Potato & Zukes Fritatta

You say "po-tay-to," I say "pot-ahh-to."  Actually, I say "po-tay-to freet-TAH-da."
(Note: to get on the same page with me here, see this post.)

So here's the fritatta recipe I made up this week.  I loved this one!  I knew I wanted to use potato but I didn't know what I'd put with it. As soon as I saw these onions at the food co-op, inspiration struck.  It's crazy how exited I was over these onions, y'all.  The checkout girl and I even had a conversation about how beautiful they were. I think she and I could be friends.

I bought the onions, a small zucchini, and some eggs.  I already had a bag of Simply Potatoes and the cheeses in the fridge. I pulled out my How to Cook Without a Book book and used their fritatta base recipe as a guide. (Has anyone told them that technically this is not cooking without a book?) Here's what I did: 

Add a couple tablespoons of olive oil to a warm skillet.  Add a 1/2 cup or so of the diced potatoes. Add a 1/4 a cup or so of chopped onion. Add a tablespoon of water.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

Cover and let "steam" a few minutes. Lift lid and stir, adding an entire small zucchini sliced into thin rounds. Cover again for a few minutes.  Then lift lid and saute until the potatoes and onions are golden-browned and the zucchini is cooked through.

Meanwhile, whisk 8 eggs together in a bowl. 

That's the reflection of my pendant lights, not shell.

Add 1/2 a container of Philly Cooking Creme.  Add a handful of grated Parmesan cheese (maybe 3 T). Add 1 medium garlic clove, well crushed. Sprinkle with black pepper and a tad of salt (note: there is already salt in the cooking creme). Add a few fresh basil leaves, chopped. I grow basil in my kitchen window.

Pour the egg mixture into the skillet.  Reduce the heat and cook until the edges are set. *If you cook it at too high a temperature the bottom will get overdone and tough before the sides have set. Ideally the bottom will turn out something like this when you're done - set and golden but not brown.

I know that's not the most appetizing view but, trust me, if you let the bottom get too browned the texture and taste is negatively affected.

Once the sides have set, cover it with 1/2 cup shredded cheese - I used mozzarella this time - and sprinkle a little more grated Parmesan on top. Then pop it in the oven under the broiler for 2 or 3 minutes. Until lightly browned and slightly puffed up.

I served this with crescent rolls, a fresh sliced tomato and an apple salad on the back patio. I really liked the combination of onion, garlic, potato and zucchini.  It definitely had a savory flavor.  I could serve it for breakfast or brunch, but I think this one makes a nice light dinner fritatta.

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I decided with this one that I'm getting pretty good at making (up) fritattas. To my surprise, my daughter said "Yay, fritatta and crescent rolls" when she walked in the kitchen.  I wondered if my family would get sick of fritattas this month but so far so good - she's my most demanding customer in the kitchen. The boys around here will eat most anything. Lucky for me - especially all those years I had no clue how to cook. With or without a book.

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