Egg Bake with Spinach and Mushrooms

I’m one of those people who are welcomed by the crow of a chicken. In the morning when the sun beams through my window and I hear the roosters call out in delight for the spring sun, I smile. The chickens, as ridiculous and amusing they may be, are a wonderful addition to our family. They provide us with a dozen of eggs a day, and we eat them up with joy. Hard boiled, deviled, scrambled, over-easy, 3 minute eggs, poached, you name it and we’ve done it. Call it a crustless quiche, a frittata, an egg bake, or any other number of names, but the concept is the same. You whip up some eggs and milk, sautée some vegetables, put the two in a pie dish, bake for a while and there you have it. One of the simplest dishes to make for breakfast, lunch, as a gift, or to a party and it can be so versatile. We used what was abundant to us; which in this case was spinach as it is growing proliferously.

But feel free to add the whole kitchen sink (or garden), and I’m sure it will be delicious. Do you have chickens? What do you make with the extra eggs?

What You’ll Need:

• About 10 oz organic spinach, chopped
• 1 qt organic mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large green onion, chopped
• 4-5 pastured eggs
• 1 cup raw milk
• 1/2 cup organic half and half
• 1 cup Gruyere cheese, grated
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• About 1 T organic butter for frying
• a 9×9 inch pie pan

What to Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Meanwhile heat a cast iron skillet and melt your butter. Once hot, add mushrooms and cook for a couple minutes, until slightly wilted.
3. Add spinach and stir. Let cook, stirring occasionally, until wilted, a few minutes. Turn off heat and add green onion and mix in. Pour vegetable mixture into the bottom of a pie pan and top with grated cheese
4. In a small bowl, whip together eggs, milk and cream until frothy. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg and mix.
5. Pour egg mixture evenly over the vegetables and cheese in the pie pan.
6. Bake in oven for about 20-30 minutes or until golden brown and puffed.
7. Serve immediately, or refrigerate and re-heat later. (the perfect gift for those new moms!)

Makes 1 9×9 inch egg bake