if i knew that you were coming i'd a baked a cake.

Monday, May 22, 2006

ELC Day Twenty-Two - Yada Yada Frittata

Every time I turn around, somebody is suggesting that I make a frittata. It's so easy. It's so versatile. It's the perfect dish for spring. Yada yada yada.

Oh, all right!

I've always been a quiche baker - it is my standard potluck dish. But omelets - no way. They always end up as fancy scrambled eggs. So I've always been scared off from frittatas because of the comparison to omelets. I shall fear no more. The frittata has been tried, baked, and declared a success.

You can use any type of cooked vegetables with this, so it is great for seasonal cooking. You can also mix in cooked pasta, or rice, or potatoes before you add the eggs. You don't have to use cheese. You can beat milk or cream or shredded cheese in with the eggs. The fact is, everyone has got a different method, making this a dish that would be difficult even for an omelet-mangler like me to screw up.

The recipe below is loosely taken from Mollie Katzen's recipe in The Enchanted Broccoli Forest. Amounts should not be taken literally and should be liberally adjusted. I used what I had.

yada yada frittataYada Yada Frittata

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
black pepper
1-2 tsp each of minced fresh parsley, rosemary, and thyme
1 tsp dried basil
2 c chopped broccoli
2 c mixed diced greens (kale and collards)
4 chopped mushrooms
5 well-beaten extra-large eggs
Cheddar cheese
Parmesano-Reggiano cheese

Pre-heat the oven to 350. In a cast iron skillet, cook the onion and garlic with the herbs in the butter and olive oil for a few minutes. Add broccoli and cook a few minutes more. Add greens and mushrooms and cook a few minutes more. Turn the heat up high briefly so that the pan is very hot when you pour the beaten eggs over the top of the cooked veggies. Turn the heat down and lift the edges of the eggs as they set to let the uncooked egg run underneath. When the whole thing is pretty well set, lay thin slices of cheddar and grated Parmesano-Reggiano on top. Put the whole pan in the oven for 12 minutes.

Sources:
Organic olive oil - Deep Roots Market
Butter - Homeland Creamery
Onion - Faucette Farm
Garlic - Cornerstone Garlic Farm
Broccoli - Weatherhand Farm
Herbs, kale, and collards - My back yard
Mushrooms - Gann Farm
Eggs - Back Woods Family Farm
Cheddar cheese - Ashe County, N.C. (from farmer's market)
Parmesano-Reggiano cheese - Earth Fare

4 comments:

sage said...

I like your comment about not taking the ingredients literally and "liberally adjusting." That's the way I cook!

mimulus said...

It looks like you have been eating very well indeed! SO glad to catch up with your wonderful description sof all your delicious repasts!

Mandie said...

Hey! You went to the Ashe County Farmer's Market! Did you see my sister? (rosemountainfarm.com)I haven't ever tried a frittata. Guess I will now, since I just retuned from the winston market with lots of booty!

Laurie said...

Nope, I meant that I bought the cheese from this farmer's market, but the vendor told me that the cheese was made in Ashe County. But if I ever get to that market, I'll definitely look for your sister!