Egg Bakes

 

Hello Friends! 

I haven't done a recipe post in a bit and today I thought I'd pop in to share a recent weekend egg bake I made for Matt and I. I've got eggs on the brain as I'm still tending to my neighbor girlfriend's chickens and reaping the benefit of tons of eggs! ;) Don't worry, I'm sharing the wealth too. Nothing will go to waste! 

If we don't go out for brunch on the weekends, one of our favorite things to do is to make something together. Listening to music, chatting, chopping etc. And our favorite brunch items are usually an egg scramble (Matt is the master of those!) or an egg bake. More my domain as that's usually what I have made through the years. Either one is an excellent way to clean out the fridge. So even on a week night if we need to get rid of old veggies, eggs, cheese, even bread - I'll often make up an egg bake. So it's truly a method to me and not a set recipe as I make something different every time. 

A little while ago we were at one of those moments. Really needing to clean things out of the fridge. And I had a tomato on the counter that really needed to be used up. This is what I came up with:

So that day I cleaned out of my fridge a leftover polish sausage and some bacon bits. I threw them in the bottom of my greased dish. 

I then took a piece or 2 of stale bread (cubed it up) and part of a block of cheese I needed to use up and shredded it up and threw both of them over the meat. I often like bread, or even croutons in an egg bake because they soak up all the eggs and make a richer kind of "custard". That's why egg bakes are often good to let sit in the fridge overnight too. More time for the bread to soak up the goodness. 😋  

I then took out veggies I had to use up that were getting old. That day it was onion and different peppers. But other times I'll also often add greens too. Like broccoli cut up small, or spinach I'll wilt on the stove first. This day just onion and peppers though. 

In a large bowl I beat about 7 eggs (this was for a 9x9 pie pan) and added a splash of milk to it. I think I added a bit of sour cream too. I seasoned everything well with salt, pepper and other seasonings. I was going for an Italian flavor this time because I knew I was going to top the dish with tomato slices with Italian seasoning on them. So I added garlic powder & oregano. Other times when I'm doing basic flavors (like bacon or ham and cheese) I often add some dijon mustard and paprika. And I always like grating a little fresh nutmeg in my eggs. It just adds something and it's often what chefs I watch on tv do too. Just adds something extra that when folks taste it they can't quite put their finger on - but it's so good. ;) I mixed in a little of the cheese with the egg mixture too.

I then poured the egg mixture on top of the meat and cheese & bread. I made sure the bread pieces were nicely submerged. If you're doing a bigger pan or if it doesn't seem like enough wet ingredients just add more beaten egg and milk. I shredded a little more cheese on top and added some shredded mozzarella I had since I was doing Italian flavors that day. I laid the tomato slices on top and salted and peppered them and sprinkled Italian seasoning on each one. 

I baked it in a preheated 350* oven for about 50 minutes until I could tell it was cooked through and nice and browned on top. 

It's a perfect win-win. We didn't waste any veggies sitting in the fridge and we had a delish meal that lasted for a couple meals. It heats up so well for leftovers too! Have a wonderful weekend ahead sweet Friends! I hope you get to enjoy a wonderful brunch. 😉  xo