No-fuss mini frittatas

Pasta and eggs and cheese, oh my!

I like to call this my ‘clean out the fridge’ frittata. Anytime I end up with a little leftover cooked pasta, it inspires me to go rooting through the fridge to gather up enough goodies to make this quick, yummy brunch or lunch dish. Baking it in a muffin tin yields perfect little round servings – plan on two or three per person (but you can easily double or triple this recipe). Feel free to throw in whatever bits of cheese and vegetables you have on hand! I like to serve these with a little homemade tomato and fruit chili sauce on the side.

Note that this is a great make-ahead dish too, so it’s perfect for overnight guests! Remove the cooked mini-frittatas from the pan and let cool to room temperature on a plate. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap then place in an airtight container and freeze for up to two months. To serve, thaw overnight in the fridge, still wrapped, then put them back into a muffin tin and cover the top with foil. Reheat at 350F for 15 – 20 minutes until piping hot.

Ingredients

• 1 slice bacon, diced (or prosciutto)
• 3 mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 eggs
• 3 tablespoons (45 mL) milk
• 4 teaspoons (20 mL) heavy cream (or more milk if you don’t have cream in your fridge)
• 3 tablespoons (45 mL) creamy cheese (i.e. chèvre, mascarpone, cream cheese…or all 3)
• 1 1/2 cups (375 mL) cooked spaghetti, fettuccine or linguine
• 1/2 cup (125 mL) grated mozzarella
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) grated parmesan
• 1 tablespoon (15 mL) chopped Italian parsley
• 1 tablespoon (15 mL) minced chives or green onion tops
• salt and pepper

Method

• Preheat oven to 375F.
• In a small skillet, cook diced bacon or prosciutto until almost crispy.
• Add sliced mushrooms to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes.
• Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute more.  Remove pan from heat.
• Using a food processor, blender, hand mixer or stand mixer, combine eggs, milk, cream and creamy cheese. Blend until the mixture is smooth and quite liquid (scrape down the sides a few times while blending).
• Chop the cooked pasta into small pieces (less than 1 inch in size).
• Pour the egg mixture into a bowl (if using a food processor or blender) and add the bacon mixture, mozzarella, parmesan, parsley, green onions and chopped pasta. Add a little freshly ground pepper and a pinch of salt; stir to combine well.
• Grease 6 regular size or 12 – 14 mini muffin cups with butter. I don’t recommend using paper or silicone liners as you want the frittata mixture to crisp up against the metal of the pan.
• Divide the mixture evenly among the muffin cups.
• Bake for 18 minutes for mini muffins or 25 minutes for regular sized ones. Remove pan from oven and let sit 3 minutes to allow the frittatas to set before serving them.

Makes 6 mini frittatas or 12 -14 tiny ones.