Brunch: Frittata

One of my 28 resolutions, is to cook one real meal a week. I figured today would be my official kickoff because I was having my cousins over for brunch and all we seem to do when we hang out is eat, so yummy food is a must. I made my first ever frittata with a side of breakfast potatoes (which are basically baked french fry cubes), and second ever crepes. All of them got a thumbs up, so...huzzah!

A frittata is basically an omelette, but the veggies and meat are cooked in with the eggs, not sandwiched between the folds. Even though I read numerous recipes about 37 times before and even while I was making it, it's actually incredibly easy. I'm just a a nervous person who needs to quintuple check everything. Here's how I made mine in case you don't already know the gist of a frittata:

Frittata

1/2 zuchinni, sliced
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
3 mushroom caps + stems, sliced (did you know mushrooms have skin? I didn't. Ew. I removed it.)
1 handful of fresh spinach, chopped
1 regular tomato, diced, seeds and icky pulp squeezed out
3/4 block of cheddar cheese, crumbled, grated, or shredded - just get it sprinkle-able.
10 or 12 eggs
1/2 cup or so of milk
salt and pepper

Throw all the veggies in a pan, and cook them up on medium heat for a few minutes. I didn't do it for very long because all these vegetables and the spinach can be eaten raw anyway, and I have a tendency of overcooking (i.e., burning) everything. Plus, the more you heat something, the more nutrients it loses. Except tomatoes. Did you know tomatoes are one of the few foods that are healthier after you cook them? The heat releases the lycopene which has many good qualities you can read about on the internet. I would love to tell you myself, but I need to get back to talking about more important things, like making frittatas.

While all that cooking is happening, beat or whisk up your eggs and milk, and add whatever amount of salt and pepper feels right in your heart, or your hands, or your eyes...whichever part your inner cook uses to guess-measure things.

When the veggies are done, pour in the eggs. Keep stirring things around, especially to get the bottom part to mix into the middle because a frittata is way to big and thick to flip, so that's the best way to make sure you don't have an overcooked bottom, and undercooked top. Once it's cooked enough that it looks almost cooked, but still really wet, top it off with that cheese you probably forgot about.
Here's the other part that's different from an omelette - you the pan in the oven (if it's oven safe of course), under the broiler for a few minutes. The eggs finish cooking, and the top gets all browned, colorful, crusty and yummy!