Recipe: Frittata

Repurposing leftovers. I think that is something we all think about. After all, no one wants to eat the same thing 3 days in a row. (Unless they are some of my favorites like Honey Nut Cheerios or Caprese salad. I could eat these every day. Not kidding.) Okay so we have these left overs and don't want to eat them again and definitely don't want them to go to waste. We all have our go-to dishes for leftovers. Mine is almost always soup, especially in the fall/winter months. Now that spring is coming our way, I decided to branch out. 

I went with a frittata. Which always brings the question, what is the difference between a quiche and a frittata? Well, there are a couple of them. First off, quiche is a baked custard, so in addition to eggs, it has a good amount of cream. It is also baked in a crust. Frittata is like a baked omelet so there is very little (if any) liquid added to the eggs. It is a fantastic way to use up vegetables that are about to go bad or those leftovers we spent an entire paragraph talking about. Remember?

Frittata

6 eggs (or so - I had a lot of add ins and wanted the eggs to play a dominate role. Feel free to start with 4 and add more if you need it.)

Vegetables of your choice - think about colors! (about a cup)

Sausage or bacon or ham (I'd stick to pig for this or go meatless - you'll need about a cup)

2 potatoes (can be used as a crust or cubed, sautéed and added to the egg mixture)

Cheddar cheese (about a cup)

Don't you love my measurements? That is how you know this is all about leftovers. I used what I had in my fridge. Do the same.

For this frittata, I decided to start with a potato bottom crust. (You don't need a crust, I just wanted to use up potatoes.) I sliced them thin and layered them in a cast iron skillet in a little melted butter. After they were layered, you want to season them. I let it sauté for about 5 minutes on medium low while I started cutting up some of the vegetables I wanted to use. 

Then I put it into a preheated oven for about 10 minutes while I prepped the other vegetables. Next, I blanched apparatus and sautéed red bell peppers. I already had leftover sausage ready to go. After that it is all about putting it together. 

I put the sausage right on top of the potatoes so I knew it was dispersed evenly.

Mix the vegetables in with the beaten eggs. I added a little bit of cheese to this mixture. I don't regret it. I do regret using a yellow bowl with eggs. I may never get that right. Sorry. Also, you are going to want to salt and pepper this mixture.

Carefully pour the egg mixture over the potatoes. This is when I realized I needed more egg. So I beat a couple of extra and added them to the top. 

Now let's talk about baking it. I baked it for about 20 minutes and added cheese to the top. After this point, you want the cheese to melt and the eggs to reach about 160 degrees. 

Cut it up. Eat it hot. Eat it cold. Add salsa. (If you're one of those people who eat ketchup on everything, go ahead, just don't make me watch. I still like you. Don't worry.)

I was busy talking to my grandpa and didn't watch the time as close as I should and overcooked it a little. The flavors were great and the texture was just a little off. It was worth it. We were talking about shooting targets. He taught me how to shoot. 

Now that I am done remembering shooting with grandpa (it's been way too long!), I am going to encourage you to give this a shot the next time you are wondering what to do with your leftovers!