Creamy and Crispy Hash Browns Frittata – The eggs are creamy and the potatoes crisp up, creating both softness and a bit of crispy texture and crunch. A perfect breakfast or breakfast for dinner meal!
This is not my kind of food, but it’s one hundred percent my husband’s kind.
Since I was leaving him home alone with our five year old for four days while I went to Barbardos, I figured the least I could do was make him some comfort food before I left.
I had the ingredients on hand and started tossing things into my cast iron skillet and hoped for the best. I placed three cups of refrigerated hash brown potatoes in the base of the skillet. Although I’m sure you could grate your own, I used the bagged variety for convenience and simplicity.
Then I saw a long-lost can of cream of potato soup lurking in the back of my cupboard that I’ve had since the dark ages and spread it over the potatoes. I do mean spread the soup, rather than pour it. I was reminded just how thick cream-style soups are but the benefit is that it created an almost cheesy texture, without actually using any cheese. However, if you have some shredded cheese, feel free to sprinkle a handful or two over the soup.
Next, I beat three eggs and poured them over the soup and then topped with one additional cup hash browns. My strategy was to place some potatoes on the top surface so that they’d crisp up while baking, Scott loves the well-done parts of food, especially well-done potatoes and since this was for him, I wanted to ensure some crispy topping bits and pieces.
I also drizzled a couple tablespoons of olive oil over the top, added to both encourage the hash browns to brown as well as to add additional richness and flavor.
I seasoned the frittata using a favorite Mrs. Dash Chipotle seasoning blend and anything from curry powder to cayenne pepper could be used based on what you have and enjoy. Prepared soup is quite salty so I omitted adding any salt, but sprinkled a bit of pepper.
Between the weight of the cast iron skillet, the four cups of potatoes, can of soup, and three eggs I got my bicep workout in for the day just hoisting the skillet into the oven. The beauty of cast iron is that because of it’s mass and conductivity, foods cooked in it cook so evenly and beautifully, but I do need to put on my weightlifting gloves on before gripping it because it weighs a ton.
After about fifty minutes, I pulled the skillet from the oven, even though the center had just barely set and wasn’t overly brown. I knew that the carryover heat from the hot skillet would continue to cook the food, which is something to be mindful of when cooking with cast iron. I’ve read that even when food is out of the oven, it will continue to cook by another twenty percent or so, as long as it remains in the cast iron.
If you wait to pull food from the oven until it looks fully done, it will likely end up too well done after it cools in the skillet. And the frittata did need to cool and set up in the skillet so that it wasn’t a creamy, hot, soupy mess.
After it cooled, I used a rubber spatula to sliced it and put the wedges into a Tupperware for Scott to reheat in less than a minute for dinners for him and Skylar while I was gone.
I got an email saying they loved it. Soft and creamy in the middle yet crispy and crunchy on the edges and top. It was packed with flavor from the soup and seasonings, and Scott was convinced that I used cheese in this comfort-food special. However, he’s frequently confused about what is actually in a recipe.
I told him that although I didn’t use any cheese, I did use potatoes, cream of potato soup, eggs, and more potatoes, which is his idea of a dream meal.
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Creamy and Crispy Hash Browns Frittata
Ingredients
- 4 cups refrigerated hash browns, divided (or coarsely grated potatoes; I used about three-quarters of a 1 pound 4 ounce package of Simply Potatoes Shredded Hash Browns
- 10.5- ounce can cream of potato soup, cream of mushroom, chicken, or other cream-style soup may be substituted
- 1 ½ cups shredded cheese, optional
- 1 cup vegetables or pre-cooked beans, optional (diced onions, garlic, mushrooms, grated carrots, zucchini, corn, beans)
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon all-purpose seasoning blend, Mrs. Dash, Trader Joe's 21 Salute, Lowry's, or similar
- salt and pepper, optional and to taste (noting that the soup is already quite salty)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F and spray or grease a large oven-safe skillet (I (I use a Le Creuset Enameled Cast-Iron 10-1/4-Inch Skillet , skillets from 9 to 12 inches in diameter will work, or a 9-by-9-inch baking pan). Lightly place about 3 cups hash browns in the skillet, covering the base in a uniform layer. Add the soup over the top of the potatoes and spread it uniformly using a spatula because it's thick. Optionally, sprinkle cheese and/or vegetables or beans.
- Pour eggs evenly over the top, and add 1 cup remaining hash browns, lightly sprinkled uniformly over the top. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with seasoning blend, and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
- Bake for about 50 minutes, or until golden browned on top and edges have crisped up. Remember that if cooking in cast iron, there is a notable carryover cooking effect so food will continue to cook in the skillet and don't wait to pull frittata from oven until it's very browned because with carryover cooking factored in, it may become over-done. Allow frittata to cool in the skillet for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving, which allows it to set up and will be less messy when sliced. Leftover frittata may be wrapped in plasticwrap or stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Frittata is vegetarian and gluten-free, provided soup used, or any optional ingredients used, are vegetarian and gluten-free.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Do you have a favorite frittata recipe or comfort-food recipe? Breakfast-for-dinner recipe?
What do you bake in cast iron or in an oven-safe skillet?
Lately I’ve been making fast, easy, toss-together dinners, using whatever I have on hand and baking it all in my cast iron skillet. I’m convinced that almost any combination of eggs, potatoes, fresh or frozen vegetables, beans, corn, cheese, sour cream, you name it, will all work out.
Some of my brainchild ideas have worked out better than others and we’ve had some creative ones, but there have been no flops and I’ve made some meals that are new-to-us and have spruced up our dinners. We usually eat half of the batch one night, and then the next night I reheat the leftovers in under one minute, a nice bonus.
However, I’d still rather use my cast iron for a Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Oatmeal Skillet Cookie than a frittata.
The winner of the Red Star Platinum Yeast Gift Basket Giveaway is Kayle (The Cooking Actress)
Have a safe, wonderful, and very Happy Thanksgiving!
Ooh la la!! This is SUCH an interesting recipe – I love all of the things going on and I double-love all the potato action. So comforting! I really enjoy one-skillet breakfasts like this; especially at this time of year, we’re all running around like crazy people and I need a quick shot of energy in the morning, you know? Love it, Averie. And you’re simply FORCING me to go out buy one of those gorg Le Creuset skillets!! Forcing!!!!
One skillet meals are the BEST. Fast, easy, and they just…turn out :)
Love this comfort food frittata Averie ~ Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family :)
This is Marla food, well the eggs/frittata part! And Happy TG to you xoxo
This is my husband’s kind of meal as well. I love that you added the cream of potato soup. I would not have thought to do that but can see how creamy and flavorful it made this dish. I love to cook inside my cast iron skillet as well! It is so convenient but you are right…when you through in heavy foods like potatoes, soup, eggs, etc., you get your arm workout! :-)
Frittatas and egg bakes have always been a quick go-to meal here for us. When my kids were little, this was dinner one night per week and it generally consisted of the ingredients you have in your dish: eggs, potatoes, broccoli or some green veggie and cheese. Quick and easy and always made my hubby smile!
What are you doing for Thanksgiving this year, Averie? What are you cooking??! :-)
Ive been on a kitchen rampage since the moment I touched down on U.S.-soil. What haven’t I made is more like the question :) Between Skylar’s school party, our family, pre-cooking for my blog…I have lived in my kitchen. You really wouldn’t quite believe what I’ve all turned out :)
Hash browns seem to be a man food. While I would totally go for the chocolate chip skillet cookie, my Hubs would love this! Have a great Thanksgiving, Averie!
Choc chips trump hash browns ANY DAY — YES!
I think our husbands would get along well!!! I will make this for the husband next time I have to travel. Have a happy thanksgiving.
I bet he’d love it!
Girl you knooooooow this is my kind of food! Nom x 4 billion.
Eek, hope you had fun in Barbados! That’s awesome–I’m hoping you drank rum for you and I :) this skillet looks fantastic! Crispy, creamy and homey… perfect.
The first night I was there I drank enough rum for many people :)
This is so my kind of food, and it looks achingly good…I haven’t had breakfast and my stomach is growling just looking at it.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving with your family Averie!
Achingly good? Eh, not so much for me with this. Like at all. lol
Your cookies!!! look achingly good! :)
My husband would love this and I’d love all the crispy brown pieces on top – that’s the best part! yum =)
This is absolutely my kind of dish. I eat potatoes like it’s my job. I’m going to have to buy one of these skillets – they look absolutely gorgeous and I think a green one would fit in perfectly next to my red and blue Creuset pieces. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!!
I am in love with all your bread – from the fluffy buttermilk ones today to the cinn rolls last week – I would gladly be in heaven! And the skillet is so pretty in the cobalt blue in person but I would love it in the Caribbean/turquoise aqua color but they were out and this is their newer color. I bet the green would be so pretty, too!
Averie, that looks amazing! This would make my husband crazy-happy! Thanks for the inspiration… will make it for him asap.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and to yours!
Right back at you :)
Yayyyy :D Have a great Thanksgiving!
Scott and I have very similar tastes because this is definitely my kind of food! In fact, I had something very similar with potatoes the other night but it was an omelet. Frittatas are such a great make-ahead food. The possibilities are virtually infinite! Yum :)
Infinite possibilities, yes! And I am craving the crust part (well the whole thing) of your pie!
This is a potato lover’s dream–and I thought there was cheese in it too just looking at the photos! My husband and stepdaughter will love this. I’ve ziplisted it already, but….my oven conked out on me a couple of days ago. I like the thought of getting a new one (current one lasted 20 years), but I’d rather have a little time to decide what I want and then have it die on me. Timing is everything. The good news is that we’re traveling to my parent’s house for Thanksgiving so I’ll be making my roasted veggies for the soup in mom’s kitchen.
Your oven konked out 2 days before TG??! Now that is so horrible timing! I hope you get a replacement soon but what a rush-job to try to decide with the holidays, baking, etc – eek!
this looks like something my husband would absolutely adore! comfort food at its finest. thanks for sharing!
My husband would LOVE this….maybe I’ll surprise him for breakfast over our long holiday weekend….it’s almost here! :)
I know, the week flew by!