Friday Fritatta

The changing sky from our balcony

I know, I know, I really need to stop whining about winter. But it is just days before April is scheduled to make its debut and it is 19 degrees. Brr. But the sunrise was beautiful and it just has to get warmer eventually, right?

On Fridays in Lent John and I don't eat meat. It is not really a sacrifice for us as many of our favorite foods don't involve meat. We can't really complain when Friday night dinners are often pizza, sushi, a piece of fish or my favorite--frittata.

Frittatas are flat, round Italian omelets that are quick and easy to make. And did I mention delicious?You could use your favorite vegetables in a frittata or use whatever bits and bobs are left in the fridge  at the end of the week. Frittatas are very forgiving and eggs the perfect backdrop for all manner of ingredients. Think ham and asparagus or bacon and onion or ricotta and spinach or potatoes and onions.

Making a frittata is much like making a risotto.Once you've mastered the method there are no limits.

 

 My Ricotta Frittata

6 eggs

4 tablespoons milk

1/4 cup grated Romano cheese

1/2 cup whole milk ricotta

olive oil to coat bottom of 10" skillet

2 red bell peppers, sliced

1 small onion, sliced

2-3 handfuls baby spinach, roughly chopped

Salt and pepper

1 tablespoon butter

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix eggs with milk, grated cheese, and ricotta. Set aside.

Film the bottom of a 10" skillet with olive oil. Saute red peppers and onions over medium heat until they begin to soften and take on a bit of color. Add spinach to pan and saute mixture until spinach is wilted. Season with salt and pepper.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in pan with vegetables. When butter begins to foam pour egg mixture over vegetables in pan distributing evenly.  

Cook over medium-low heat shaking pan and pulling frittata away from sides of pan so that the uncooked liquid flows to the bottom. Cook until eggs begin to set.

Transfer skillet to 350 degree oven and finish cooking for 5-10 minutes until eggs are set.

Along with a green salad this frittata serves two generously, perhaps with a couple of slices left over for breakfast.

 

Have a good weekend everyone, and cook something good.

Aubergine

 It's August, and I live in the Garden State, so one would think finding an edible eggplant would be a no-brainer. Evidently not unless one goes to one particular farmer's market on the one day of the week that it is open. And this was not that day. So when John suggested grilled eggplant for dinner, my hopes were not high. When I ran into the market for some chicken, I walked down the vegetable aisle and there they were--a jewel-like mound of eggplants with unblemished, smooth, tight skin. Finally.

On the drive home, I was thinking of grilling some red peppers and zucchini along with the eggplant and making a grilled ratatouille of sorts. But when my friend, L, stopped by with a container of tabbouleh for me to try, my mind quickly left Provence and landed right smack in the middle of the Mediterranean.

The red peppers were cut into quarters then anointed with olive olive before hitting the hot grill. While they were cooking, I took two huge cloves of elephant garlic, my young friend (L's daughter) brought to me from her garden in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California, I placed them on a square of aluminum foil, drizzled them with olive oil, sealed the packet and placed them in a corner of the grill to roast and soften.

As I removed the peppers, I put them in a bowl, dotted them with a little olive oil, a sprinkle of salt and a squirt of lemon juice. Each of these steps was repeated with the eggplant and the zucchini.

 As the vegetables cooled a bit, I removed the garlic cloves from their package and gently squeezed them from their shells mashing their creamy mellow goodness into a paste which I then placed in the bottom of a bowl with a little bit of olive oil and some salt.

The remaining vegetables were cut into large chunks and put in the bowl with the garlic dressing, tossing well to coat. All I needed now was a little more salt, some torn mint leaves and a squirt of lemon for brightness.

This is hearty and refreshing dish that could stand on its own with the addition of a sprinkling of feta cheese, but we it ate alongside grilled chicken.

Sunset as seen from the deck