Steak fajita frittata

The basic idea was simple: Make a fajita and put it into a frittata. Everything else is just the details.

I decided to do a steak fajita (frittata). My suggestion of about 3 ounces represents my take on the amount of steak that can reasonably fit into the frittata. I used sirloin and got the 3 ounces in the following way. I got a piece of sirloin to use for other meals for myself. The size worked out so that I could cut it into 2 good-sized pieces for other meals leaving the 3 ounces for the frittata.

I cut the steak into strips and marinated the steak like I did for the chicken in the chicken fajita salad. The strips were cut into smaller pieces after then were cooked.

I sprinkled the cheese on top after removing the frittata from under the broiler. Normally when adding cheese to a frittata, I either mix it in or put it on top to melt before putting the frittata under the broiler. But I wanted to make this as close to a regular frittata as possible, which means having the cheese unmelted.

The side additions of avocado, sour cream, and salsa or pico de gallo commonly come with fajitas and went really well with this frittata.

about 3 ounces of steak, cut into 1/4-inch strips
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 teaspoon red pepper
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 clove garlic, pressed

1/4 cup green bell pepper, cut into strips and then smaller pieces
1/4 cup orange or red bell pepper, cut into strips and then smaller pieces
1/4 cup onion, sliced and then cut into quarters and separated
vegetable oil.

3 eggs
vegetable oil

shredded Mexican cheeses
avocado slices
sour cream
salsa or pico de gallo

Mix the ingredients for the marinade (listed under the steak) in a small plastic bag. Add the steak. Marinate 2-4 hours in the refrigerator. When starting to make the frittata, remove and place on a paper towel to drain.

Heat the oil in a pan. Add the pepper and onions. Cook at fairly low temperature until nicely softened. Remove from then pan.

Raise the heat on the pan. Add the strips of steak, first searing on one side and then turning over and searing on the other. About a minute on each side. Remove from the pan. Cut into smaller pieces for the frittata.

Put the eggs into a good-sized mixing bowl and beat to just mix them up. Using a new pan (or clean the first pan), add oil and let it get hot. Add a small amount of egg to the pan to set the bottom of the frittata to prevent sticking. Turn the heat down to mediium low. Mix the steak, peppers, and onions into the eggs and pour the mixture into the pan. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up, place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1-1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides with a spatula if necesary, and slide the frittat out onto the serving plate. Sprinkle the cheese over the top. Add the avocado, sour cream, and salsa on the side.

Smoked salmon frittata

I love hot-smoked salmon, the smoked salmon that comes in chunks like pieces of salmon and is flaky, not smooth. I have long wondered how that would be in a frittata. Given the flavor of the salmon, I wasn’t sure whether that would work. It did.

The thing that really made this work was the sour cream and dill sauce. It complemented the distinctive flavor of the salmon very nicely. I served it on the side and dipped the pieces of the frittata in the sauce as I ate.

Because the salmon flakes apart so easily, I didn’t mix it in with the eggs. Instead, after putting a thin layer of the eggs in the pan, I placed small pieces of the salmon on top and poured the remaining egg mixture over. With respect to the amount of salmon, I started with a 4-ounce piece of salmon and broke off what I felt were enough pieces for the frittata. The 2-1/2 to 3 ounces in the recipe is my guess as to the amount I used.

2-1/2 to 3 ounces hot-smoked salmon

3 eggs
vegetable oil

1/4 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons fresh dill, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

Mix the sour cream, dill, lemon juice, and lemon zest for the sour cream-dill sauce.

Break the smoked salmon into small pieces for the frittata.

Put the eggs into a bowl and beat to just mix them up. Put the oil in a pan and let it get hot. Add a small amount of egg to the pan to set the bottom of the frittata to prevent sticking and serve as a base. Turn the heat down to medium low. Distribute the pieces of smoked salmon on the eggs. Pour remaining eggs over the salmon. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up, place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1–1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides with a spatula if necessary, and slide the frittata out onto the serving plate. Serve with the sour cream and dill sauce.

New Orleans frittata 2

I had andouille sausage, green pepper, and onion. So how about a frittata? I thought about how I would make it. And then I looked at my blog. It turns out that I had made a New Orleans frittata 3 years ago. But the way I was planning to make this one was different enough that I felt it deserved its own blog post.

Here are the differences: I was now planning on including less sausage and a lot more green pepper and onion. In keeping with the idea of emphasizing those, I was going to cut them into larger pieces rather than a dice. And finally, instead of completely cooking the green pepper and onion, I would cook them only very briefly to take off the raw edge but leave them fairly crisp and nice and green (for the pepper).

I liked the new version.

1 andouille sausage sliced in half lengthwise and then sliced
1/2 cup onion cut into fairly large pieces
1/2 cup diced green pepper cut into fairly large pieces
1/4 teaspoon (or more) cayenne pepper
olive oil

3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon (or more) cayenne pepper

Prep all of the ingredients before starting to cook. Because you want to start cooking the frittata immediately after the brief cooking of the onions and peppers, beat the eggs and the cayenne pepper to mix so it will be ready as well.

Heat olive oil in a pan. Add the sausage and cook until it is lightly browned. Add the garlic near the end to cook that. Turn down the heat, put in the onions and green pepper, turning frequently, for 30 seconds to a minute.

Pour in the egg mixture. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1–1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides (and bottom, if necessary) with a spatula, and slide the frittata out onto the serving plate.

Spinach and artichoke frittata

Spinach and artichoke dip is great and a classic. So why not do the same combination in a frittata? And spinach and artichoke dip virtually always includes Parmesan cheese, so clearly that belongs in the frittata as well.

I would normally have thought of using chopped-up artichoke hearts, but as I have previously mentioned, I have lots and lots of artichoke bottoms to use. And I found artichoke bottoms also work great in a frittata (here). So artichoke bottoms it is, though one could obviously use artichoke hearts instead.

Since I wanted the artichoke distributed throughout the frittata as in the dip, I cut the artichoke bottoms into fairly small pieces. Then, to keep them reasonably intact and avoid having squished artichoke bottoms, I was very careful in mixing with the other ingredients.

1 generous cup of finely chopped spinach, tightly packed
3 artichoke bottoms cut into 12ths, about 1/2 cup
1/4 cup grated Parmesan plus more for the top

3 eggs
vegetable oil

Combine the spinach, artichoke bottoms, and Parmesan in a bowl and carefully fold with a spatula to mix without crushing the artichoke bottoms. Put the eggs into a bowl and beat to just mix them up.

Put the oil in a pan and let it get hot. Pour the spinach, artichoke, and Parmesan mixture into the eggs and carefully fold until the eggs are completely mixed with the other ingredients. Pour the mixture into the pan. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up, place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1–1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides with a spatula if necessary, and slide the frittata out onto the serving plate.

Artichoke bottom frittata

I mentioned in an earlier post about having lots of artichoke bottoms. After using some in the shrimp and artichoke pasta salad, I started thinking about including artichoke bottoms in a frittata. I wasn’t sure how that would work, but I thought it was worth a try.

I wanted some other ingredients to complement the artichoke bottoms. I had done a frittata with artichoke hearts and sun-dried tomatoes, so that seemed like one good choice. And some bacon seemed like it would be a nice addition.

Not only did it work. I turned out to be wonderful! A very delicious frittata that I will make again!

3 artichoke bottoms, cut into ninths
3–4 slices bacon, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes

3 eggs
vegetable oil

Cook the bacon until crisp. I cut up the bacon before cooking. It’s easier than crumbling up the strips of bacon than after it has been cooked. Remove from the pan and drain on a paper towel.

Put the eggs into a good-sized mixing bowl and beat just to mix them up. Put the oil in a clean pan and let it get hot. Add a small amount of egg to the pan to set the bottom of the frittata to prevent sticking. Turn the heat down to medium low. Mix the artichoke bottoms, bacon, and sun-dried tomatoes into the eggs and pour the mixture into the pan. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up, place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1–1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides with a spatula if necessary, and slide the frittata out onto the serving plate.

Mushroom and onion frittata

I was cooking a recipe, coq au vin blanc, which calls for mushrooms to be cooked until they start to dry out and become browned with a nice nutty flavor. I thought that mushrooms like this would be good in a frittata. Now what to include with the mushrooms? Since the mushrooms would be really browned, what about complementing with something else browned, carmelized onions?

The browned mushroom and carmelized onions cook in very different ways and will have to be done separately. I simply sliced the mushrooms, using crimini (also called baby bella) to get a little more robust flavor. I wanted the onions bigger than diced. I cut a very thick slice of a large onion, cut that into 6 pieces, and let the rings separate. I chose then end of the onion with the thicker rings to make those pieces a bit larger.

The quantities I estimated for the mushroom and onions seem very large for a 3-egg frittata. But there’s lot of space between the pieces in a measuring cup and the mushrooms especially become much smaller as they are cooked. The photo shows the results.

1–1/2 to 2 cups sliced crimini mushrooms
3/4 to 1 cup onion pieces
olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sugar

3 eggs
more olive oil if needed

Heat oil in a pan. Add the mushroom and cook on moderately high heat. Brown the mushrooms until they are a deep golden brown.They will release some water during the process, but keep them going. They’ll begin to dry up and get brown and delicious.

Heat oil in a pan. Add the onions. Cook on medium to low heat until the onions soften and become translucent, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle on a small amount of sugar, stir, and continue cooking until they are carmelized to your liking, probably 10 to 15 minutes.

Put the eggs into a good-sized mixing bowl and beat just to mix them up. Add a bit more oil to the pan if needed and let it get hot. Add a small amount of egg to the pan to set the bottom of the frittata to prevent sticking. Turn the heat down to medium low. Mix the mushrooms and onions into the eggs and pour the mixture into the pan. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up, place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1–1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides with a spatula if necessary, and slide the frittata out onto the serving plate.

Green pepper and onion frittata

I recently made shrimp creole, a favorite. It naturally included green pepper and onion, signature ingredients in Creole and Cajun cooking. This time I cut the green pepper and onion into a larger dice, giving them more prominence in the dish. I liked the change, appreciating these ingredients more. And this got me to thinking: What about featuring the green pepper and onion even more, making them the centerpiece of a dish? This is how I came up with this frittata.

Because they were the main ingredients in the frittata, I made the pieces bigger than even a large dice. See the photo. For seasoning, I simply included exactly the same things as in my shrimp creole recipe, though I cut the quantities in half.

1/2 cup green bell pepper, pieces larger than dice
1/2 cup onion, pieces larger than dice
canola oil

3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/8 teaspooon oregano
1/8 teaspoon thyme
less than 1/8 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
canola oil

Heat the oil in a pan. Add the green pepper and onion, cooking until they start to soften. Remove before completely cooked and soft.

Put the eggs into a good-sized mixing bowl along with the seasonings and beat just to mix them up. Add more oil to the pan if needed and let it get hot. Add a small amount of egg to the pan to set the bottom of the frittata to prevent sticking. Turn the heat down to medium low. Mix the green pepper and onion into the eggs and pour the mixture into the pan. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up, place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1–1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides with a spatula if necessary, and slide the frittata out onto the serving plate.

Taco frittata revisited

About three years ago I posted a recipe for a taco frittata. The frittata included the basic taco ingredients of seasoned ground beef, shredded cheese, and tomatoes. I am now revisiting this with a different take on a taco frittata.

Rather than including the tomatoes in the frittata, I am topping the finished seasoned ground beef and cheese frittata with pico de gallo. The pico de gallo includes the tomatoes along with other ingredients that make it a tangy addition. Using the pico de gallo does 2 things: It makes for a nice contrast between the hot frittata and the cool pico de gallo on the top. And the pico de gallo adds a lot more flavor than simply including tomatoes in the frittata.

1/4 pound ground beef
taco, southwest, or similar seasoning mix
oil

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
pico de gallo

3 eggs
oil

Cook the ground beef, adding generous amounts of the seasoning.

Put the eggs into a good-sized mixing bowl and beat just to mix them up. Add some oil to the pan and let it get hot. Add a small amount of egg to the pan to set the bottom of the frittata to prevent sticking. Turn the heat down to medium low. Mix the ground beef and cheese into the eggs and pour the mixture into the pan. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up, place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1–1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides with a spatula if necessary, and slide the frittata out onto the serving plate. Top with the pico de gallo.

Turkey, ham, and swiss “deli sandwich” frittata

I have long planned to make a frittata with a mixture of deli meats and cheese as you might have on sandwich: slices of turkey, ham, and Swiss cheese. I had assumed that I would cut the meat and cheese into pieces and mix them into the eggs. I knew from previously doing this for other frittatas, there would be a tendency for the pieces to stick together so it would be necessary to add them a little bit at a time to keep this from happening.

Then I had the idea, why cut the meats and cheese up at all? Why not keep them layered together as you would on a sandwich, putting this in the middle of the frittata? I did this and it worked well. And the frittata tasted great.

A few notes on the deli meats and cheese. I was using deli meats that came packaged. It turned out they were an ideal size for putting into the frittata—a little smaller than the pan. If you are using meats sliced in the deli, sizes could be larger or smaller and you would have to adjust appropriately. Also, in the list of ingredients, I am ambiguous as to whether to use a single slice or multiple slices of each. This will depend on the thicknesses of the meat and cheese slices and your own judgement. For the record, the ham I used came in very thin slices, so I used 2 slices. With the thicker turkey and Swiss cheese, a single slice of each seemed sufficient.

slice(s) of deli roast turkey breast
slice(s) of deli ham
slice(s) of Swiss cheese

3 eggs
oil

Put the slices of turkey, ham, and Swiss cheese in a stack to make it easier to put in the frittata all at once.

Put the eggs into a good-sized mixing bowl and beat just to mix them up. Add some oil to the pan and let it get hot. Add a small amount of egg to the pan to set the bottom of the frittata to prevent sticking and form a base for the meat and cheese. Turn the heat down to medium low. Place the stack of meat and cheese into the pan. Pour the remaining eggs over the meat and cheese. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up, place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1–1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides with a spatula if necessary, and slide the frittata out onto the serving plate.

Category: Frittata
Tags: turkey, ham, Swiss, deli, sandwich

Classic shrimp frittata

The first quiches I ever made followed recipes from The French Chef cookbook by Julia Child. I have continued to use those recipes and make those quiches and now consider them my classic quiches. One was a shrimp quiche. I thought of that and wondered why I had never adapted this for a frittata. Now I have, and I am therefore calling this my classic shrimp frittata.

The frittata follows the original Julia Child recipe with a few modifications. She just has the cheese sprinkled over the top. I have included additional cheese in the quiches and now the frittata. I like cheese! And she has one starting with cooked shrimp. But the instructions for the preparation of the shrimp, which I am following exactly, have the shrimp cooking for plenty of time to cook raw shrimp. So I use uncooked shrimp.

3/4–1 cup shrimp, cut into pieces (I cut 31/40 shrimp into 2 or 3 pieces)
1–1/2 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon tarragon
fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup white wine
1/3 cup grated Gruyere cheese plus more for the top

3 eggs
1 tablespoon tomato paste
oil

Put the eggs into a large bowl, add the tomato paste, and whisk vigorously until the tomato paste is combined with the eggs. This takes a few minutes, so I did this first.

Melt the butter in a pan. Add the shrimp and cook for 2 minutes, turning over. Add the tarragon and pepper. Add the wine and boil vigorously until it is boiled down with mainly the butter remaining. Remove the shrimp from the pan.

Put some oil into a clean pan and let it get hot. Add a small amount of the egg mixture to the pan to set the bottom of the frittata to prevent sticking. Turn the heat down to medium low. Mix the shrimp and cheese into the eggs and pour the mixture into the pan. Cook this for about 5 minutes to set the bottom and sides.

Preheat the broiler. When the 5 minutes cooking on the stove are up, put some more of the shredded cheese on the top and place the pan under the broiler, about 6 to 7 inches below. Cook until the top is set and just starts to brown. This is about 1–1/2 to 2 minutes for me, but watch closely.

Remove from the broiler, loosen up the sides with a spatula if necessary, and slide the frittata out onto the serving plate.