Snidankova Zapikanka (сніданкова запіканка, egg bake)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •A 23 by 33 cm baking dish
• •A wide pan
• •A large mixing bowl
• •A box grater

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the dish

   Oil a 23 by 33 cm baking dish with sunflower oil, then dust it lightly with breadcrumbs or semolina. This gives the bottom a little grip and stops the soft eggs from clinging like a sulky guest. Heat the oven to 180C.

2. 2

   Wake the filling

   Warm the sunflower oil in a wide pan and add the diced ham. Let it take a little color at the edges, then add the green onions for just a minute, until their raw sharpness softens and the smell turns sweet-green. Do not cook the dill. Dill goes in fresh, where it can still speak.

3. 3

   Beat the eggs

   Whisk the eggs with the smetana, salt, pepper, and paprika if using. You want the smetana broken up properly, with no white lumps floating about, but don't whip it into foam. This is a bake, not a sponge cake.

4. 4

   Fold everything together

   Stir the warm ham and green onions into the eggs, then fold in the crumbled curd cheese, half the grated hard cheese, and most of the dill. The curd cheese should stay in small pockets, not disappear completely. Those little white pieces are what keep the bake tender.

   If your ham is very salty, hold back a little salt until the mixture is stirred, then taste a drop on your finger. Eggs hide salt until they bake, but ham does not.
5. 5

   Bake until set

   Pour the mixture into the prepared dish and scatter the remaining grated cheese over the top. Bake until the edges puff, the top freckles gold, and the center gives only a soft tremble when you nudge the dish. There should be no liquid wave under the surface, but it should not look dry. Pull it before you feel certain.

6. 6

   Rest and serve

   Let the zapikanka stand for at least ten minutes so the heat finishes setting the middle. Scatter over the last dill, cut into generous squares, and serve with sliced cucumbers, tomatoes if they are good, or a spoon of something sour from a jar if the season is mean.

Chef Tips

• •Salty curd cheese gives the best texture: soft pockets inside the egg, not rubber. If you only have cottage cheese, drain it in a sieve first so the bake doesn't weep.
• •This is friendly to leftovers. Roast pork, turkey, or kovbasa can stand in for ham; keep the pieces small so every square gets some.
• •The forgiving part is the filling. The less forgiving part is the bake: pull it while the center trembles, because overcooked eggs go tight and there is no polite way back.
• •In August, serve it with tomatoes cut over the plate so their juice runs into the crumbs. In January, open kvasheni pomidory or another sharp pickle. That's not a substitute, that's the actual tradition.

Advance Preparation

• •Assemble the whole dish the night before, cover, and refrigerate. In the morning, let it sit on the counter while the oven heats, then bake until the center just sets.
• •Leftovers keep well for 3 days in the fridge. Reheat gently or eat cold with pickles, which is how half the best breakfasts happen.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 160g)