What's-left-Fritatta

So, I've found that since I've changed my diet, I've learned a lot about my body--what it wants, what it needs, what it doesn't like...

A couple of months ago, I would have openly admitted that carbohydrates were my biggest dietary weakness. Bread, pasta, bread, french fries, bread, white rice, bread--really, potatoes of any kind, bread. Yeah--in case you haven't caught on, I love bread. With butter. Dipped in oil. To scoop up spaghetti sauce. To clean my plate of any left over gravy. With jelly for breakfast. In roll form for dinner. With cinnamon and sugar for dessert. French, sourdough, focaccia, baguette, rye, sweet and baked with bananas or pumpkin or zucchini--I could go on. But, I won't.

Now that I'm making as much as I can from scratch, I've come to realize that I don't crave any of the things that I used to eat every chance I got. That's partly true because I've become particular about what ingredients--and how much of said ingredients--I'm willing to consume. But, also, I realize that I like more variety to my diet. I don't want to make the same things over and over--a habit I used to keep. I'm having such a good time trying new recipes that it's been weeks since I've made the same dinner-dish twice. Furthermore, because I have to work for my carbs--i.e. bread--I find that I don't need it, or even want it, to round out my meal.

Don't get me wrong; it's not that I'm too lazy to make what I want; it's more that because  I'm listening to my body, I know I don't need what I used to call my staples for every meal. Instead of french fries with my veggie burger (which, by the way, I'm still hunting for the perfect meatless-burger recipe!) I'm content to have a side of vegetables. One of these days, french fries will be a real treat--not simply because I will allow myself to indulge in the starchy goodness that is my favorite variation of a cooked potato, but also because I will have made it myself--the healthy way. And while making pasta is time consuming, that's not what's keeping me from making Italian dishes every night; I simply crave a more well-rounded menu. Variety is key to an exciting diet. At least, that's true for me.

Anyway--now to the point! Since I've been trying to eat less carbs and starch and more vegetables, I've neglected the potatoes that have been chilling in my fridge for weeks--maybe even months. (I'm thankful that keeping them cold has enabled them to last so long without sprouting. I don't care what anyone says, that just grosses me out!) After taking inventory of what I had remaining from my previous grocery trip--my potatoes ranking at the top of my priority list--I realized that I had enough ingredients to throw together my first frittata!

 I remember that fried rice used to be what my mom made when she was getting rid of left over vegetables--but I think frittata is going to be my new go-to recipe. I found the idea for my frittata here--but, just like Katie promised in her blog, it was perfectly adaptable to what I had laying around. It turned out to be the best scrapes meal I've ever made! This one is definitely a keeper.

My What's Left Frittata:

Ingredients:

3 small potatoes

1 yellow squash

1 red bell pepper

1/2 onion

3 spring onions (I really like onions! But, this adaptation would be just as good with only one kind of onion)

1 garlic clove

7 eggs

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced

1 cup ricotta cheese

2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Wash and dry the potatoes. Slice them as thin as you desire. Add one tablespoon of olive oil to a heated skillet and add the potatoes; allow them to cook until they are soft. 

Combine the eggs, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Beat until well mixed. Stir in the parsley. Set aside while you chop and slice the squash, onions, bell pepper, and garlic.

Remove the potatoes from the pan and set aside. Saute the squash, onions, bell pepper, and garlic. Combine the contents of the skillet, plus the potatoes with the egg mixture. Stir until evenly distributed.

Pour half of the mixture into a baking pan (I used a 9x9 square baking dish) and sprinkle with half of the cheese; pour the rest of the mixture into the dish, sprinkling the rest of the cheese over the top.

Stick it in the oven and bake at 375 degrees F until the top is set. (About 30 minutes, give or take. I was impatient and took it out before it was completely set; I stuck it in the microwave for a minute to speed up the process. Shameful, I know--but I had someplace to be!) Once it's out of the oven, serve it with a vegetable of your choice and you've got yourself a tasty dinner.

That's all for now--Rosalyn