1-1/2 lb. Italian sausage
12 oz. loaf French bread
4 oz. can mushrooms
6 lrg. eggs
1 qt. milk
2 tsp. Italian seasoning (Watkins is the best)
1/2 tsp. garlic pwd., optsp.
1/4 tsp. pepper
8 oz. pkg. (2 cups) mozzarella cheese, shredded
4 oz. pkg. (1 cup) cheddar cheese
parsley, chopped

Night before serving: Grease a 9 by 13 in. glass baking dish. In 10 in. skillet, over med. heat, cook sausage. Stir frequently to break up sausage until thoroughly cooked and no longer pink. Using slotted spoon, remove sausage to paper towels to drain. Cut french bread into 1/2 in. cubes. Drain and chop mushrooms. In lrg. bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, Italian seasoning, garlic pwd. and pepper. Pour egg mixture over sausage mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

About 1-3/4 hours before serving: Preheat oven to 350°F.

Bake strata uncovered for 1 hour. Remove from oven and sprinkle evenly with cheeses.

Bake 15 min. longer or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Remove strata from oven and let stand 10 min. for easier serving. Garnish with parsley.

Makes 12 main-dish servings.