Easy Cheesy Southwest Frittata

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This Southwest Frittata is easy and perfect for meal prep or brunch with friends. Using breakfast sausage, egg whites, and fresh veggies you'll have a delicious, nutritious, and show-stopping frittata in 30 minutes.
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A cast iron skillet filled with a golden, cheesy southwest frittata casserole, garnished with chopped herbs. Surrounding the skillet are small bowls of salsa, sour cream, and fresh herbs, with a red-and-white striped towel nearby.

Nothing says brunch like a delicious and healthy breakfast to share. This southwest frittata is rich with melty cheese, southwest spices and made with egg whites to keep it light. This high protein meal is big on flavor and low on calories.

This is an excellent recipe to meal prep and reheat throughout the week or even when you have overnight guests and want to do a fancy pants brunch in the morning. Try this with Homemade Maple Chicken Sausage Breakfast Patties, and watermelon fruit salad.

Why you’ll love this recipe

  • 19 grams of protein.
  • Perfect size for the whole family.

Ingredients and Substitutions:

These are the main ingredients and substitutions for this delicious breakfast wrap. See the recipe card below for the full ingredient list and instructions. 

Bowls of labeled ingredients for a southwest frittata on a light surface: egg whites, red onion, olive oil, cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, red bell pepper, Jennie-O turkey sausage, green onions, and cheddar cheese.
  • Turkey Sausage: any ground meat: ground beef and ground pork will add a ton of flavor while ground chicken will keep it light.
  • Olive Oil
  • Red Pepper: I used red bell pepper as my only veggie but cherry tomatoes, green peppers and mushrooms are good too.
  • Red Onion: diced onion adds a ton of flavor. You can use white onion if you want a lighter flavor.
  • Fresh Jalapeño
  • Liquid Egg Whites: or whole eggs. If using real eggs, use 10-12 large eggs.
  • Shredded Cheddar Cheese: any kind of cheese is delish with this. I love Pepper Jack cheese, Mexican blend, feta cheese or mozzarella cheese. It’s also great with grated cheese on top, like parmesan or Asiago.

Variations

  • For extra protein, add some black beans.
  • Add a dollop of sour cream, pico de gallo or greek yogurt prior to serving.
  • Add green onions or fresh cilantro.
  • Cook the meat in taco seasoning for a more traditional taco flavor.

Dietary Modifications

  • This recipe is gluten-free as written.
  • To make this dairy-free, omit the cheddar cheese. If you want that creamy cheesy element that truly make this a southwest frittata, add in your favorite cheddar cheese alternative. 

How to make the Southwest Frittata (a step-by-step visual guide):

Step 1: cook the meat

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrehheit. Heat a 10-inch ovenproof skillet or cast-iron skillet with olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the turkey sausage to your preheated cast-iron pan, breaking it into small chunks. Cook the meat through, stirring often, until no longer pink (image 1). Once the meat is cooked, add the bell pepper, onion and jalapeno to the pan with the turkey (image 2). Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Add in the chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper and stir to combine (image 3). Remove from heat (image 4). 

Step 2: Add the veggies

Once the pan is removed from the heat, pour the eggs over the sausage and cooked veggies (image 5). Sprinkle the top with shredded cheddar cheese (image 6) and transfer to the oven. 

Side-by-side images show a skillet with ground meat, chopped vegetables, and broth (left), and the same skillet with uncooked noodles on top (right), similar to preparation steps in a soup, pasta recipe, or even a southwest frittata.

Step 3: Bake and serve

Place skillet in preheated oven for 25 minutes or until egg whites are set and cheese is golden brown, melted and bubbly. Remove the frittata from the oven and let it cool (image 7). Cut into 8 equal slices and serve with hot sauce, cilantro, salsa or Greek yogurt in place of sour cream.  

A close-up of a golden-brown southwest frittata in a round white skillet, featuring melted cheese and bits of vegetables on top.

Expert Tip!

Cast iron skillets will give this delicious crispy edges, you can also use a pie dish.

A slice of cheesy southwest frittata garnished with cilantro sits on a tan plate with a fork. Surrounding the plate are bowls of chopped herbs, salsa, and a casserole dish filled with more frittata.

Recipe FAQs

Can I use real eggs?

Yes, if you prefer a richer frittata, you can use 10-12 real eggs in place of the egg whites.

Can I add other veggies/cheeses?

Yes! One of the things I love about this recipe is it’s totally customizable. I suggest only adding a cup or two of veggies and cheese combined to avoid weighing it down.

A cast iron skillet filled with a golden, cheesy southwest frittata casserole, garnished with chopped herbs. Surrounding the skillet are small bowls of salsa, sour cream, and fresh herbs, with a red-and-white striped towel nearby.

Southwest Frittata

Danielle Lima
This Southwest Frittata is easy and perfect for meal prep or brunch with friends. Using breakfast sausage, egg whites, and fresh veggies you'll have a delicious, nutritious, and show-stopping frittata in 30 minutes.
5 from 5 votes
Servings 8 servings
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American

📱 MyFitnessPal & MacrosFirst App Users

You can find this recipe and many others on MyFitnessPal and MacrosFirst by searching: Ohsnapmacros – Southwest Frittata

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb. Jennie-O Turkey Sausage
  • 1 tsp. olive oil
  • 1 red bell pepper diced
  • 1/4 small red onion diced
  • 1 jalapeño seeded and chopped
  • 1 tsp. chili powder
  • 1 tsp. cumin
  • salt and black pepper, to taste
  • 16 oz. liquid egg whites
  • 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese 56 g

Toppings

  • fresh cilantro
  • salsa
  • hot sauce
  • greek yogurt

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 375 degree Fahrenheit. Heat up a 10-inch oven-safe skillet or cast iron with olive oil.
  • Add the turkey sausage to your preheated skillet, breaking it into small chunks. Cook the meat through, stirring often, until no longer pink.
  • Once the meat is cooked, add the bell pepper, onion and jalapeño to the pan with the turkey. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Add the chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper and stir to combine. Remove from heat.
  • Once the pan is removed from the heat, pour the egg whites over the sausage and vegetable mixture. Sprinkle the top with shredded cheddar cheese and transfer to the oven.
  • Bake for 25 minutes or until egg whites are set and cheese is melted and bubbly. Remove the frittata from the oven and let it cool. Cut your southwest frittata into 8 equal slices and serve with hot sauce, cilantro, salsa, or Greek yogurt in place of sour cream.

Notes

  • All nutrition facts are an estimate. 
  • If using egg whites from real eggs, 16 oz is equivalent to about 10-12 large eggs. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1 sliceCalories: 167kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 19gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 63mgSodium: 537mgPotassium: 15mgFiber: 0.2g
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

13 Comments

  1. I transferred everything to a pyres dish to bake. It never cooked through even after another 15 minutes 🫣. Any tips there? I didn’t have an oven safe skillet available to use.

  2. 5 stars
    I’ve made this recipe a few times and it is so good!! I top it with salsa and nonfat Greek yogurt!!

  3. Silly question, but is there any fiber in this recipe? I don’t see any listed. Love your recipes!!! 🙂

    1. You can weigh your dish before and after baking to find the total grams per serving. I do not include it for recipes like this that are solid and suggest you weigh yourself or cut into equal portions as mentioned because I do not believe in ruining something like this for 5 grams here and there. So you’re welcome to find the weight if you’d like. Simply weight your cast iron, weight your final baked dish and subtract the cast iron. Divide by servings and you have the total per serving. 🙂

5 from 5 votes

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