We wanted to make a simple, hearty and relatively healthy breakfast that would be easy to serve up to your friends and family on any weekend because...well...your friends and family are awesome and you should make them something. So, why not a....frittata?
"A 'Fri-wha-what'? What's that?"
Glad you asked! A Frittata is quite simply an egg-based dish from Italy that is filled with...whatever veggie, meats, cheeses, etc you have at home (or in season!). It is similar to an omelette or a quiche without the crust if that helps!
We like it because it is typically made 'family-style', filling and looks quite impressive on the table! :P And it's easy to change up flavors and fillings once you get the basics down! Here, we made a vegetarian frittata filled with mushrooms, potatoes, onion, zucchini, thyme and tuscan kale and topped with freshly shaved asiago cheese.
We had paired it with a Mango Chai Bellini and a lovely cup of espresso. We also had a nice berry salad tossed with raw honey and orange zest that can be easily made into a a fruity cereal by adding almond milk! You can easily make a mimosa to go with this, and any fruit- we just used what we had around and found in our local farmer's market at the spur of the moment! Serve this ensemble with some crusty artisan bread of your choice, and you're good to go to have a good time with good food and amazing company.
So, here we go:
Vegetarian Frittata (serves 6-8 people from a medium cast iron skillet)
- 1/2 onion (rings cut in half)
- 1 minced garlic clove
- 1/2 medium zucchini (coins cut in half)
- 3 Tuscan kale leaves (rough stems removed and leaves chopped)
- 4 large sliced crimini mushrooms
- 3 creamer potatoes (cubed)
- 3 sprigs of thyme (leaves pulled off- toss stem)
- 1 tbsp salted butter
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 7 cage-free eggs
- freshly shaved asiago cheese or any cheese of your choice (like...Parmesan, feta cheese, white cheddar, Swiss, etc)
- salt, pepper and Italian seasoning
- Preheat your oven to 350 F
- Beat your 7 eggs with a pepper, 1 sprig of thyme leaves, 1/4-1/2 tsp of italian saesoning, and good amount of salt. Set aside.
- Heat a medium cast iron skillet on medium high with the olive oil and butter
- Saute onions and garlic until brown and translucent
- Add zucchini and potatoes. Cook until tender ~ 5-7 mins
- Add mushrooms and cook till soft ~ 3 mins
- Add Kale and season to taste with salt, pepper and thyme leaves until kale begin to wilted ~ 2-3 mins
- Once the veggies are cooked and seasoned to your liking, make an even layer of your veggies in the pan, and pour the egg mixture. Stir to create an even coat of eggs in the skillet.
- Remove from the stove top and put it in the oven for about 30~35 minutes until the top is a nice brown and golden color! (*Don't worry if your frittata puffs up like a balloon in the oven during cooking time - it will deflate once you take it out!:))
- Top with the cheese of your choice ( you can also add cheese IN your frittata when you add the eggs if you so please)
- Let cool for about 5-10 minutes before serving. (Frittatas make great leftovers - some people say they are better the next day!)
- ENJOY!
Zesty Honey Berry Salad
- 8 Strawberries (or more...could just use a 1lb basket!)
- a handful of blueberries (the more the merrier)
- a drizzle of raw honey (okay, so that may equate to 1 -1.5 tbsp for a basket depending on how sweet you want it)
- Orange zest (all to taste of course - we probably used about 1 tsp)
- Dice strawberries.
- Toss it all in a bowl and mix.
- Give yourself a pat on the back. Done.
Mango Chai Bellini
- 1 Diced Mango ( or really any fruit you can make a compote/puree with. Bellinis are traditionally made with peaches though!)
- 2 tbsp of concentrated chai tea
- 1-2 tbsp of sugar
- 1 tsp of orange zest
- Prosecco
- Put your glasses and prosecco in the fridge or freezer to chill
- Add everything is a small sauce pan and mix.
- Bring to a boil and simmer on low heat. Stir periodically until mangoes have soften.
- Remove from heat and puree mango mixture.
- Strain your puree
- Add to your champagne flutes, etc., and top it off with Prosecco. Stir well and serve.
All the best,
Salt and Cinny
