Roasted Vegetable Frittata

Originally published in the Lebanon Reporter on March 24, 2005

If you have not yet finalized your Easter menu, consider adding this simple yet elegant Roasted Vegetable Frittata to your plans. This frittata is great for breakfast, brunch, or lunch.

Eggs, as a symbol of new life, are part of the Easter tradition in many countries. In Sweden, for instance, the tradition is to eat hardboiled eggs the evening before Easter. Other countries, like Greece and Portugal, make braided Easter bread with hardboiled eggs, shell and all, placed within the braids. In Italy, the frittata is often on the Easter menu.

If you are not familiar with frittata, it is similar to an omelet or crustless quiche and like these other dishes, can have a wide variety of fillings. This is a two-step recipe, and the vegetables can be roasted up to two days before you plan to make the frittata. At our house, we like roasted vegetables so much I’ll sometimes roast a large quantity and after using them in a frittata, we will eat them as a side dish or use them as a pizza topping. Roasted vegetables are versatile and simple to prepare.

Roasted Vegetables

Roasting caramelizes the sugars in vegetables and results in an amazing sweet-savory taste combination. The following are some of my favorites and these quantities will be just about right for the frittata:

• 4 medium-sized new potatoes
• 4 carrots or one and a half cups of baby carrots
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper20 (approx.) asparagus spears

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. To prepare the vegetables, rinse the potatoes, peppers, asparagus, and carrots (if using whole carrots). There is no need to peel the potatoes, but remove any areas where the potatoes might have started to sprout. Peel the outer skin of the onion. Next, cut all the vegetables into bite-size chunks and place them in a large bowl. Drizzle the cut-up vegetables with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Using your hands, toss the vegetables until evenly coated with the oil, salt, and pepper. Transfer the vegetables to a large cookie sheet, making sure that they are evenly distributed. Place the cookie sheet in the oven for approximately 45 minutes. At about the halfway point, use a spatula to move the vegetables around and turn them over. Continue roasting until they begin to brown evenly. Less dense vegetables, like the asparagus, may cook more quickly so remove them when they are done and let the other vegetables continue to cook. The roasted vegetables can be used immediately or stored refrigerated in an airtight container for up to two days.

Roasted Vegetable Frittata

• Roasted Vegetables
• 6 eggs
• Salt
• Pepper
• Olive Oil
• 1/4 Cup Parmesan cheese

Set the oven broiler on high and also heat to medium an oven-proof skillet (I use a well-seasoned cast iron skillet) on the stove top.

I’ve recently become a convert to eggs fresh from the farm. I get mine delivered on Tuesdays by Dave Haxton from Hammerstead Farms. Fresh eggs from happy chickens make a big difference in this and all egg dishes.

Crack the six eggs into a bowl, add salt and pepper to taste, and beat the eggs with a fork. Add to the skillet enough olive oil to cover the bottom and tilt the skillet so that the oil coats the sides. Next, add the roasted vegetables to the skillet. If the vegetables were prepared beforehand, allow them to warm up a bit in the skillet then add the beaten eggs. Shake the pan a bit to be sure the eggs settle all the way through to the bottom. Allow this to cook on the stove top undisturbed until the eggs begin to set, about 5-7 minutes. Add the Parmesan cheese and transfer the skillet to the oven for 2 to 3 minutes until the eggs are completely set. Remove from the oven and use a spatula to loosen the sides. The frittata can be cut like a pie into six servings.