Asparagus, Bacon and Cheese Strata

I love making strata...they are easy to assemble and can be made ahead, stored in the refrigerator and popped in the oven at a later time, making them an ideal dinner for this busy time of year!  I have been making a strata for Christmas morning now, for several years.  

I assemble it the day before, and pop it in the oven while the kids open their gifts.  Then we all sit down to a nice, warm, healthy breakfast and enjoy each others company.  I found this strata recipe in Weight Watchers Quick and Easy Entertaining booklet and modified it a bit.  

We had it for dinner tonight, and it was really good!  I served it with a simple spinach salad with roasted red peppers, mushrooms, and scallions in a balsamic dressing.  

Since you only need three pieces of bacon for this recipe, you could either buy just three pieces from your deli or buy a whole package, portion out the bacon in 3 -4 strips, use what you need to for this recipe and freeze the rest.  

I bought a whole package and froze the remainder in 4 strip packs with waxed paper and then put them all in a plastic bag in the freezer.  This way, the next time I need bacon ( and in a small amount ) I will just take out the mini waxed paper pack and use what I need. 

 

Asparagus, Bacon and Cheese Stratta adapted from Weight Watchers Quick and Easy Entertaining

Servings - 6   Serving size - 1/6th of recipe  

3 slices of bacon

1/2 cup onion, diced

2 cups asparagus, frozen and thawed, cut into 1" pieces

1 cup of mushrooms, sliced ( optional )

6 slices of light whole wheat bread ( such as Nickels reduced calorie )

4 large eggs

1 1/4 cup eggbeaters

3/4 cup skim milk

2 tsp. Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

2 TBSP. grated Parmesan cheese

4 oz. shredded Swiss cheese

1.  In medium skillet, cook the bacon until crisp. Place cooked bacon on paper towels and set aside.  Drain the bacon fat from pan, then add the onion. Sauté until soft, about 3 minutes.  Add the mushrooms if using.  Sauté another 3 minutes. Turn off the heat, and add the asparagus.  Mix to combine the vegetables. Set aside.

2.  In small bowl, mix the eggs, eggbeaters, mustard, milk, salt and pepper until combined.  Set aside. 

3.  Spray a 9" x 13" baking dish liberally with cooking spray.  Place the slices of bread on the bottom.  Its ok if they overlap a bit.  Spread the vegetable mixture on top of the bread.  Chop up reserved bacon and sprinkle on top of veggies. Followed by the egg mixture and then the cheeses.  Cover with foil, and allow to sit in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or overnight.

4.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Bake the strata for 30 to 40 minutes or until the egg is set.  Remove the foil and bake for another 5 - 10 minutes to allow the cheese to brown a bit.  Let sit for 10 minutes before cutting into 6 pieces.  Enjoy!