VERSATILE FRITTATAS

 

Versatile Frittatas

 The New Year may have arrived without the usual bang this year.  We might be forgiven if we sang “Should auld acquaintance be forgot”, quite literally wishing to forget the last year spent in pandemic uncertainty. This Scots poem from 1788 by Robert Burns set to a folk tune has been a favorite in welcoming the New Year and rightly focuses on the past and the future. So: “We’ll take a cup of kindness yet, For auld lang syne” and hope for better in 2021!

For the home cook, January is a time for taking stock of the pantry and the refrigerator and look for simpler things to cook after the holiday extravaganza. Dishes that immediately come to mind are stir fries, tacos and frittatas. Each starts with a basic premise and relies on variety of tastes depending on the ingredients available and the ingenuity of the cook. Each provides a quick and easy meal for either breakfast, lunch or even a light dinner.

For frittatas of Italian origin the basic component are beaten eggs cooked in a skillet with another ingredient, but unlike an omelet it is not folded over. Spanish frittatas require potatoes and eggs cooked together in a pan with your choice of added ingredients. The eggs are cooked on medium heat in the skillet and the top is usually allowed to set for a brief time in a very hot oven, thus requiring a skillet with an oven proof handle.

                                       Spanish Mushroom and Sausage Frittata

1)    Peel and thinly slice 3 medium large potatoes, rinse and pat dry. Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large ovenproof non-stick pan, sprinkle with salt and fry on medium heat turning often for 15 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.

2)    In the same pan add 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and sauté: 1 medium chopped onion with 1-2 cups sliced mushrooms for 5 minutes, add 1 chopped garlic clove and cook for an additional minute. Then stir in 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 cup cooked diced sausage (kielbasa, bratwurst or cooked Italian sausage) and heat through with addition of the potatoes. Gently stir in ¼ cup chopped parsley.

3)    In a bowl beat 5 eggs with salt and pepper and pour over the mixture in the pan. Cook over medium heat stirring the eggs from bottom until most of the eggs are set. Finish cooking the top in the middle of the oven under broil for 1-2 minutes, just until the top layer of eggs is set. Remove from oven, allow to set 5 minutes and serve cut in wedges.

4)    Any leftovers can be reheated in microwave the next day and will taste just as good.

It is easy to see that this recipe has many potential variations. Breakfast frittata variations could include cooked bacon instead of sausage and slivers of sundried tomatoes. A delicious vegetarian version could feature slightly blanched broccoli florets or asparagus with maybe a sprinkling of cheddar or Gruyere cheese in the eggs. The variations are the cook’s prerogative and it is also nice to note that this dish is gluten free.

          A simple fruity desert is likely to be welcome after our cookie binges during the holidays. A fruit compote provides an easy answer and certainly has less calories than a pie without any loss of flavor.

                                             Apple-Cranberry Compote

1)    In a medium pot combine: ½ cup water, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, thin lemon zest from a lemon, 6 cloves, 1 star anise, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg, 3 cored large apples thinly sliced (use firm flesh apples and don’t need to peel them) and 1 and ½ cups washed fresh cranberries.

2)    Bring the fruit to boil and cook on medium heat for 10-15 minutes with occasional stirring, until all the cranberries have broken. Stir in 1 and ½ cups of sugar and cook until sugar is melted.

3)    Cool in the refrigerator and before serving remove the star anise. Serve in small ramekins with a sprinkling of chopped nuts or a spoon of ice cream if calories can be ignored. The compote also works well as a topping for pancakes.

The days are slowly getting longer as we enter January after the winter solstice. To quote my friend in Alaska:” Keep warm until spring jazzes the world up again”!

 (I. Winicov Harrington lives in Waldoboro and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)