Breakfast is absolutely my favorite meal of the day. In fact, I enjoy breakfast foods so much that I can recall the first time I was introduced to various breakfast foods, including breakfast burritos, cheese toast, a full English breakfast and bagels with cream cheese. Perhaps the most memorable first, though, was the first time I ate a breakfast casserole. It was on a Saturday morning in June 1995.
It was the weekend of City Stages, a now-defunct music festival in Birmingham, Alabama. My date and I went to a brunch before heading to the festival. Our host served breakfast casserole with fresh fruit and mimosas. It was filling, but not heavy, and so very delicious. I asked for — and got — the recipe, and I cooked it for many years whenever I had guests over as well as on Christmas morning. But I won’t share that recipe with you today. Like many of the other breakfast foods I mentioned in my introduction, it isn’t healthy.
Luckily, though, I have found a healthy breakfast casserole recipe to replace the unhealthy one. It features spinach, which is one of our favorite foods. A recent report said that eating just one serving of spinach daily may help slow the process of age-associated cognitive decline. In other words, eating a serving of spinach every day is an easy and affordable brain booster. So I was very happy to find a new recipe featuring spinach (I am approaching 50, after all). Spinach also contains natural compounds that quell your hunger and possibly help you eat less, if weight loss is a goal.
Healthy breakfast casserole
- 2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
- 12 ounces mushrooms, sliced
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ cup salsa
- 5 eggs
- 5 egg whites
- ⅓ cup water
- 3 shallots, thinly sliced
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a 7-by-11 glass or ceramic baking dish with olive oil spray and set aside.
- Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are tender.
- Add the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil and the spinach. Cook until the spinach has cooked down and is bright green, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Season with the sea salt and pepper. Drain any extra liquid.
- On the bottom of the prepared baking dish, spread the mushroom and spinach mixture evenly. Spoon the salsa over the mushroom and spinach mixture.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg whites and water. Pour the egg mixture over the mushroom, spinach and salsa mixture. Sprinkle the shallots over the top.
- Bake until the eggs are set and are starting to turn light golden brown, about 25 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a fork or toothpick into the middle of the eggs. It should come out clean, but slightly wet.
- Allow the casserole to sit for about 5 minutes, then cut into pieces and serve. Fresh fruit makes a good accompaniment.
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