As sunlight hours (if not warmer temps) return to Minnesota, so do the backyard eggs. This gluten free Strata recipe is a beautiful way celebrate the return of spring and fresh eggs. It is also a healthy family favorite, and a great way to sneak in all kinds of veggies.
On Our Suburban Homestead
I love how our chickens help keep us in tune with nature’s cycles. If you’ve been interested in starting a backyard flock of your own, or want to learn where you can buy local farm fresh eggs, I’ve got you covered. This is a family favorite for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Especially when the boys go and collect the eggs then crack them right into the mixing bowl!
Fresh (or Frozen) from the Backyard
This is also a great recipe to incorporate typical garden fresh veggies, or those patiently waiting in the freezer… I’ve added frozen asparagus, beet greens, kale, spinach, chard, zucchini and peppers to this recipe. If frozen you can just chop and mix in leafy greens, but if fresh you’ll need to at least wilt them. Another reason this is a family favorite, I can make it different every time we have it.
A quick word on Eggs in general. They are a solid source of protein, and extremely ecologically friendly as well. But not all eggs are created equally. The more outdoor foraging a hen can do for a varied diet, the healthy she – and her eggs will be! Typically, a pasture-raised egg contains twice as much omega-3, three times as much vitamin D, four times the vitamin E and seven times the beta-carotene then hens fed on traditional feed.
We’re happy they have lots of space and greens to scratch at all summer long. We also work hard on collecting garden ‘forage’ for our hens to keep them happy over our long winters. During our hens’ winter ‘slow down’ (chickens naturally slow down laying when there is less light) we buy from local farmers that do their best to keep happy hens too!
Strata or Frittata
Since this recipe technically straddles the strata / frittata boundaries I’ll go over both definitions. The Frittata was born in Italy, and means simple ‘Fried’. So this dish is traditionally baked on the stove top, the whole thing flipped once. Basically a very thick, non-folded omelette with all the fixings.
A Strata is American and baked, with some kind of bread (*but we’re skipping the bread so we can also skip the ‘let stand in the refrigerator overnight step), though potatoes can be added as well. An egg casserole (or hot dish for my Midwestern friends) containing protein, starch and veggies.
A Frittata is usually served with a starch, a strata served with fruit or salad. I have found adding potatoes in place of bread fits our family (and my staying away from gluten) much better. But this recipe is easy to play with and can be suited to your family’s tastes.
Homestead Strata Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp Coconut oil to coat baking dish
- 1/2-1 lb cooked breakfast meat of choice (sausage, ham, bacon…)
- 1-2 Potatoes Peeled, diced and cooked
- 2+ Cups chopped veggies (see above for my favorites)
- ½-1 Onion diced (leeks and shallots work too)
- 10 eggs
- 1 tsp each S+P
- ½ tsp paprika or cayenne
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp celery salt if have
- 1 Tbsp parsley
- 1 Cup milk
- 1 Cup shredded cheese (Cheddar, Swiss, Gruyere depending on veggies)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Prepare potatoes – I either use an already cooked/baked potato or microwave the dices in water for a few minutes to start the cooking process.
- Fully cook sausage or bacon if adding.
- Sauté the onions in the fat, wilt the kale or greens, or sauté firmer veggies in the pan too.
- Mix the eggs and the rest of the ingredients, then pour mixture into pie pan over potatoes.
- Chop/crumble sausage or bacon when cool.
- Grease bottom of pan (9″ pie, up to a 9″X12″, or a cast iron skillet) with coconut oil (I really like how eggs and potatoes bake with this oil!) Place potatoes in bottom of pie pan, lightly salt the potatoes.
Bake for 50 minutes to a full hour, checking the center is set by inserting a knife. Let sit and cool for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
*****
This is true comfort food, with a hint of spring added in…
We love this with dill pickled carrots, lots of microgreens on top or a light + lemony salad on the side.
*Leftovers the next day are always better. So if you want to, you could make this a day ahead and reheat for an easy brunch option as there’s no pastry crust to get soggy.
Dig In,
Michelle
