I don’t know about you, but my fridge is overflowing with leftovers from hosting Thanksgiving. Yesterday we had cold turkey meat dipped in mayo and a sweet potato biscuit on our way out the door to catch sales (p.s. thanks to Black Friday sales, Athleta is my new obsession).
Since this morning was my family’s last day visiting I wanted to make a nice brunch. I opened my fridge to figure out what I could make and had a ton of storage containers stare back at me.
I found most of a bag of fresh cranberries sitting there, waiting to be used. My mom has gone strictly gluten-free and is known to love orange & cranberry things, so I knew I wanted to treat her to Real Sustenance’s Cranberry Orange “Buttermilk” Breakfast Cake. Wesley, of course, offered to help.
After we got the cake made and in the oven, I had to figure out what else we could make to go with it. I found a half-opened container of bacon and leftover roasted Brussels sprouts. Known to be perfect together, a light bulb went off. I grabbed some of the fantastic pastured eggs we got from The Organic Butcher of McLean when we picked up our bird earlier this week. I don’t know how Don acquires such huge orange-yolked-eggs in the winter, but I’m not going to complain. I hesitate to tell you all since I know the locals will run there and buy him out of stock – but, I do like to share awesome local sources for real food. And in case you missed my Instagram earlier, this paleo-friendly shop is as legit as it gets.
Since it was just a quiet morning at home, focused on spending time together, I hadn’t gotten out my camera. My mom took some iPhone photos of Wes being cute, but we had no intention of blogging anything. When we sat down to breakfast and I took the first few bites of the meal, I knew it was only fair to share. The Cranberry Orange “Buttermilk” Breakfast Cake was fantastic. It was a perfect use of Thanksgiving leftovers – and the flavors paired wonderfully with the Frittata I made. Now that I’ve made this short story long, I think you see where I’m going with this.
Bacon & Brussels Sprouts Frittata
(also known as Thanksgiving Leftovers Frittata)
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb. bacon preferably pastured thick-cut (or ends & pieces or pancetta), uncooked sliced & diced
- 1 1/2 cups roasted Brussels sprouts (recipe in Eat Like a Dinosaur), sliced & diced
- 8 pastured eggs
- 2 T water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp lemon pepper (or whatever spices you like)
Instructions
- Add the bacon to a hot oven-proof pan (cast iron preferred). Cook over medium heat for 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, allowing some of the fat to render into the pan.
- ♥ While cooking the bacon, add 8 eggs to a bowl and whisk vigorously with water until eggs are fluffy.
- Add Brussels sprouts to pan with bacon, cook to combine – about 2 minutes. If you have leftover turkey or roasted sweet potatoes, you could dice them and add them here too.
- Pour eggs into pan and place pan in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 18 minutes.
- Turn oven up to broil and cook eggs for 2 minutes, until top is lightly brown.
When you remove the frittata from the oven it will be puffy and lovely. Our photos were taken after we’d eaten it and let sit – because after tasting a bite I knew I wanted to blog it. If you’re serving this to guests, make sure to have it timed to be served as it comes out of the oven – it’s a beautiful presentation to serve a puffy frittata. So much more elegant than scrambled eggs – yet, actually easier!
What I loved about making this frittata with the cake was that while they were in the oven, I got to relax and make people drinks, lick spoons with the kids and goof around. It was the most fuss-free fancy brunch I ever remember making. If you’re looking for a quick breakfast that includes veggies, fat & protein for the kids – this is it!
