Loaded Baked Frittata

In anticipation of the recent celebration of my niece’s wedding, we welcomed out-of-town family members for a weekend visit. Accommodating guests with arrival times that were at the mercy of whimsical airline schedules was a cinch with this recipe for loaded baked frittata, by Genevieve Ko, published in the New York Times. A frittata is an egg dish that can be served for breakfast, lunch, or supper. It tastes as good or even better at room temperature than it does warm and can be filled with almost anything you can pull out of your vegetable drawer.

Loaded Baked Frittata

According to recipe author Genevieve Ko, the preparation of this classic Italian dish is made even easier by substituting the traditional folding-and-flipping stovetop technique for a stir-and-bake one. The result is a frittata with a silky texture that is more like a quiche than an omelet. There are only a few simple tips to remember when making a frittata:
1. Don’t overbeat the eggs. Beat the eggs only enough to blend the whites and the yolks
2. While just about anything can be stirred into the egg base, you should stick to ingredients that are already cooked.
3. The frittata can be served warm or at room temperature. A cooled frittata can be refrigerated for up to three days. Serve cold, bring to room temperature, or reheat before serving.

Easy and elegant, this frittata recipe is especially suitable for entertaining. If you take a few moments to sauté the vegetables for the filling in advance, you can relax and enjoy a little extra time with your guests.

Assemble your ingredients. Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350 F. Finely chop a medium onion. Seed and dice the pepper or if you are using mini peppers, seed them and slice them into thin rings. Clean and slice the mushrooms. Cut the spinach or other greens (I used a combination of spinach and arugula) into a thin chiffonade. Beat 8 eggs with 1/2 cup of milk, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper. Set the eggs aside.

Add 1 tablespoon of oil to a a 10- to 12-inch cast-iron or oven-safe nonstick skillet. Set it over medium heat and add the diced onions to the skillet. Cook until softened and translucent, 3-5 minutes. Add the peppers and mushrooms. Continue to sauté the vegetables until they are softened, stirring occasionally. Season the sautéed vegetables with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Add the thinly sliced greens and cook until wilted, about 30 seconds.

Reduce the heat to low and add the egg mixture to the pan. Stir to evenly distribute the vegetables and drop chunks of goat cheese evenly over the top. Place the frying pan in the oven. Bake until the frittata is light golden brown and the eggs are set, about 20 minutes. The eggs should not be jiggly when you shake the pan. Allow the frittata to cool for 10 minutes before cutting.

Print Recipe

Fully Loaded Frittata

Breakfast, Bread and Muffins

By Genevieve Ko, New York Times – Serves: 4-6

Prep Time: 10 minutes – Cooking Time: 8 + 20 minutes – Total Time: 38 minutes

Silky, custard-like eggs filled with savory sautéed onions, peppers and mushrooms and dotted with creamy goat cheese

Ingredients

• 8 large eggs
• ½ cup milk
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• a few grinds of black pepper
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 cup chopped onion (from 1 medium onion)
• 1 red or orange bell pepper chopped into 1/4-inch dice or 4-5 mini peppers sliced into thin rings
• 8 white mushrooms or cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced thinly
• 1 handful of leafy greens such as spinach or arugula, cut into thin pieces (chiffonade)
• 4 ounces fresh goat cheese

Instructions

1

Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350 F. Chop a medium onion finely. Seed and dice the pepper into a 1/4-inch dice or if you are using mini peppers, seed them and slice them into thin rings. Clean and slice the mushrooms. Cut the spinach or other greens (I used a combination of spinach and arugula) into a thin chiffonade. Beat 8 eggs with 1/2 cup of milk, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper. Set the eggs aside.

2

Add 1 tablespoon of oil to a a 10- to 12-inch cast-iron or oven-safe nonstick skillet. Set it over medium heat and add the diced onions to the skillet. Cook until softened and translucent, 3-5 minutes. Add the peppers and mushrooms. Continue to sauté the vegetables until they are softened, stirring occasionally. This will take another 3 minutes. Add the thinly sliced greens and cook until wilted, about 30 seconds. The vegetables can be prepared in advance.

3

Reduce the heat to low and add the egg mixture to the pan. Stir to evenly distribute the vegetables and drop chunks of goat cheese evenly over the top. Place the frying pan in the preheated oven. Bake until the frittata is light golden in color and the eggs are set, about 20 minutes. The eggs should not be jiggly when you shake the pan. Allow the frittata to cool for 10 minutes before cutting.

Notes

The vegetables called for in this frittata recipe can be substituted with whatever you have on hand.