Improvised egg bake for Christmas breakfast

I'm sure I've mentioned that I always love to prepare an egg bake for Christmas breakfast, and I plan on doing so the night before == so that all I do in the morning is put the baking dish in the oven.  I like to make muffins or a coffeecake ahead too, so that Christmas breakfast is nearly effortless.  I planned on doing those things this year, but somehow it just didn't work out that way.  I was so tired by the end of preparing Christmas Eve supper that I didn't have the energy to put an egg casserole together.

As for the coffeecake, I'd planned on making a cranberry one for Christmas breakfast, but that didn't happen either.  Mr. T and I decided that between the wonderful rye bread our neighbor had brought over, and the bran muffins I had baked to use for a kitchen gift, we could forego the coffeecake, delicious and festive though it would be.  We decided to just concoct some sort of simple egg bake in the morning. 

By the time I got downstairs on Christmas morning,  I had figured out what to do.  I love it when God gives me an idea.  The improvised egg bake turned out so well I thought I would share the recipe.  (And, by posting it here, I can come back and find it again!)

SIMPLE BREAKFAST BAKE
1-pound package of any frozen stir-fry vegetable blend, thawed
8 ounces Neufchatel cheese, cut in smallish cubes
1 to 1 1/2 cups of shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
12 eggs
1/2 cup (or so) of half=and-half cream
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. or more instant minced onion
1/4 tsp. pepper

Spray a 13x9-inch baking dish with cooking spray.  Heat the oven to 350º.

Place the thawed vegetables in a bowl or casserole dish and chop them.  (Mr. T used a  simple handheld metal chopper; I would suppose this could also be done using a food processor.)  Spread the chopped vegetables in the prepared baking dish.

Scatter the cream cheese cubes over the vegetables and sprinkle the shredded Cheddar on top.

Beat the eggs with all of the remaining ingredients until very well blended.  Pour the egg mixture over the cheese and vegetables in the baking dish. 

Bake the casserole at 350º for 50 to 60 minutes.  Remove from oven and let stand for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

When we were up north last September on our little getaway, our friend Charlotte invited us to her cabin for breakfast.  She made omelets with cheese and what I immediately recognized as frozen (cooked) stir-fry vegetables.  I thought that was such a great idea and I have since used them in frittatas a couple of different times.  I knew we had a package in the freezer, and thought they would be good in an egg bake.  They were!

Some may wonder why we would make a 13x9-inch pan just for two people.  The answer to that is simple: leftovers.  With roasted sweet potatoes, this made a perfect supper on Monday night!