Simple Breakfast Sandwiches

If you are looking for a super easy, super quick breakfast that tastes like a lot more work went into its creation, this is the ticket. It takes at most seven minutes and only one plate.

Win win.

I started making these during the crazy back to school season and have continued on with them well past the season. We love them.

They’re easy, filling, and I’m not standing over the stove. You could add fruit if you’d like as well.

Why This Works for Busy Mornings

On days when you know you’re going to be busy, I love that there’s not any cooking involved, well, cooking as defined by me. There’s no flipping of pancakes and scrambling of eggs.

Just toast, microwave, assemble. Free up those hands to pour that extra large cup of coffee or make sure everyone has their school/work bag packed.

My son loves cereal, but by 10 a.m. he’s ready to eat another meal. This combo of sausage and cheese will keep him going til his next meal.

It’s a whopping 20 grams of protein.

Ingredient Notes

• I use Jimmy Dean premade patties. You can find them in the freezer section. They are completely cooked and have been formed into patties for you. They take just a minute in the microwave. It’s a game changer, I swear.
• I like Kraft brand cheese slices.
• Any kind of English Muffin will do.
• Toast your english muffins. Split in half.
• In the mean time, nuke two fully cooked Jimmy Dean Sausage patties for a minute. Two patties will make it more of a meal. One could be a quick grab and go option though.
• Add one slice of cheese. Assemble. Repeat for the second muffin half. Enjoy!

Jimmy Dean Premade Sausage Patties

I’ve eaten my share of Jimmy Dean frozen breakfast sausage patties, and I’m impressed. The seasoning is just right; it’s flavorful without being too much of anything like spicy, salty, sweet, smoky, or porky.

There’s a perfect fat-to-meat ratio. The patties don’t fall apart when you take a bite, a critical consideration when you’re trying to eat a sandwich with one hand while maneuvering into a moving school bus with the other.

Breakfast sandwich tip number one: the patties are cooked through, so all you’re doing is heating them up. You can nuke them in the microwave for a minute.

Don’t cook them any longer than necessary, as they get rubbery and dry.

Breakfast sandwich tip number two: buy ’em in bulk. They’re inexpensive to begin with, at around $6 for 26 patties, but if you shop at Sam’s Club or Costco, the patties are cheaper per-unit than you’ll find them at your local grocery store.

That means 13 breakfast sandwiches for around $6 if you use two patties per sandwich. About 50 cents each.

And they’ll keep in your freezer indefinitely, and taste just as good when cooked from frozen.

English Muffins

Breakfast sandwich tip number three: toast them well, until they’re nice and golden. Insufficiently toasted english muffins get soggy from the hot sausage.

Thomas’ english muffins are best, as they have the best nooks and crannies to withstand the onslaught of hot, slippery cheese and sausage. Store brands have a more uniform texture, but are perfectly acceptable.

Breakfast Sandwich Makers

If you’re making breakfast sandwiches on a regular basis, like I do pretty much every weekend as leftovers for my husband and me to eat during the week, consider investing in a breakfast sandwich maker, such as this one made by Hamilton Beach. It’s basically a panini press, with slots for heating up frozen sausage patties, all while you’re toasting the english muffins.

Breakfast sandwiches are ready in no time.

Cheese

I mentioned cheese in my initial list of ingredients, but didn’t say anything about it. Sorry about that.

Any kind of melty cheese is good, so use whatever you prefer.

As you can see, there’s nothing complicated about making sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwiches at home. You’re going to save money and calories versus eating out, and they’re way better than the sad, wilted breakfast sandwiches that’ve been languishing at the bottom of a greasy fast food bag.

How to Make It

Start with some Kraft singles or other processed American cheese slices, not deli cheese. Yes, I know, processed cheese, but they melt so well and so quickly in the microwave, which is what we’re after today.

You can try to get a cheddar slice from the deli counter or cut some cheese out of a block, but thicker slices won’t melt evenly in such a short amount of time, and by that point the sausage will be too hot. If you want something with a bit more flavor, find some cheddar singles.

While the cheese is heating, split an English muffin and toast it. Make sure both cut sides get nice, firm, and golden.

Once out of the toaster, grab them quickly as they’ll start to cool.

Microwave frozen Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage patties (two per sandwich) for 60 seconds on high until heated through.

Lay two hot sausage patties onto a muffin half. Top with cheese and pop it in the microwave for 20 seconds.

Don’t close up the sandwich when melting the cheese as it’ll get bubbly and you’re going to want to avoid bubbles today. Top with other half of English muffin, serve, and enjoy.

Sliced strawberries or grapes make a pretty and low-effort accompaniment.

Making These for Multiple People

Toast the English muffins as usual but lay them out onto a baking sheet as they come out of the toaster. Add sausage and cheese onto each muffin half and pop the entire pan into a 350 degree oven for about 4-5 minutes until cheese is melted and sandwiches are heated through.

You won’t need to melt the cheese in the microwave when making them in batches.

If you’re making these for a crowd, resist the urge to microwave ALL of the sausage patties at once. When crowded together they’ll heat unevenly and some will be much warmer than others.

Work in batches of 2-4 patties and you’ll be rewarded.

Tips That Actually Help

• Toasting the muffin prevents it from getting soggy. One minute is usually sufficient.
• Frozen patties work just as well in this recipe. In fact, frozen may be easier to deal with since they hold their shape better than refrigerator-soft sausage patties. And, if you’re making them in batches, as we do, you may as well put some of them in the freezer where they’ll keep much longer than in the refrigerator.
• If you’re making them ahead of time, say, to eat on-the-go in the car, wrap each one tightly in aluminum foil and keep them in a 200°F oven. They’ll be nice and warm when you’re ready to go. You can keep them there about 20 minutes, or maybe a little longer. After that the steam builds up inside the foil and the muffin will begin to get soggy.
• If you’re taking them on-the-go, wrapping them tightly in parchment instead of aluminum foil will make the muffins less likely to get soggy since the parchment allows some of the steam to escape. They will of course get a bit cooler than foil-wrapped sandwiches.
• Use two sausage patties. It makes the whole difference between a snack and a meal. Our family of four eats two sandwiches per person. It’s a hearty breakfast.
• It’s quicker to make these in the oven in a batch instead of making lots of trips to the microwave. If you set them out and assemble them sort of assembly-line style, you can have them all done in 10 minutes.

Variations Worth Trying

• Add an egg. Place a small, microwave-safe bowl in the microwave. Crack an egg into the bowl, cover with a small square of paper towel and microwave for 45-60 seconds until the egg is cooked. Place egg on top of sausage patties, add cheese and English muffin top and microwave another 15 seconds until cheese has melted. It takes about an extra two minutes but it’s worth it. Breakfast sandwiches with an egg are very filling and have a lot of protein.

Be sure to cover with a paper towel to keep egg from exploding. It’s surprising but true: this works perfectly, every time.

The egg stays intact.

Other Breads

Croissants: Try halving croissants and skipping the toast. These won’t fall apart because of their many buttery layers.

Biscuits: Try biscuits for a softer, richer, more southern-style version.

Bagel thins: Go big and build a skyscraper sandwich. Bagel thins have a chewier bite and provide extra height.

Mini bagels work great with proportionately scaled-down ingredients for younger kids.

English muffins: Can’t beat the perfect size and texture of an english muffin, as the bumps and pits are the perfect vessels for pools of melted cheese.

Hot Sausage Patties

Some brands make hot sausage patties, with Jimmy Dean being the most common. These will be labeled differently, but come in the same type of packages and take the same amount of time to cook as the regular, not-spicy patties.

They have a definite kick so are not recommended for little spice-shy kiddos but are perfect if you’re not afraid of heat. For a truly spicy sandwich, sub in pepper jack cheese slices instead of kraft singles.

Add Vegetables

Fresh veggies take less than 30 seconds to add and make a nice contrast to the meaty sausage and gooey cheese. Try one of the following:

• a few leaves of baby spinach
• a couple of slices of tomato, as their tangy flavor cuts through the richness of the sausage
• slices of creamy avocado, because its texture is similar to the american cheese

Vegetable-topped sandwiches are less suited for grabbing on-the-go and more of a sit-down kind of meal.

Serving Ideas

Homemade breakfast sandwiches are a grab-and-go kind of meal. On week days they’re more of a toasty treat for special occasions, but on weekends they’re perfect for leisurely breakfasts on the regular.

Serve with a few grapes, some sliced strawberries or a small glass of OJ for a perfect and easy breakfast.

Serve with a small bowl of scrambled eggs and fruit and milk on the side. This will make your meal seem more complete but it’s not any additional work.

On crazy mornings heading to school, my kid enjoys one of these along with fruit and a travel mug filled with milk or hot cocoa. This is an easy, delicious breakfast to eat in the car.

The sandwich stays intact and is easy to eat while still wrapped as you run around the house, collecting coats and hats on your way out the door.

Make-Ahead and Freezer Instructions

• Once sandwiches are cooled, wrap them tightly with parchment paper, followed by aluminum foil. Store in freezer for up to 1 month.
• When ready to enjoy, remove wrapper and microwave on high for 90 seconds to 2 minutes, turning sandwich over halfway through microwaving.
• For best results, re-crisp muffin in a toaster oven after microwaving. Place unwrapped sandwich in toaster oven and bake at 350°F for 5 minutes.

I recommend making these Breakfast Sandwiches on Sunday afternoon. It only takes about 15 minutes to assemble six to eight sandwiches.

Just wrap them up and store them in the freezer. Then, as your grab-n-go breakfast solution throughout a hectic workweek, pull one sandwich out of freezer and enjoy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you make Breakfast Sandwiches ahead of time?

Yes. Assemble sandwiches, allowing to cool.

Cover loosely with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator or store in freezer up to 1 month.

How long do Breakfast Sandwiches last?

To maximize freshness, store in freezer. Frozen, the sandwiches will keep for about a month.

Why isn’t my muffin crispy?

Freezing will make muffins a bit soggier than fresh-baked muffins. If you crave crispy muffins, follow instructions above for crisping in toaster oven after microwaving.

Can you make these with homemade sausage?

Yes. Just cook them through, allow to cool, and use as directed.

But, I’ll be the first to admit, when I’m making sausage patties, I’m using Jimmy Dean breakfast patties because I’m lazy. You could make ground pork patties seasoned with pepper, salt, red pepper, and fennel and use them here.

It will, however, up the prep time. We are talking about the difference between two minutes of prep and about twenty minutes of prep.

What is the cost per serving?

I know many of you love to know how much a recipe costs. A regular bag of Jimmy Dean breakfast patties holds 26 patties and runs between $5.99-$6.99.

Since we are using two patties in these sandwiches, one bag would make 13 sandwiches. So we’re looking at a cost of about 50 cents for the meat.

Add in the cost of an english muffin, about 30-40 cents and a square of cheese for about 20 cents and you’re looking at a cost of a tad under $1.25 for one breakfast sausage sandwich. Not too shabby and less than what we’d pay to have something similar at a fast food joint (and you don’t have to say yes to that $2 medium hash brown!).

Can older kids make these by themselves?

Once you’ve shown them how it’s done, yes. We only need a toaster and a microwave.

My bet is any reasonably mature 10 to 11 year olds would be able to tackle these on their own. There’s very little that can go wrong.

And, it’s food they will eat. Win-win.

Help! The cheese isn’t melting.

American cheese, usually melts beautifully in a microwave in about 20 seconds. Other cheeses take longer or don’t melt as evenly.

Kraft singles, American cheese, and other processed cheeses melt beautifully. Give the cheese more time if necessary.

Some microwaves don’t have the wattage others do and may take closer to 25-30 seconds to get the cheese to soften and melt. You’ll be able to tell when it’s ready because it will begin to melt over the sausage instead of staying firm with crisp edges.

Thicker cuts of cheese will take a lot longer to melt in a microwave.

Can I add other condiments?

• You can also serve the English Muffin sandwich with some mayo on the top. We love a little mayo on ours. It’s subtle and doesn’t change the flavor of the sandwich much but does add richness.
• Those that like their food a little spicy could add a bit of hot sauce to the sausage.
• Yellow mustard adds a nice tang to this sandwich and is an underated condiment.
• Ketchup is always an option too.
• This sandwich is very basic and goes well with a lot of condiments so try out some new options.

Is this sandwich good cold?

• PLEASE do not skip the reheat step on these. Eating them cold is not fun. That English muffin will be dry and chewy. Giving them a minute to warm will elevate the entire sandwich.

More Quick Breakfast Recipes

• Sausage Croissant Breakfast Casserole: Make-ahead croissant casserole using crescent roll dough, Jimmy Dean sausage, and make-ahead egg custard recipe included. Feeds 8.
• Breakfast Potato Casserole for Under $5: Breakfast casserole recipe using a hashbrown crust, cheddar cheese, ham, and an easy make-ahead egg custard recipe. Entire recipe costs less than $4 to make.
• Quick Breakfast Casserole: When it’s important to serve eggs but you’re looking for little-to-no prep and NO STOVE use, this super easy and delicious casserole is the best. Perfect for weekend breakfasts.
• Easy Breakfast Pizza: This easy and delicious recipe is a hit at breakfast or as a late morning snack.