Icelandic Asparagus & Ham Bake

Submitted by twissis

"This tasty & versatile dish is very popular in Iceland & uses common ingredients. It is ideal for a brunch, luncheon entree or potluck occasion & also works for a dinner meal when combined w/a salad & crusty bread. Another popular variation skips the use of bread + the reserved liquids & combines the remaining ingredients to use as a filling for tartlet shells that can be served as a starter course or brunch & luncheon entree ... hence its versatility. I hope you will give this dish a try & enjoy it as we do here in Iceland. :-)"

 

• Ready In: 45mins
• Ingredients: 8
• Yields: 8 Wedges
• Serves: 8

ingredients

• 4 slices sandwich bread (white or wheat, lrg size & not thin-sliced, cut or torn in roughly 3/4 in pieces)
• 2 eggs
• 14 ounces cream cheese (softened)
• 1⁄2 lb ham (diced, Deli-type pkg is fine & a larger or smaller amt is fine as well)
• 4 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 (8 ounce) can mushrooms (stems & pieces, chopped, drained & liquid reserved)
• 1 (10 1/2 ounce) can asparagus (cut spears, drained & liquid reserved)
• 1 cup cheddar cheese (finely shredded)

directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C) w/oven rack placed in the center position of the oven.
2. Lightly grease a 9-in rd baking dish (or spray w/PAM type spray) & set aside.
3. Place cut or torn bread pieces in a lrg mixing bowl & add liquid reserved from draining the mushrooms & asparagus.
4. Allow bread/liquid mixture to sit for a short time while liquid is absorbed & stir as needed (May add milk if more liquid is required to completely moisten the bread pieces, but it is unlikely to be needed.).
5. Add eggs to bread mixture & mix well.
6. Add cream cheese, ham, mayo, mushrooms & asparagus to the bread mixture & mix very well to combine (This will break up the asparagus pieces & is what you want to happen).
7. Pour mixture into baking dish. Sprinkle surface evenly w/shredded cheddar cheese & use your hand to press it lightly into the surface.
8. Bake for 30-40 min or till golden brown & tests done using a sharp knife in the center. Tent w/foil as needed during baking if browning faster than expected. Serve at once or set aside at rm temp & reheat in microwave as needed.
9. NOTE: Seasonings of choice can be added to suit individual preferences (esp pepper & garlic). My experience was the combo of canned mushrooms & asparagus + the reserved liquid used + the ham meant that no added salt was needed.

Reviews

[Ck2plz]

Great ingredients but came out too soft. I did add 2 extra pieces of bread after reading Loof's review just to make sure it wasn't soft. You don't need to add any milk because there was plenty of liquid; I will reduce the liquid just a tad next time. ZWT9 made for the Gourmet Goddesses July 2013

 

[DeniseBC]

Tasty and good! Next time I will play around with it a bit, but it was tasty just as it was! Sorry for the late review in honor of your Football Pool win!

 

[loof751]

This is an easy and tasty casserole! I loved the ham with the asparagus and mushrooms. To me my bread wasn't thin sliced but the casserole came out softer than I expected so I'll add a couple of extra slices next time. I did add a little garlic powder as you suggested but I agree that no salt was needed. Thanks for posting your recipe!

 

[ChiefWright]

A conventional, but dandy bake! It lends itself wonderfully to improvisation. I added garlic flakes and sundried tomatoes. Didn't have enough bread, so I added an extra egg. It came out a bit soft, but not runny. And very, very yummy! Thanks, twissis!

 

[Bokenpop aka Mad]

I wish that I had come across this delicious recipe a long, long time ago! I have made it three days in a row now since the family asked for it repeatedly. My bake seems to be more solid than the photo so I chose to make it as a nourishing "breakfast-on-the-go" slice. With this recipe, the possibilities are endless for meat and vegetable combinations, however, the Icelandic way is exceptionally good. Thank you, Twissis, for an excellent recipe.