Recipe Post: Yummy Yummy In My Tummy Frittata

Frittata, a little brown, but hey, I got distracted while it broiled.

I’ve said it before. I love breakfast! It’s my favorite meal of the day. Give me a cup of broth for dinner, or a bowl of soup for lunch, but I’ll never voluntarily have just a cup of tea or coffee for my jump start on the day. Frittata is an easy, go-to breakfast. Throw things in it when you need to use them up. Cook it for company when you want to appear gourmet without the hassle. Make it large for a crowd or small for two or three. Cook it in the morning and when you’re running out of ideas, eat it cold for lunch with a side of salad and a refreshing beverage. It’s an all around good choice for traditional, filling, give you energy until late lunch, morning eats.

Eggs. Yum!

I make a variety of frittatas, and usually no two are the same. I start with a base of potatoes (unless I have none), onions, garlic, veggies, and an herb, sautéed. Then I add several eggs (anywhere from 3 to 8, depending on the size of the pan), top with cheese, cook for awhile on the stove (until the eggs stat to set up on the bottom) and then put under the broiler to cook the top.

When I made my most recent frittata, I took inspiration from my uncles Paul and Dean. No one is sure which of them originally came up with their recipes for ramps (a rare, wild spring leek that grows in early spring) and cornbread, cooked with eggs and sometimes other veggies or spices, but it is incredibly delicious. My uncle Paul made it for me (calling it quiche) a few springs ago when we visited his mountain cabin in North Carolina during ramp season.

Potatoes in the oil, with heat.

But, now is not the time of year for ramps, and they don’t grow in my little suburb. I can, however, make cornbread (which is always in season if you have even an ounce of Southern blood) and had some leftover from our chili dinner the night before. (Cornbread also makes a good base if you have no potatoes). So, I threw it into the mix, along with a bunch of basil I needed to use, before the next bunch arrived in our CSA. (In fact, I used a lot of the week’s spare CSA items in this one to make room for the new batch!) Here is what I came up with:

Yum! Smell the basil!

Ingredients:

2 medium potatoes, cubed
1 onion diced
1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
1 yellow pepper, diced small
1 bunch of basil, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup of smoked turkey, chopped (optional, and you can use other breakfast meat like sausage or bacon)
1 chunk of leftover cornbread
6 eggs plus 1 tablespoon water, beaten
approximately ½ cup shredded cheddar
cooking oil (of your choice)



Directions: Heat pan, (make sure it is one that has an oven safe handle) on stove top, to medium heat. Add potatoes and onions, and fry until brown. (It is helpful to cover the pan for a few minutes to soften the potatoes). Add remaining veggies and basil, salt and pepper and then sauté for about 5 minutes, until veggies are soft. (You might want to test your seasoning with a quick taste of potato!) If you are using meat, add it now. Crumble cornbread into pan and stir well. Pour eggs over mixture, and sprinkle with shredded cheese. Allow to cook on the stove top until eggs have set on bottom and begin to set on top. (About five minutes.) Place under broiler to finish frittata. Cook until slightly brown and completely set up. (About five more minutes, but you’ll need to watch it!)

Serve with sour cream, or homemade garlic and herb cream cheese. (I’ve also made a pepper sauce using seeded, roasted and pureed pepper, salt and black pepper, and cream cheese processed in a food processor. That adds a lot more work, but is delicious.)

Piping hot! Delicious! (And maybe not too brown after all!)

 

Here are a few things that come in handy when making Frittata: