Preheat oven to 400°F

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat*

Add the hash browns, cook until they defrost and break apart

Turn the heat up to medium-high and brown the hash browns on both sides

Grease a 9X13″ baking dish, spoon the hash browns into the baking dish in an even layer, set aside

Add the breakfast sausage links to the skillet, cook until browned on all sides and cooked through, remove from skillet and set aside

Reduce the heat back to medium and add the onion, pepper and tomatoes to the skillet, sauté until the onions have softened and turned translucent

Remove the skillet from the heat

Slice the sausage links into bite sized pieces

Spread them out over the hash browns in the baking dish

Spoon the onion, peppers and tomatoes over the sausage in an even layer

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs with the salt and pepper

Pour the egg mixture over the casserole, distribute evenly

Top the casserole with a thick layer of shredded cheese

Place the casserole in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes

Turn the oven to broil for 1-2 minutes before removing the casserole to brown the cheese if desired

Let the casserole rest at room temperature for at least 10 minutes before slicing