Continued self-promotion!

Reminder to NorCal locals and a shameless self-promotion: I'm teaching my first cooking class at the Davis Food Co-op on Saturday, February 7th from 2-4pm. Learn to make some yummy Vegetarian Spanish Tapas for only $25! More information and sign up is here.

Mushroom Fontina Frittata

Served with some potatoes and veg sausage...

My friend, Lauren of CT, but now FL, sent me a recipe for a great frittata her and her husband made one morning and it looked great. As usual, I thought I'll just tweak here and tweak there - a bit more garlic, omit the red pepper in favor of a more flavorful veg - and in the end this recipe, sorry to say Lauren, is nothing like what you concocted. But on the bright side now you have another frittata recipe to try.

I made this for brunch yesterday and first things' first, I had to start with a little sparkly. That always starts Saturday off right. I hope you will enjoy this rich, fluffy egg dish studded with vinegar-marinated creminis, fresh chives, and garlic - and ah yes, gooey French fontina.

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Mushroom Fontina Frittata

Servings:4

Time: 15 min active; 40 min total

Type: vegetarian; not sure if this will translate well into vegan because it's so egg and cheese-based...sorry

Price: ~$7.60 total; <$2.00 per serving

Nutrition (per serving):

Calories: 301.3

Protein: 18.3g

Fat: 22.7g

Saturated Fat: 9.9g

Cholesterol: 358.8mg

Sodium: 469.1mg

Carbohydrates: 6.8g

Fiber: 1.7g

1 Tbsp EVOO

1/2 onion, chopped finely

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 lb cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

Beauties!

1 Tbsp red wine vinegar or sherry

UC Davis makes it's own red wine vinegar and some lovely EVOO!

1/4 tsp each SnP

6 eggs

2 Tbsp fresh chives or tarragon, chopped

One of the only herbs that has survived the winter so far...

1 Tbsp cold butter, cut into small pieces

4 oz fontina, grated or sliced

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large non-stick skillet, heat EVOO over medium heat. Add garlic and onions and fry gently - mind that you don't burn the garlic. After 2-3 minutes, add sliced mushrooms, vinegar and SnP. Saute veg mix, stirring occasionally, about 8-10 minutes. Make sure to cook off most of the liquid. When you add the salt to the mushrooms it will draw the water out so make sure to season when you add the mushrooms to the pan.

See all that liquid? You need to cook most of it off or you will have watery eggs!

2. While the mushrooms are cooking, whisk together the eggs and chives in a bowl. When the mushrooms are almost done, add cubed pieces of butter to the eggs. By adding cold butter to the eggs you will help prevent them from turning rubbery and hard, which I find difficult to avoid when making a frittata. It really works because mine came out nicely browned on the bottom and fluffy and rich on the inside.

Whisked eggs with cold cubed butter helps keep eggs fluffy, not rubbery.

3. Turn the heat to medium-low and add the egg mixed to the mushrooms. After about 30 seconds, use a spatula to lift the edges of the eggs so the uncooked portion can seep underneath. Cook for about 3 minutes more under the bottom the eggs are set, but take care not to overcook the eggs.

4. Sprinkle the fontina over the eggs and wrap the handle of the skillet with foil if it's not ovenproof.

Bake frittata in the oven for 6-8 minutes until fluffy, set and cheese is melted.

5. Cut into four wedges and serve with your favorite breakfast accompaniments. I did potatoes and veg sausage - along with a refill of sparkly mixed with pineapple/orange juice. What a brunch!