Entries Tagged as 'eggs'

Another Frittata- Yada Yada Yada

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Frittatas, basically Italian omlettes, are extremely versatile. Cooked on the stove-top and finished under the broiler, frittatas meld their various ingredients into a somewhat dense, delicious, and versatile pie that can be served any time of day, from scratch dinners, to mimosa-filled brunches.

Making a frittata takes following a recipe only once, as preparation is more of a method, rather than a series of precise measurements, techniques and temperatures.

At home, I use a 10-inch non-stick skillet with straight sides to saute aromatics such as onions and garlic, along with whatever I have on hand for the filling. Filling, aside from whisked eggs (generally 4-8, depending on the size of your skillet) can be just about anything you’d like-vegetables, pasta, potatoes, cheese and meats in any combination will work.

For this frittata, I sauteed chopped asparagus, cooked and cubed red potato, shredded country ham, and ramps. Next, I poured over 6 whisked eggs to which I added a splash of cream and a handful of shredded fontina (which is among the most fabulous melting cheeses). The mixture cooked over medium heat as my oven’s broiler came up to temperature. Occasionally, I used a rubber spatula to run around the edge of the frittata as it set about half-way.

In the broiler, the frittata continued to cook 4 inches from the heating element until it set (with just a little wiggle when shaken) and became golden brown. After letting the frittata rest for a couple minutes, I flipped it onto a serving plate and it released instantly.

If you are bringing the frittata to the table for presentation before cutting, I suggest placing another plate on top, and giving the frittata another flip to show off the golden top.

As for the taste of this frittata-delicious! However, after eating ramps for 3 days in a row now, I have to say, I’m beginning to reek a bit. They’re starting to repeat on me, and it’s not pretty. To wit-this is my bichon frise before I burped up Appalachian weed breath on him:

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This if after:

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Yeah, not pretty*.

*note to self-give Cole a bath tomorrow.

Asparagus, Ham And Smoked Gouda Frittata

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Don’t you just love asparagus season? I confess that I buy asparagus year round-I love it. But the purple-tipped local asparagus at the farmers markets is really special, and I wanted to make a recipe to showcase them.

For DC Foodies, I created a Mother’s Day brunch menu, incuding this frittata, a warm spinach salad and rosemary potatoes. It was easy and so delicious. Frank gave the frittata two thumbs up when I made this meal for dinner recently.

 Go check it out here!

Easter Eggs From Nature

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White, brown, sand, green and blue on the outside, and deep orange on the inside-my farmers eggs are natural Easter eggs fitting of a Martha Stewart table.

Happy Easter.

Frisee Salad With Sherry Vinaigrette, Bacon and Poached Egg

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Check out how to make this classic bistro salad in my weekly DC Foodies post at http://www.dcfoodies.com/.

The Spanglish Sandwich - cue the Hallelujah Chorus

When I first saw the movie “Spanglish”, I did not take note of the sandwich per se. I was entranced by Adam Sandler pouring his beer blindly. I thought to myself “I wonder how many takes that took!” and “Mmmmm…..beer”. Then I watched the movie again. I thought it brilliant that his character automatically plated his sandwich in food photo fashion. Slice, separate and let the egg run. I’m sure that was all Thomas Keller.
Speaking of brilliant, this sandwich has been dubbed “The World’s Best Sandwich”. It’s really that good. I wanted to keep true to the recipe and ingredients, but wanted the sandwich to reflect the products I get locally. You’ll see the original recipe below, with my local ingredients which I used, beside them in parenthesis.

Ingredients:

3 to 4 thick slices of bacon

2 slices Monterey Jack cheese ( Keswick Creamery Cheddar)

2 slices pain de Campagne (Atwater Bakery country white loaf), toasted

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

4 slices tomato (Allenberg Orchard salad tomatoes)

2 leaves butter lettuce (red leaf lettuce)

1 teaspoon butter

1 egg

Directions:

Cook bacon until crisp. Allow bacon to drain on paper towels.

Lightly toast bread. I used my broiler and kept it on until I needed it to melt the cheese.
Place cheese on one slice of bread. On the other slice, spread mayonnaise and layer bacon, then tomatoes and then the lettuce.

Melt butter in non stick fry pan and cook egg over easy. Keep it gooey!

Melt cheese under broiler.

Place egg on lettuce.

Place melted cheese bread on top,cheese side down.

Slice and allow egg to run!

Now go wipe the egg yolk and tomato juice from your chin!