Frittata with roasted vegetables

 

At a certain point in heavy produce season, you need a way to use up odds and ends. This recipe is a valuable receptacle for garden bounty. Just tuck a bunch of vegetables into the bottom of a roasting pan, cut into sizes so they'll get done about the same time depending on how quickly each kind cooks, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, roast about a half hour and you're set to make this frittata whenever you're ready. With the vegetables already cooked, it works well as a fast-fix meal for weeknights, weekend lunches with a green salad or for brunch.

Adding herbs such as rosemary or fresh thyme leaves to the vegetables as they roast is a nice touch, or you can mix them in with the eggs before baking. Red and yellow peppers work nicely here as well, as does butternut squash. Any leftover cooked vegetables can work in this, although roasting gives deeper flavor to the final dish. Parmesan is nice, but you can use whatever cheese you've got at hand. Basically, this dish is more of an approach than a recipe.

Frittata with roasted zucchini

Adapted from Martha Stewart Living Everyday Food, May 2005

 

Ingredients

3 summer squash or zucchini, halved lengthwise and then sliced into ½-inch thick slices

1 large red onion, cut into ½-inch wedges

5 plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided

10 eggs

½ cup grated Parmesan

Coarse salt and pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 450. On a rimmed roasting pan, combine squash, onion and plum tomatoes. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with coarse salt and black pepper. Bake about 25-30 minutes until vegetables are tender and starting to brown. Set aside. (At this point, you could let the vegetables cool and refrigerate them for several days until you’re ready to use them.)

Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees. Brush remaining teaspoon of olive oil inside a large quiche pan or deep dish pie plate. Put 4 cups of the roasted vegetables in the dish, reserving any leftover roasting oil for another purpose (so tasty).

Mix eggs, Parmesan, 1½ teaspoons coarse salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper in a medium bowl. Pour over roasted vegetables. Bake 25 to 30 minutes until frittata is golden brown and set in the middle. Cut into wedges and serve warm or cold. Serves 6.

Rating: Simplicity works here. Elemental, but good. Good enough that you'll plan leftover vegetables.