More-Veggie-than-Egg Frittata

A couple of days ago after a long day of reading and research, I excitedly crossed off the last of my tedious “do’s” from my “to do NOW!” list and hurried into the kitchen.  I plopped a few frozen fruit chucks into a blender, whirred and scampered back to my bedroom, banana + pineapple smoothie in hand, and cozied up to my laptop to watch a couple of online episodes.  Not Gossip Girl (a show I claim not to watch, but secretly do).  Not even old Office reruns.  I sat down to review the past month of Mark Bittman Minimalist videos.  If you haven’t seen a Mark Bittman video, I suggest you sit down and watch a couple right now.  They’re such a hoot, sometimes I turn on his Chickpea video just to stave off a rotten mood!

A half hour later, smoothie cup drained, I had some great recipe ideas.  The following day, I ca-clunked my cast iron skillet out of the cupboard and hacked up a giant mound of asparagus, eggplant, four types of herbs and gobs of garlic in preparation for whipping up his  “More-Vegetable-Than-Egg Frittata.”  Here’s his frittata video, which I heartily recommend, but if you want to cut to the chase, here’s the recipe print-out as well.

One quick suggestion: an addition that made this dish especially good was the amount and variety of herbs that got tossed around in the skillet just before I poured in the eggy mixture.  If you don’t happen to have these different herbs on hand you can experiment with dry, too.  Or, if all else fails, coarsely chop a lot of garlic.

We ate this frittata along side a light leafy-green salad with roasted sweet potatoes, toasted pecans and herbed goat cheese.  We also broke into some warm buttermilk corn muffins a la Alice Waters, The Art of Simple Cooking. And on top of the frittata we generously spooned my ma’s salsa (roasted chiles, onion, gobs of cilantro, garlic, stewed tomatoes pulverized until “chunky” in the blender) and it was wonderful.

Ingredients:
1 onion, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
5+ cloves garlic
1-2 cups diced eggplant
2-4 cups asparagus
3 eggs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
splash soy milk/milk preference
1/3+ cup basil, chopped
2 tablespoons each: fresh oregano, dill, parsley (optional)
salt, pepper to taste

Methods:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Chop between 4 and 6 cups of vegetables.

2. Heat olive oil on medium in an oven-proof skillet until hot.  Add onion, a pinch of salt and pepper and cook until translucent, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and additional vegetables and cook until al dente.  Cooking time varies depending on vegetables.

4.  Turn the heat down and stir in any leafy greens, herbs, sun-dried tomatoes (if using). Remove from heat.

5. In a separate bowl, mix eggs, milk and Parmesan cheese.  Whisk.  Pour into the skillet.

6.  Bake for 10 minutes or until the egg at the center is set (springs back slightly to the touch) and the top is golden.  Let sit for 1-2 minutes and serve immediately.

Diet Notes: SCD-safe, gluten-free, nut-free