We love eggs! Especially the yolks! Not only are they delicious and satisfying, they are one of the most nutritionally complete and affordable foods available.
We are also big fans of one-pot, or, in this case one-pan, meals because having all of the elements of a balanced meal in one dish fills the niche that fast food usually occupies for busy people (i.e. everyone).
Frittata is one such dish, and it is one of our favorites because of its flexibility and adaptability. It can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner or even a snack. You can make it part of a gourmet, sit-down meal, or you can munch on it in the car.
It’s a great dish to make when you have fresh vegetables laying around that need to be cooked. Or, get clever and make extra veggies when you prepare other meals so you can put the leftovers in your weekly frittata. Whether steamed, sauteed or oven roasted, you can use most any cooked vegetables in a frittata.
You can add all kinds of things to make it a completely different experience each time you make it. We love creating unique flavors with accent ingredients like goat chèvre, turkey bacon, chicken sausage, smoked salmon, fresh sage, sliced or sundried tomatoes and maitake mushrooms. The possibilities are endless! Use this recipe as a guideline, and let your creativity soar!
Huevos, glorious huevos…
Make em round, make em square, make em big or small. Frittatas can mold to any shape dish!
Frittata
Ingredients
- 12 eggs
- Unrefined oil of your choice, such as butter/ ghee, extra virgin olive or coconut oil, enough to coat bottom of sauté pan and grease the baking dish
- 2 medium onions, chopped
- 3 – 4 cups of your favorite vegetables, chopped or sliced into bite-size pieces (zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, mushrooms, kale, chard, spinach, etc)
- 5 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
- 4 tablespoons or more fresh herbs (any combination), chopped: oregano, thyme, marjoram, basil, cilantro, parsley, mint, sage, chives or green onions, etc.
- 1 teaspoon real salt & fresh ground pepper to taste
- Optional: for extra custard-like texture, add ½ cup liquid, e.g. coconut milk or bone broth
- Optional: 2 chicken of turkey organic sausages, sliced (look out for sugar, apple syrup and dairy, if sensitive); you can also try other cooked meats, like rotisserie chicken or smoked fish (no sugar)
- Optional topping: 1 – 2 cups of grated or crumbled organic cheese (sheep and goat dairy are less likely to cause food sensitivities than cow dairy)
- Optional topping: homemade pesto (link to recipe)
Instructions
- Chop the onions and sauté them with oil in a cast iron, ceramic or stainless steel pan on the stove on medium heat, until soft.
- Chop the vegetables into bite-size pieces and add them to the cooked onions along with a pinch of real salt. Continue to stir the vegetables for even cooking for about 10 minutes, or until tender. If you are using leafy greens add them towards the end and continue to cook until they are wilted. Remove from heat and allow to cool. You can also just use leftover vegetables that are already cooked.
- Crack each egg into a small bowl one at a time and then add it to a large bowl. This will prevent a spoiled egg from ruining the whole batch. Beat the eggs with the salt, pepper, herbs and garlic.
- Add the cooked vegetables and onions to the egg mixture. Oil a Pyrex type baking pan or cast iron skillet with oil. Add the egg mixture to the baking pan, keeping in mind that the frittata may rise about an inch.
- As an extra flavor and nutritional boost, you can store in sliced sausages or other meat and/ or bake with grated cheese topping.
- Bake at 350°F for about 30 – 40 minutes, until you can insert a toothpick or butter knife in the center and it comes out clean. A thicker frittata takes longer to cook. If adding pesto, slather some on your frittata once it is done cooking and cooling on the counter.
- Frittatas are great fresh out of the oven or reheated later for a fast, convenient breakfast or snack.