Dinner-Time Egg and Vegetable Casserole

This one-dish meal started with an easy-enough thought – baked eggs with vegetables. Sounds simple enough, but I couldn’t find a version that worked for all of us. I started out with broccoli quiche: too rich for family dinner, and the kids didn't really care for it. Next I tested crustless versions, eventually arriving at a recipe that dramatically reduced the amount of cheese that had been in the first, over-the-top fat-laden pie, but the kids never really warmed to it.

This fall I experimented with the classic rectangular “casserole” shape, adding more vegetables and the sautéing step. The happy accident of the cauliflower (I was a little short on broccoli that day) tipped this into the keeper category. Sautéed cauliflower is sweet and nutty, adding tons of flavor. It does tend to disintegrate, and used alone it wouldn’t stand up to the eggs and cheese, but as a little grace note of flavor it was lovely.

This makes 6 generous main-meal servings, and could stretch to 8 if served with salad and bread, so don’t be put off by the full dozen eggs. 

Dinner Time Egg and Vegetable Casserole

12 eggs (or 6 eggs and equivalent 6 eggs, Egg Beaters substitute)

½ brick (4 oz) Neufchatel or low fat cream cheese

Generous splash (about 2 tablespoons) 2 percent milk

About 1/2 inch squeeze of garlic from tube (or 1 clove garlic chopped fine)

Salt and pepper

Oil for sauteeing

1 medium waxy potato, peeled and diced

2 ½ cups fresh broccoli florets

¾ cup fresh cauliflower florets

1 carrot, peeled, diced

1 medium onion, diced

½ tsp. marjoram

¼ tsp. thyme

½ tsp. Penzey’s Herbes de Provence (or increase marjoram and thyme)

½ to ¾ cup grated cheese (for the top). I used a low-fat Mexican blend, but I think something with more intensity, like a better-quality sharp cheddar, not pre-grated, would have been better.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large skillet or sauté pan, cook the vegetables in the following order: Potato until starting to brown a bit. Lower heat slightly and add onion, carrot. Cook for about 2 minutes, then add broccoli and cauliflower and the herbs. Cook until broccoli and cauliflower are about half cooked.

Note: If you prefer a more appetizing green color, steam the broccoli separately until partially cooked, then blanch in cold water. I sacrificed color for the sautéed flavor.

Meanwhile, spray a 9 x 13 glass casserole pan with oil. In a bowl, beat eggs. Add milk and cream cheese to eggs and mix (I used a whisk, then immersion blender, because I am lazy, but a stand or hand mixer would probably get a fluffier outcome.) Add the garlic, salt, and pepper. 

When vegetables are partially cooked, put them in the casserole dish. Pour the egg mixture over the vegetables. Sprinkle top sparingly with the grated cheese. You want enough cheese to get a hint every couple of bites, but don’t coat the top like pizza.

Cook uncovered for 25 minutes, until casserole is puffy and top is brown.

Breakfast for Dinner: Stovetop Frittata

Breakfast for dinner – am I the only one who does this? (Don’t break it to me if I am.) For us, Thursday tends to be the night. Everyone’s tired from a week of work, the house has given up all pretense of the almost-clean it achieved the weekend before, and anything easy sounds good.

Last week I made this stovetop frittata, and French toast. I confess that the kids were not as interested in the egg dish as they were in the syrup-delivery dish. 

 
Frittata is a basic whatever-you-have-in-the-house dish. Add diced meat and cook the eggs sunnyside on top, and you have a skillet hash.


Stovetop Frittata with Spinach and Broccoli (vegetarian)

- 1 medium package hashbrown-cut potatoes, browned and kept warm (I used frozen, because we had some on hand, but any type of potato, browned, will do. Cut it into small enough pieces and it will cook quickly.)
- oil or spray oil for cooking
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
- ½ red or green bell pepper, diced
- About ¾c to 1 cup of frozen spinach, cooked about halfway done, drained and dried between paper towels. You want enough to make it green, but not enough to overwhelm the flavor
- About ¾ cup broccoli, cooked about halfway done
- Grated cheese, whatever you have on hand (mild chedder, Colby, etc.) You’ll just need enough to flavor the top of the frittata, about 1/4  cup. Low fat is fine (non-fat is an abomination.)
- 2 small or 1 large roma tomato
- 6 eggs (Egg beaters would also be fine, or a mix of both)
- (optional) meat substitute. I added about 2 oz. Gimme Lean Sausage, mostly for the flavor.
- (optional) seasonings of your choice, if you don’t use something like sausage substitute. I'd use marjoram and thyme. (I just realized that I use marjoram about 5 times a week. Not sure if other people love it the way I do, so suit yourself on this step.)
- Salt and pepper

In a large skillet (I used a 10” cast iron) sauté onion, garlic, and bell pepper until softened. Add the cooked, warm potatoes and stir. Add the well-drained spinach and broccoli. Stir together and add seasonings. Cover and allow flavors to blend for 2 or 3 minutes until mixture is bubbly and warm.

In a small bowl or mixing cup, slightly whisk the eggs, seasoning with salt and pepper.

Lower the heat to low or medium low, so that the mixture stays warm but bottom does not get too brown. Smooth the top of the mixture in the pan and pour the eggs on top. Cover and allow to cook for about 2 minutes, checking for doneness. (Note, if the eggs are not cooking through, stir eggs into the mixture, cover the pan, and wait another minute or two for eggs to set. biting into raw eggs = gross!)

When eggs are nearly done, add the sliced roma tomatoes in an attractive pattern on top and sprinkle cheese over that. Cover and cook until cheese melts.

Serves 4 with leftovers

Chilaquiles with eggs

No matter how we parents talk the big talk about how our kids will eat your vegetables and enjoy what you are lucky enough to get, darnit, we can't help but feel warm and fuzzy when they love whatever goes on the table for dinner.

And a meal that had my 10yo asking his dad to make it for his birthday party? A meal that cost maybe $2 for the four of us? A meal that is piquant and savory, filling, fast, and meatless? That's a perfect first recipe for a new blog.

Chilaquiles with eggs and queso fresco, garnished with yellow tomato and avocado

This recipe is forgiving of modifications - whatever you have or like, go ahead and throw it in. Tom says that authentic Mexican restaurants don't serve it with eggs, but we found it delicious that way. He also says restaurants will deep fry the tortillas - we don't have a deep-fryer, so he just crisps them a bit in the pan.

Chilaquiles with eggs

Ingredients

Soft corn tortillas, about 6 or 8, cut into about 1" to 2" pieces. (slightly stale tortillas are fine.)

Vegetable oil (for sauteing)

medium onion, chopped into small pieces

green pepper, chopped into small pieces

(and/or one small can mild green chiles)

4 cloves garlic 

about 1/2 cup red tomato salsa (we use medium heat)

8 oz. can tomato sauce (mexican style is fine, or plain old hunts)

Salt and pepper to taste

For topping:

4 eggs (8 if your diners are really hungry)

Green onion, chopped

(optional) cilantro, avocado, sour cream, queso fresco, thin-sliced radishes, hot sauce

Fry tortillas in a little bit of oil in a large nonstick skillet, until crisp. Put aside on a paper towel to drain.

In the same pan, saute onion, green pepper over low heat. When 90% soft, add garlic. Saute until everything is soft and your kitchen smells like heaven. Add salsa and tomato sauce. On low heat, simmer  for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add fried tortillas and allow to continue to cook another 2-3 minutes until tortillas have soaked up the sauce. 

Serve topped with green onion and fried egg. Add optional toppings as desired.

Serves 4