I love making frittatas. Because they are so easy. They are my cheat omelettes.
If I have it correct, the word frittata is Italian for fried. It was widely used for a time to refer to anything fried, particulary with eggs, and then specifically for open omelettes.
My journey to discovering frittatas went like this.
I really like the idea of making omelets. Fluffy golden light eggs, with veggies and melted cheese centres… packed with herbs… and all quickly done in the pan! The only problem is that I have never been very good at making omelettes… ( and I know a perfect omelet is the hallmark of chef).
All usually goes very well right up to the point where I have to fold the omelette. I ALWAYS stuff it up. At some point I realised that it probably has something to do with trying to incorporate too many veggies and other ingredients into my omelettes, making them them too fat to fold.
So I brazenly decided to just make fat, open omelettes without regard for omelette convention. Until one day, while explaining what I was cooking to someone, the someone said ‘Oh you are making a frittata!’
And so…
Frittatas = stylish way to squeeze out of my own complete inability to fold an omelette
Frittatas fit in the middle between making an omelette and making a crustless quiche. Only without having to fold the omelette, and without having to bake the quiche and use the oven. Convenience and reduced energy cooking combined!
Like with omelettes, you can add almost any assortment of ingredients you like to frittatas. Ham, tomato, herbs etc. I really like doing vegetarian versions, as I find that the eggs and cheese combined with the right veggies makes for a great combination. Plus being usually below budget and yet another way to sneak some vegetables into people’s stomachs.
This leek and celery frittata is one of my favorite variations. The two flavors make for a country style, garden cottage kind of feel.
To start off with I usually whisk my the eggs together with some soft cheese. For this recipe I used a type of soft feta, but you can use cream cheese or cottage cheese as well. I chop the herbs and add these along with salt and pepper to the egg mix.
I then chop up the celery into small pieces, and the leeks into slightly larger pieces, and the onions into thin slices. Firing up the stove, I pan fry the vegetables until they are soft enough to eat. They will not cook that much more in the frittata, so one wants to have them basically cooked. Especially the leeks. celery might be nice al dente, but leeks just turn out tough and unpleasant.
Once the veggies are cooked, I turn off the heat and simply pour in the egg mixture. I do this step carefully, because if you dump the egg mix in it tends to push the vegetables to the side, and you will have a vegetable laden half, and a non vegetable laden half. Which can also be great if your eating partner is not so keen on the greens!
Once the egg is all in, I sprinkle on some more soft cheese and turn on the heat again to a low setting, placing a lid on the top. If you do not have a lid which is big enough for your frying pan, then you might be able to use a plate.
While the frittata is cooking, you can clean up a little, while keeping tabs on it. As soon as you see that the edges are starting to brown, switch off. If the top is not completely cooked, then pop the pan under the grill for a minute to make sure that it is cooked all the way through and there is no trace of raw egg hovering.
Important: It is important that you cook the frittata on a low heat to prevent the bottom from burning. I have made quite a few burnt frittatas by not being careful, and it is so annoying! The final grilling step is also a great way to make sure that the bottom does not burn through having to leave the pan too long on the flame to try and get the top cooked.
Easy Celery & Leek Frittata
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Ingredients
- 8 large eggs
- 1 onion
- A spray of leeks
- 3 sticks of celery
- 1 medium bunch of italian parsley
- salt & pepper to taste
- 200 grams soft cheese of your choice (I use a soft feta, but cream cheese, or cottage cheese is fine)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- Cooking oil for pan
Instructions
- Whisk the eggs in a bowl with a pouring mouth. Add in just over half of the cheese and the olive oil and whisk it in until roughly combined. Chop the parsley and add it in with the salt and pepper. Stir with the whisk to combine.
- Chop the celery into small bitty sized pieces. Slice the green leek tops into narrow pieces. Slice the onion into fine pieces.
- Pour a little oil into a large pan and stir fry the vegetables until cooked.
- Turn off the heat and carefully pour in the egg mixture.
- Sprinkle on remaining cheese, and place a lid on your pan.
- Turn on the heat to a low setting.
- Keep tabs on your frittata. As soon as the edges start to brown slightly, remove from the heat.
- If the top is not completely cooked, place the pan under the grill for a few moments. This will cook any remaining raw egg which could be at the top.
Serve as a side or main! : )
