. Repeat with another layer of tortilla, filling, egg, and cheese. Place a final tortilla layer and top with cheese.
- Lightly cover with foil and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the casserole is baked through and no longer jiggly. Remove the foil and bake for 5 minutes more to brown. Garnish with with cilantro, tomato, red onion, and scallion.
- Carefully slice the tortilla pie and serve with sour cream, salsa and avocado.
Notes
Breakfast Tortilla Pie Tips/FAQ
- Can I use fresh tortillas? Yes! If using fresh tortillas, cook the tortillas on non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, 30 seconds per side, until lightly browned and puffy. Set aside.
- Can I make this vegetarian? Absolutely! I do this all the time. Substitute the chorizo for meatless meat crumbles or chopped mushrooms, or more beans!
- Can I use ground beef? Definitely. You can use your favorite ground meat in this recipe.
Nutrition
Comments
COOKBOOK
Could you use corn tortillas instead of flour?
Could you use corn tortillas instead of flour?
I prefer the texture of the flour tortillas in this recipe but you can certainly make it with the corn tortillas!
Lired, Mexican inspired breakfast food used to be “too much” flavor for me to handle in the morning, since traveling and experiencing delicious Mexican inspired breakfasts in places like SoCal, Arizona, and Texas my perspective has totally flipped!! I love dumping salsa all over a Southwestern omelette and don’t think twice about corn tortillas with breakfast. This tortilla pie looks amazing!
I’m so glad your travels have inspired your palette! Since you love all things salsa and a Southwestern omelette (yum!), then I know you’ll love this, too!! I hope you enjoy it!
Sounds awesome, I am definitely going to make this for entertaining breakfast guests!
Liren, this looks fantastic! I’m on my own tonight so I just might give this a shot. So good!
Still just can’t say enough about how scrumptious this looks! Thanks for posting it!
Thanks to you for a wonderful product! We really have grown to love your tortillas and are absolute converts – my husband said today that these were some of the best tortillas he has had in a long time.
I love it! It’s like huevos rancheros in a pie! :D
I have never had a tortilla pie, I’m going to have to fix that ; )
Happy Cinco de Mayo! This looks absolutely delicious…I have made my own tortillas on several occasions, but opt for store bought unless a special occasion :)
Great dish. A must try.
Happy Mother’s day!
This looks insanely delicious!! Wow!
Ooo, I’ve never tried a fresh tortilla before, sounds much better than the store bought kind.
Hey Liren, This is fantastic. Love the tortilla pie. I am now hungry and it’s past midnight. Beautiful pics and nice tribute for Cinco de Mayo!
I love these kind of breakfast foods, especially for the weekend. I’ve made my own tortillas. Super easy. Get a press for about $15.
I think I must! I’m sure I would have so much fun making my own tortillas :)
Love the gorgeous breakfast recipe..can gorge upon it for any meal :) Lovely clicks. Glad to have followed a tweet and landed to this lovely space.
Ive never been a big proponent of breakfast foods for dinner, but sometimes its what feels right. Love this recipe, Liren!
Holy mackerel! That pie is just laughing at me, knowing how much I want it…but not getting it….
Fun breakfast dish! You could easily throw together your own tortillas. Admittedly, one of us has a tortilla press but we’ve still never made them. It seems like a fun project though. Gorgeous photos too!