Frittata Recipe

Sausage and Vegetable Frittata

• ¼ cup onions diced
• ¼ cup green peppers, diced
• ¼ cup red peppers, diced
• ¼ cup of diced Roma tomatoes
• ¼ cup mushrooms. Sliced and drained
• 10 sausage links, cooked and drained
• ¼ cup Broccoli flowers
• 5 slices provolone cheese
• ¼ cup Parmesan or Romano cheese, finely grated
• Olive Oil
• 1 tbs butter

Spices:

• Garlic powder
• Celery salt
• Cracked pepper

Preparing the masterpiece:

- Preheat Oven to Broil

- Dice your veggies in about ¼ in pieces. It depends on your preference, but they will cook faster and more evenly if cut small. Set aside.

- Start off with a good roasting pan. I like to use a 12 in aluminum sauté pan. The sides are about 3 in high, so you have plenty of room to work.

- Cook sausage as you would normally. If it is genuine sausage, this could take 12-15 minutes. Reserve some of the fat for addition to the olive oil later. If they are Brown and Serve, cook them in the sauté pan , adding a small amount of water to the pan to speed up the cooking process. As the water cooks off, you will get the "browning" effect . When the sausage is done, remove from pan and to a plate with a paper towel . This will absorb any excess water from the sausage. Wouldn't want soggy eggs, now would you?

- Next, heat sauté pan at about 7-8 on your burner dial. This will get it nice and hot for cooking down the veggies. Starting at a lower temp will increase cooking time and will tend to "cook" the veggies instead of roasting them. Also, the veggies will absorb some of the oil while cooking at the lower temp. Think of this part as a stir fry.

- Pour in enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan. You will be cooking the veggies for about 10 mins, so it's no problem if you have to add a little more oil. Add the butter. Not really necessary, but I like the flavor. Once the oil is hot, add your onions and peppers. They should start to sizzle immediately. Let them cook for about 5 mins, stirring occasionally to promote even cooking, After 5 mins or so, add broccoli, mushrooms and spices. The spice amount is up to you, but I would suggest ¼ tsp of each to start. Now is the time to add the sausage grease if desired. Adding it now allows it to be incorporated into the mix without cooking too long and risking burning it.

- In the mean time, crack 7-8 extra-large eggs into a deep mixing bowl, ensuring no shells are in the mixture. Add about 1/8 cup of water and using a hand mixer or blender, mix eggs at the highest possible speed. This will not only mix your eggs, but will aerate them. By introducing a large volume of air into your eggs, it will cause them to be thicker and fluffy when cooked. Ever wonder how some restaurants have better omelets than others?? This will take 4-5 minutes. Set aside.

- Let the mixture cook down until you see the edges of the onions start to turn light brown. This will be an indication that the veggies are cooked through. At this point, you may have to add a little more oil. If you do, wait a minute or so to ensure it comes up to temperature before the next step.

- Once veggies are done, reduce heat to medium. Take a spatula and arrange the veggies across the pan. You're looking for a even distribution of veggies so everyone will get the same amount. This will also lend itself to presentation. Next, arrange sausage in the pan in the form of spokes of a wagon wheel. This, again will ensure everyone gets a sausage in their share as well as add to the presentation of the dish.

- Once the sausage and veggies are in place, add egg mixture. Pour the mixture all around the pan, ensuring to fill places in-between the sausage and veggies. The idea is to have a 'egg pancake' t this point. I do not add any seasoning to the eggs because of the amount added in previous step as well as the additional ingredients in the following steps. Let this cook on the stove top for about 7-8 mins.

- At this point, DO NOT stir or otherwise move the sausage and veggies. As you see the eggs cook, you can gently tilt the pan to determine how much of the egg mixture remains to be cooked. After 4-5 mins, you should see the eggs near the bottom of the pan firm up like traditional scramble eggs. If needed, using the top end of a spatula, press through the egg mixture to the bottom of the pan as another way to determine the amount of cooking time left.

- When there is about 25% of the egg mixture left uncooked, determined by tilting the pan, you are ready for the next step. Remove the pan from heat. Add the diced tomatoes . Sprinkle the grated cheese evenly on the egg mixture. Then cover the entire Frittata with the Provolone slices. Don't worry if you take a few extra minutes getting to this stage. The pan will keep the Frittata hot while you finish adding the ingredients.

This next step is a crucial one.

- Place sauté pan inside the oven on the top shelf. This will finish cooking the top 25% of your Fritata and melt the cheese. Check the Frittata the same way you did on the stove top by opening the oven and tilting the pan. If you gently shake the pan, and the whole Frittata moves as one piece, firm, not runny, it is done. Another tell-tale sign is when the cheese is melted and bubbly.

- Remove from oven and place on your table. It is meant to be served straight from the pan to your plate. Cut it as you would a pizza, ensuring each 'slice' has a sausage link in it. Garnish with Sour cream, salsa, or nothing at all.