This recipe was originally created to use a leftover ham. But it was so tasty and became so popular, that it made its place into our regular repertoire of favorite recipes. Cheap and easy to make.
Ham and Pasta Bake (aka Best Ham Leftover Dish)
Ingredients:
1 bag of favorite pasta any shape (I like elbows or shells) – cooked al-dente
few table spoons of olive oil
1 small onion, halved and chopped into half a rings
half a leek (optional) – clean and cut into slices
1 half of green pepper –
2 cups of leftover ham, cut into a small cubes (you can also use a leftover sausage in place of ham)
6-8 eggs (you can substitute part of it by egg whites)
1/4 cup of milk
salt and pepper
Cook pasta according to instructions, drain and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle pasta with an olive oil and stir. Season with salt and pepper. Add pieces of ham, peppers and leeks and mix it all together.
Spread a pasta mixture into a medium sized baking pan (since we already put some oil directly to the pasta, there is no need to grease the pan) about 2 inches high and put in oven for 20-30 minutes. (I usually leave it a little longer because I like the hard crust pasta develops on the edges).
When the onion and leaks are cook soft and pasta is getting spots with crust, take the dish out of the oven. Beat eggs, mix it together with milk (event. egg whites if you choose), add a little more of salt and pepper and pour evenly over the baked pasta. It should be all covered. If necessary, add more eggs.
You can also add 1/2 of grated cheese (any kind) to the egg mixture to create another, richer flavor. Totally optional.
Return dish to the oven and bake another 15 – 20 minutes or until the eggs are set (it depends on thickness of your mixture). Pierce the pasta dish with a wooden stick to check if eggs are set all the way through. (if you take out the stick and it’s dry, the dish is ready).
Remove from the oven and let cool a little before serving. We like to cut pieces and serve it directly from the baking dish with a pickle on the side.
Wine pairing suggestion:
This is a delicate dish but the eggs and ham makes it rich in flavors. I was looking for a little more bodied white wine to pair with and came up with a new Australian blend from Peter Lehmann’s winery called Layers. It was divine! If you have an oaky Californian Chardonnay, that would work very well too!
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