I have never really paid much attention to what a frittata is or how it is different from an omelet. I’m not sure why, but my curiosity was just never piqued, I guess.

Listening to The Splendid Table podcast, though, I got interested. A recent episode, entitled, “One Cook’s Trash…” cited ways to use up ingredients and the frittata was discussed.  

Since we now have chickens and anticipate having EGGS in abundance in a few months, I am very open to new (and old) ways to use eggs. I went home, opened the fridge and made my first frittata.  It was my first of many, I am pretty sure.

Why?  Several reasons:
1) It uses eggs… and that is a new life challenge for me.
2) It uses up remnants of other meals and will cut down on waste. 
3) It is simple… so simple.
4) It was very tasty.
5) It keeps well, so can be leftovers (I even ate it cold the next day!)
6) It’s good and good for you!

I happened to have mushrooms, celery, broccoli, and onion on hand.  So, I chopped them up and cooked them in olive oil in a skillet until they were soft-ish.  I probably had some crushed garlic in there, too, since I put garlic in everything.

While the veggies were cooking, I cracked eggs, 8 this time, used a fork to mix them all together, added the last of a container of cottage cheese (1/4 cup?) and a bit of pepper and some salt.

At the end of the veggies cooking, I added some basil and some Umami salt from Trader Joe’s, a new favorite.  Then, I poured the egg mixture over the veggies and let it cook over medium heat until the bottom was set.  You can tell by lifting an edge up and see that it is browning and hold together from the bottom.

Then, I put the skillet in the oven and let it bake for about 30 minutes, I think.  I checked it once and it was still a little “wet” in the middle, so another 10 minutes got everything set.

So good!  Some avocado sliced on the side and that was a fine late afternoon meal! In a month or so, fresh tomatoes alongside would be the perfect addition.  It was a tasty mid-morning snack the next day. It was all gone in 24 hours, so I was not the only one who liked it!

Like I said…simple.  And flexible.  It’d be easy to make a frittata for one person.  Of, it just may become a guest breakfast staple.  Or brunch contribution. 

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Here is recipe:

• Using a skillet with an oven-proof handle, chop up veggies you like and saute them in olive oil until soft.
• Season a bit with salt, pepper, and herbs you might like.
• Mix 8-12 eggs until well blended.  Add cheese if you like.  Season with salt and pepper.
• Pour eggs over veggies and cook for about 15 minutes over medium heat until the bottom is firm.
• Put skillet in oven at 350 degrees.  Check after 30 minutes.  
• Make sure the middle is firm and cooked through.  
• Cut into pie shaped wedges and enjoy!

Good and good for you!