OK so the title doesn’t quite characterize the tone of this post.  It’s the unfortunate yet comical name I came up with for tonight’s dinner: Gouda, Asparagus, & Garlic frittata!

First, the back-story: a couple of weeks ago I wrote about the joy of a farmers market and my purchase of fresh asparagus.  So tonight on the way home from work I was mentally scanning the refrigerator, trying to figure out dinner.  I remembered having only a couple of slices of gouda so thought grilled cheese.  However upon arriving home and actually looking in the fridge, I saw the leftover asparagus and hated the idea of letting it go to waste. First thought was omelette, then for some reason another idea popped into my mind: frittata! Here’s the thing though…I’ve never made a frittata.

Never fear–Alice Waters to the rescue!  After seeing her speak 4 years ago at a conference I immediately snatched up her book The Art of Simple Food and have become a fan ever since.  And of course, in there was a recipe for a frittata, made with swiss chard but all I needed were the base ingredients.  Boy did this one come out tasty!  

So here’s how I did it, adapted from Alice Waters’ frittata recipe:

Preheat oven to 350-degrees and pull out your ovenproof 10-inch pan. Chop asparagus and gouda into small pieces.  I used up what was left of what I had, which was about 10 stalks of asparagus and 2 slices of packaged gouda.  Also chop 4 cloves of garlic.  Heat the pan with a little olive oil and saute the asparagus and garlic together, then set aside and wipe the pan clean. 

Take 6 eggs and crack into a large bowl.  Add salt, freshly ground black pepper and 2 teaspoons of olive oil.  Beat the eggs gently, then stir in the asparagus, cheese and garlic. 

Heat the pan over medium-low heat, then add 2 tablespoons of olive oil.  After a few seconds, pur in the egg mixture.  Be sure to try and spread the ingredients around as best you can (my cheese ended up concentrated in the center, with little reaching outward towards the edge). As the eggs set on the bottom, lift the edges a little to allow some of the uncooked egg to flow underneath.  Place the pan into the oven and let the frittata cook and set, about 7-10 minutes. Slide out of the pan onto your plate and you’re done!  

Let me know how yours turned out, and what veggies/meats you used!