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This “frittata di spaghetti” from chef Mark Strausman is a great way to use up leftover pasta, sauce and all. The noodles get crunchy and deliciously browned in spots when baking; combined with mushrooms and prosciutto, they help turn the simple egg dish into a dinner-ready main. In fact, this frittata is so good you’ll find yourself making extra spaghetti one night just to have the leftovers ready to go the next.

A flexible no-waste meal

Pasta frittatas are a traditional preparation in Southern Italy, especially in Naples and the broader Campania region. The dish is designed to make the most of leftovers — and it’s endlessly forgiving, easily incorporating any odds and ends you might have on hand. Spaghetti is a great option for the pasta element, since it lies flat and is long enough to be reliably threaded throughout the frittata, but this recipe would also work with basically any shape. You’ll often find it with red sauce, but if you have pasta in pesto or Alfredo sauce, for example, it’s certainly not a dealbreaker. And this kind of frittata is also a great way to use up any extra deli meats and cheeses, too; we suggest prosciutto and Parmesan here, but feel free to experiment with whatever you’ve got.

Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen

If you don’t have leftovers, this frittata would also work in a pinch with freshly cooked pasta, sauced or unsauced; just make sure to incorporate this prep into your cooking time.