Start the day off right with this Egg Ham and Asparagus Breakfast Bake. Potatoes, cheese, ham, asparagus, tomatoes, and sunny side up eggs make this a satisfying, hearty dish.
The old adage that bad things
happen in threes proofs to be true again this past weekend. My daughter almost
got sideswiped Friday night as she drove through an intersection. Saturday morning my husband and I avoided getting sideswiped at another
intersection. And on Saturday night, my seventeen year old son got injured working
in a restaurant kitchen. On the bright side, the incidences left just little
rattled but feeling very lucky.
As long as I mentioned children,
if you have ever wondered what it feels like to fail your child, I will show
you the way. Imagine that you are out to dinner with some friends while your
child is at work. Imagine a dinner companion gets a call from your daughter who
has gone out of town. Your daughter says that your son got hurt. He has
not been able to get a hold of you and he does not know where you are. It turns
out, the phone in your pocket was never turned on and your husband forgot his
at home! With little details and thinking of worst case scenarios, you end dinner
abruptly and everyone rushes out of the restaurant. Luckily, your son suffered
only a minor injury from broken glass and did not need emergency care. But if you
never felt like you failed your child before, you will certainly feel it when
you think about THE moment that, because of your oversight, you were not there when he needed you most.
Moving onto food, what didn’t
fail was this casserole I made this weekend. I call it a breakfast bake, but
it is great for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner. It has a potato/custard
base. I have tried this recipe with a bread/custard base, but I prefer the bite
and chew of the potatoes much more. And the addition of tomatoes provides a wonderful burst
of additional flavor and color.
This dish requires quite a bit of eggs,
I decided to use a combination of egg substitute and whole eggs to lighten it
up just a bit. There are egg substitute in the custard layer and whole eggs on
top of the casserole. In order to keep them in place, I created aluminum rings to
hold them as they bake. Of course, if you have cookies cutters, they would be the
best option, but since I do not have four of the same size I had to MacGyver
it (those who are too young to understand my reference, how I envy you!).
Finally, I added something
unconventional to a casserole—instant potato flakes. It helps thicken up the
custard while the flavor blends in seamlessly with the diced potatoes. I love
it when stumble on a good idea! Enjoy!
12 sprigs asparagus
12 grape tomatoes
1 3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup egg substitute
3/4 rounded tsp. table salt
3/4 rounded tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
5 tbsp. instant potato flakes
5 tbsp. instant potato flakes
1/3 cup minced onion
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 (20 oz.) pkg. refrigerated diced potatoes (with or without onions)
2 cups shredded Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese
2 cups shredded Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup diced cooked ham
4 large eggs
1/8 tsp. kosher salt
1/8 tsp. coarse black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS:
Note: This recipe requires 4 aluminum rings to mold eggs during baking. Directions given below.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Wash and dry asparagus and tomatoes. Cut and discard the bottom (flat end) 2 inches of the asparagus. Cut the remaining into 1-inch pieces. Slash each tomato lengthwise but keeping it intact. Working in a large bowl or the kitchen sink, squeeze the juice out of the pulp. This can get messy. Set tomatoes aside.
In a medium bowl, add milk, egg substitute, table salt, black pepper, and cayenne. Whisk until frothy. Add potato flakes, onion, and garlic. Whisk to blend.
Spray and 9” x 9” inch baking dish with cooking spray. Add potatoes. Add half of the cheese. Quickly whisk the milk mixture and poor half over the cheese, making sure to scoop up some the solids that settled to the bottom of the bowl. Add ham, asparagus, tomatoes, and the remaining cheese. Top with the remaining milk mixture. Bake for 35 minutes.
While the casserole bakes, make the aluminum rings: Tear 4 strips of 12” x 5” inch wide aluminum foil. Fold each one in half, lengthwise. Repeat fold. Bring two ends together and make a 1-inch fold onto itself to close ends. Holding the fold together, make another 1/2 inch fold. Open up the ring. It should be approximately 2 3/4-inch in diameter. Generously grease both sides with oil.
Remove casserole from the oven. Place aluminum rings in each quadrant, pressing down slightly into surface. Break and egg into each one. Sprinkle with kosher salt and coarse black pepper. Bake for about 25 minutes or until egg is set, but yolks are still runny. The custard layer should also be firm in the middle. Remove rings immediately using a butter knife to separate the rings from casserole if they stick. Allow to set about 15 minutes before serving. Serves 4.
Remove casserole from the oven. Place aluminum rings in each quadrant, pressing down slightly into surface. Break and egg into each one. Sprinkle with kosher salt and coarse black pepper. Bake for about 25 minutes or until egg is set, but yolks are still runny. The custard layer should also be firm in the middle. Remove rings immediately using a butter knife to separate the rings from casserole if they stick. Allow to set about 15 minutes before serving. Serves 4.
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This looks SOOO good, I just baked eggs for the first time last week, they came out SO stinkin' good!!! I'll have to try this next, maybe this weekend! :)
ReplyDeleteI am fond of preparing egg recipes, so I liked using egg rings mold bought from TopElectricGriddles because it helped giving proper shape to pancakes and cookies.
ReplyDeleteAlongside our customary getting ready of breakfast, we can experiment with the universal breakfast formulas. bed and breakfast Wilmington NC
ReplyDelete