Cheesy Ham and Asparagus Frittata

Sometimes you just need to use up random ingredients in your refrigerator... ok I feel like at least one day a week I'm juggling what we're eating and scratching my head on how best to combine a few things to make sure a protein and often vegetable don't go to waste. So for today's meal - it was some sad asparagus, chunks of ham that have been in the fridge longer than I'd like, a small block of Emmental cheese that was starting to dry out, and I knew I had 2 dozen duck eggs from my egg farmer that were already 3 weeks old when I picked them up so they needed to be used soon. Put those ingredients all together and a frittata was a no-brainer!

Your bake time will vary depending on the size of your pan, and therefore the thickness of your frittata. I used 12 eggs, when the original recipe called for 10; you don't have to use a full dozen if you don't want quite so much egg!  My cast iron was very full, as you can see. Mine took about 23 minutes to bake all the way through. If your frittata is thinner, definitely check closer to 15, and keep an eye on it until done. Over baked tough eggs are no bueno.

Dishes like these are a really wonderful way to use up some bits of protein, cheese, and vegetable that you're looking to enjoy sooner rather than later! Mix and match and come up with your favorite combination! You can use just about any type of spicy mustard in place of the "spicy brown" I used - because that's what I have open in the fridge right now. You can't really taste it at half a TBS, so if you want to amp up the flavor profile a little definitely use a full TBS!

Cheesy Ham and Asparagus Frittata

Ingredients
12 eggs
1 1/2 cups ham, diced
1 pound asparagus
1/2 TBS Spicy Brown Mustard
1 - 1 1/2 cups Emmental cheese, grated
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 TBS vegetable oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Spread the oil in a large cast iron skillet all the way around and up the sides. 
3. Trim woody ends off asparagus and dice into 1-inch pieces.
4. Beat the eggs in a large bowl, along with the salt, pepper, and mustard until frothy. Mix in the shredded cheese.
5. Place the skillet over a medium to medium-high heat and gently saute the diced asparagus with the ham until asparagus is bright green - about 3-5 minutes.
6. Gently pour the cheesy egg mixture over the top and carefully place the skillet in the pre-heated oven.
7. Bake 15-20 minutes, until eggs are fully set.

Recipe adapted from Cooking with Carlee