Fresh Tomato, Herbs and Egg Frittata

August 1st, 2011

There is nothing easier or more forgiving than a frittata.  You can add most anything to it.  It feeds a lot of people and goes together quickly.  This time of year I have been getting tomatoes from the Farmer’s Market, eggs from a farm and herbs from my own herb garden.  Sunday morning is our time to indulge in a big breakfast.  The two of us cannot eat a whole frittata but that doesn’t stop me from making one with eight eggs in a 10″ pan.  We just cut it into wedges and save what is not eaten for another day.  A frittata wedge reheats quickly in the microwave.

I am not bothering to give you a specific recipe because it is so easy.  For this particular frittata I melted a couple of tablespoons of butter in my skillet.  Added chopped onion to cook for a few minutes, added chopped basil and chives, chopped tomatoes and stirred.  Then I added 8 beaten eggs.  It is a good idea to pull your spatula from the edges to the center to move the liquid eggs from the edges.  When the frittata begins to set, put it in a 350 degree oven until the eggs are set.

This is the kind of recipes that Mark Bittman offers in his new cookbook Kitchen Express.  I love this book because he offers simple combinations of ingredients using seasonal food just to give you ideas on what you can do.  All the recipes can be made in 20 minutes or less.

Here is one of his frittata recipes.

PANCETTA AND SPINACH FRITTATA

Beat four eggs; add a handful of freshly grated Parmesan, salt, and pepper.  Cut about a quarter pound of pancetta into small pieces and fry in a tablespoon of olive oil; add a couple of chopped shallots and continue cooking until the pancetta begins to brown and the shallots have softened.  Add a bunch of chopped spinach and cook until wilted and beginning to dry.  Pour in the egg mixture and cook slowly until the eggs just set.  Run under the broiler to brown for a minute if necessary if the top remains runny; serve hot, warm or at room temperature. 

There are creative recipes for everything from soup to sandwiches.  I find the book inspiring.

11 responses to “Fresh Tomato, Herbs and Egg Frittata”

  1. I love frittatas. In fact I am making one to take on a picnic to Biltmore this Friday evening. We are going to see Smokey Robinson there and picnic before hand. I love that fittatas can be serve warm, cold or room temperature.
    Hugs,
    Penny

  2. bellini says:

    This is one of those dishes we love that can be thrown together quickly ane with what we have on hand.

  3. Pondside says:

    The first time I ever made a frittata was inspired by a blog. It’s a great quick supper idea.

  4. Big Dude says:

    This is a breakfast favorite for me and like you no recipe needed, just whatever is hanging around and needs to be eaten.

  5. You’re so right about a frittata Penny. Anything goes. I too love Mark’s cookbook. The best part is that he assumes you know how to cook to use the book.
    Sam

  6. Kat says:

    Penny, I did not know it at the time, but during our power outage during the April 27th storms, I was making a frittata for breakfast everyday, actually a brunch. Having just the gas grill to cook on, I would just throw the breakfast meat, onions, etc into one pan and then add the beaten eggs. I did like you and spatula’d the sides at first, then put a lid on it and let it finish cooking! It was so good! Amazing I did not learn to do that when our children were little. They would have loved it! Like you, there would be some left and we would just eat them cold.

  7. Rita says:

    Frittata is often there to help us out when I don’t know what to make tonight; also a grat way to clean the fridge out. Really love the idea of having some for another meal.Thanks Penny.
    Rita

  8. Barbara says:

    We love frittatas at our house. Such a great way to use leftover veggies and cheese. Besides, there’s nothing better than eggs for dinner…which is when we usually eat a frittata.

  9. Frittatas are wonderful to serve when having house guests. I can make it the day before and when they arrive, serve it with a salad and some crusty bread. If they arrive late, it doesn’t matter. As you say, they can be served at room temperature or reheated easily.

  10. Katy ~ says:

    I’m not big on frittatas, but this looks delicious.

  11. LOVE your recipes!! The best ones are the “printable ones”, as the dark brown background uses TOO MUCH ink. Thank you for sharing!!

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