The folks are Farm Fresh to You delivered a beautiful bunch of freshly picked asparagus to my door last week. My refrigerator is on the fritz, freezing stuff that shouldn’t be frozen, like fresh asparagus. To avoid a crisis I had to quickly find a way to use asparagus, first thing in the morning. An asparagus and bacon frittata won out.
The key to getting the right consistency for a frittata is the egg to dairy ratio and the fat content of said dairy. Too little dairy and the frittata is stiff and rubbery, too much and the eggs won’t set properly. A ratio of six eggs to 1/4 cup dairy is best and full-fat dairy should be used. I use a combination of heavy cream and sour cream, but half-and-half or whole milk works well too.
Use a cheese that melts well like cheddar, Gruyère, or Swiss. Adding a little parmesan ups the flavor of the dish without being too grainy. If adding high-water-content vegetables like onions, asparagus, spinach, zucchini, or tomatoes, cook them and drain well on paper towels before adding them to the egg mixture. Season the eggs with salt and pepper before pouring into the baking dish so that every bite tastes great.
Ingredients
- 4-6 strips cooked and crumbled bacon (reserve the bacon drippings)
- 1 small onion diced and cooked in the bacon drippings
- 1 bunch fresh asparagus (cooked, drained and cut into bite-sized pieces)
- 6 large eggs (beaten)
- 1/4 cup whole milk (sour cream, heavy cream, half and half (or any combination))
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Crushed red pepper flakes to taste (optional)
- 1 cup grated cheese
- 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- Butter (for the inside of the casserole dish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter a small to medium casserole dish.
- Cook the bacon in a small skillet, reserving the drippings after removing bacon. Cook the diced onion in the bacon drippings until translucent, then drain and set aside. Blanch the asparagus in boiling water for two minutes then place in an ice water bath to stop the cooking process. Drain well on paper towels and set aside. Add eggs to a medium bowl and mix well with a fork. Add the milk, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper. Stir to mix all the ingredients together. Add the cheese, asparagus, and bacon. Mix well with a fork. Pour the egg mixture into the buttered casserole dish. Bake in a 350-degree oven until the eggs are set but still jiggly in the middle, about 20 minutes. Can be more or less time depending on the size of the dish you use. Check often after 15 minutes. Don't over cook. Remove from the oven and allow the dish to cool slightly before serving.