Another entry in the roasted tomato saga: the effortless breakfast. A close relative of the Corn and Onion Frittata.
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Why a frittata and not a regular omelet or scrambled eggs? And what's the difference, anyway?
An open-faced omelet with other ingredients, such as cheese or vegetables, mixed into the eggs rather than used as a filling. (Thank you, American Heritage Dictionary.)
I am NOT a morning person, but really like to eat a good breakfast. To qualify, said breakfast must contain lean protein, some veggies, not much fat, and lots of flavor; it must also keep me mostly full and occupied until lunch. Managing to hit all of these things was rather hard until Eric figured out a system. We prefer different things in our frittatas, but the basic technique remains the same.
Pan Selection: first, find yourself a nice stainless steel omelet pan. Nonstick pans contain teflon, and you've probably heard lots of really scary things about teflon; while the jury is still out on exactly how bad teflon is for you, I'm avoiding it when there are other nice easy options. Additionally, nonstick pans shouldn't be put under the broiler, so you're still better of going with the stainless pan. You can usually find an 8" All Clad stainless omelet/fry pan for sale for $19.99 somewhere on the internet, and it will last forever. The low-heat slow cooking we use here prevents the eggs from sticking to the stainless pan, otherwise a common problem when cooking eggs.
Timing: we're going to start everything cooking on VERY LOW, then run off for a shower. This gives you a large window; you can leave the eggs for anything between 15-30 minutes. This should be plenty of time for a leisurely shower, whatever primping you require, and even some clothes before returning to give breakfast a 2-minute hit under the broiler. This translates to ~3 minutes of chopping and/or dumping on the front end, and another quick transfer just before eating. Even in my sleep-deprived pre-shower state I can usually manage this, though I will thoroughly recommend hooking up with a nice morning person who is willing to start breakfast for you.
Alternatively, just add a scoop of whatever leftovers you've got in the fridge. I've used chopped up bits of leftover meat, veggies, stews, curries, whatever - most anything tastes good with eggs.
An open-faced omelet with other ingredients, such as cheese or vegetables, mixed into the eggs rather than used as a filling. (Thank you, American Heritage Dictionary.)
I am NOT a morning person, but really like to eat a good breakfast. To qualify, said breakfast must contain lean protein, some veggies, not much fat, and lots of flavor; it must also keep me mostly full and occupied until lunch. Managing to hit all of these things was rather hard until Eric figured out a system. We prefer different things in our frittatas, but the basic technique remains the same.
Pan Selection: first, find yourself a nice stainless steel omelet pan. Nonstick pans contain teflon, and you've probably heard lots of really scary things about teflon; while the jury is still out on exactly how bad teflon is for you, I'm avoiding it when there are other nice easy options. Additionally, nonstick pans shouldn't be put under the broiler, so you're still better of going with the stainless pan. You can usually find an 8" All Clad stainless omelet/fry pan for sale for $19.99 somewhere on the internet, and it will last forever. The low-heat slow cooking we use here prevents the eggs from sticking to the stainless pan, otherwise a common problem when cooking eggs.
Timing: we're going to start everything cooking on VERY LOW, then run off for a shower. This gives you a large window; you can leave the eggs for anything between 15-30 minutes. This should be plenty of time for a leisurely shower, whatever primping you require, and even some clothes before returning to give breakfast a 2-minute hit under the broiler. This translates to ~3 minutes of chopping and/or dumping on the front end, and another quick transfer just before eating. Even in my sleep-deprived pre-shower state I can usually manage this, though I will thoroughly recommend hooking up with a nice morning person who is willing to start breakfast for you.
Alternatively, just add a scoop of whatever leftovers you've got in the fridge. I've used chopped up bits of leftover meat, veggies, stews, curries, whatever - most anything tastes good with eggs.
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Check out my instructable on french omelettesinstructable on french omelettes if you'd like to try another delicious omelette. Be warned though, it's a bit more difficult than frittatas (which is why frittatas rock!)