Vegetarian Frittata

We're still out of chicken, so it's another vegetarian recipe tonight! I see that Safeway has chicken breasts on sale this week, so I'll pick some up today. Tonight we're having a Vegetarian Frittata. In case you don't know, a frittata is kind of like an omelet only you bake it in the oven instead of on top of the stove. This recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, Pasta & Co. Encore. Pasta & Co is a take-out food shop in Seattle and the surrounding area.

Vegetarian Frittata
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch crescents
2 cups fresh spinach leaves, cut into a chiffonade
1 bell pepper, preferably red, roasted, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/4-inch die
6 large eggs
1/2 tsp salt
8 grinds cracked black pepper
3/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Generously butter a 9 or 10 inch pie plate. Heat the olive oil in a saute pan. Add onions and saute until browned. Add the spinach and cook just until wilted. Stir in the roasted pepper and remove from heat. Spoon the vegetables into the buttered pie plate, distributing evenly. Let cool.

Meanwhile, beat the eggs in a larege bowl just until yolks and whites are blended. Add salt, pepper, parmesan cheese. Mix thoroughly.

When vegetable mixture has cooled, pour egg mixture over it, again making sure that the ingredients are evenly distributed. Dish can now be set aside, covered and refrigerated, for up to 8 hours before baking.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 450. Bake for approximately 15-20 minutes, or until the edges of the frittata are golden brown and the center is set but still slightly creamy. Do not overbake. Remove frittata to a rack and let cool approximately 15 minutes. Carefully loosen frittata from the paln with a metal spatula. Slide out and continue to cool on rack. To serve either hot or at room temperature, slide frittata onto a flat surface and cut into wedges.

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I'll be using Egg Beaters for ours because of the cholesterol in eggs. I also have a jar of roasted red peppers because I'm too lazy to roast them myself. Plus red peppers weren't on sale this week at my grocery store.

Oh, and here's a really easy way to do a chiffonade. I use it for fresh basil all the time. Stack a few leaves on top of each other and roll from one side to the other so you have a cylinder of leaves. Make small slices from top to bottom, and there you go! Super easy.

This is a new recipe I haven't tried before, so we'll see how it turns out. The last frittata I made wasn't very good, but I think that was more because of the ingredients.