Spinach, Mushroom, and Ham Breakfast Bake
May 3, 2019 by Nicole Collins
Guys, I’m here to save your life today.
Aren’t you thanking your lucky stars that you know me right now?
And even better, I’m going to save your life AND feed you today.
I know, I know. I’m too good to you.
When I was driving to work the other day, I heard a story on the radio about a new study that compared the lifespan of breakfast eaters to non-breakfast eaters. We’ve been told all of our lives that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and we all thought it was just something our parents said to get us to eat our brekkie before school. But now, there are studies out there that support what our moms have been telling us since we were kids.
I just skimmed the article after I heard about it on the radio; but, the gist of the study related cardiovascular health to breakfast eating. The factoid that stood out to me was that people that skip breakfast have an 87% higher chance of dying from a cardiovascular related death than people that eat breakfast every day according to this new study.
It didn’t get into the specifics of what foods or portions are considered breakfast. Cause there’s definitely room for interpretation there. Some days I have a Greek yogurt and banana for breakfast. Some days I have a Reese’s. Don’t judge me.
Regardless, it certainly makes me thankful that breakfast is BY FAR my favorite meal of the day! Or maybe it’s just breakfast foods that I love, and not breakfast itself.
I don’t know. Let’s not peel that onion right now.
So, in the name of keeping your hearts healthy and your tummies happy, we’re making some brekkie today!
Today, we’re making Spinach, Mushroom, and Ham Breakfast Bake!
Everyone knows that the perfect breakfast has a few primary components: meat, eggs, potatoes, cheese. Well, check, check, check, and check. We’re even going to toss some veggies in there too, because our parents also told us those are good for us.
This breakfast bake is everything wrapped up in one casserole dish. We start by doing a quick sauté on some white mushrooms and spinach. We cook these veggies in a little butter just long enough for the mushrooms to start to caramelize and for the spinach to wilt. Then, we set them aside to cool slightly before we add them to the rest of our goodies.
For the potato portion of our bake, we’re going to cheat a little and use Potatoes O’Brien. You can get Potatoes O’Brien in the freezer section at the grocery store with the French fries, tots, and such. It’s essentially just diced potatoes, onions, and peppers. But, using this helper from the grocery store allows us to save a ton on prep time. And, who doesn’t love saving time when they’re hungry?
To the potatoes, we’re going to mix in the sautéed veggies, some diced ham, a mix of cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, and a couple dashes of spices. Toss is all together, throw it in a casserole dish, and pour over a mix of eggs whipped with cream and a little tomato paste (for richness). Top it with more cheese, give it just about an hour in the oven, and breakfast is served!
One of the great things about this breakfast bake is that you get one of everything in each bite. Creamy potatoes, salty ham, juicy veggies, and fluffy eggs all in one bite? Yes, please. And, I turned up the heat a but by serving it with this truffle hot sauce that I got off of Amazon. OMG, it only makes greatness even better!
This casserole is also easily doubled if you wanted to serve this for a crowd. Just add a few extra minutes to the cooking time to account for the larger pan, and you’re all set. You could even prep this casserole the night before, bring it to room temp before throwing it in the oven, and take the work out of serving breakfast to your loved ones in the morning. Easy breezy, lemon squeezy!
Alright guys, please make sure you eat breakfast every single day from here on out. I need you guys to stay healthy and happy forever! I’ll keep plying you with brekkie recipes to help. You know…for your own good.
For now, enjoy! And, let’s eat!
Spinach, Mushroom, and Ham Breakfast Bake
Serves: 4 Print
Ingredients:
3 cups potatoes o'brien, thawed
1 tbsp unsalted butter
4 oz white mushrooms, chopped
2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1 cup ham, chopped
1 cup cheddar, shredded
1 cup mozzarella, shredded
1 tsp salt, divided
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp pepper, divided
¼ tsp paprika
6 eggs
½ cup milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)
¼ cup heavy cream
½ tsp dried parsley flakes
¼ tsp red chili flakes
½ tbsp tomato paste
cooking spray
hot sauce, for serving (optional)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8x8 casserole dish with cooking spray.
Melt butter in a non stick skillet over medium high heat. Add mushrooms, and saute for 5-7 mins until the mushrooms start to brown. Add the spinach, and saute an additional 1-2 mins until wilted. Set aside to cool slightly.
In a large mixing bowl, add potatoes o'brien, mushroom mix, ham, ½ cup cheddar, ½ cup mozzarella, garlic powder, paprika, ½ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper. Toss well to combine. Pour the potato mix into the prepared casserole dish.
In the same mixing bowl, add eggs, milk, cream, tomato paste, parsley flakes, chili flakes, ½ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper. Whisk well until combined, making sure to break up the tomato paste so it's evenly distributed in the custard mix. Pour the egg mix over the potato mix in the casserole dish. Top with remaining ½ cup cheddar and ½ cup mozzarella.
Loosely cover the casserole with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 mins. Remove the foil, and bake for an additional 30-35 mins until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve with hot sauce, if desired.
*This recipe can be easily doubled and baked in a 9X13 casserole dish to serve a crowd. You'll just have to adjust the cooking time a little longer to account for the bigger pan.
*This brekkie bake is amazing served with this truffle hot sauce.
*Potatoes o'brien is a great grocery store ingredient that you can find in the freezer section with the tater tots and fries. It's just a diced potato, onion, pepper mix. It's great!
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