Frittata

When anticipating a busy week, I often like to prepare my breakfasts ahead of time on the weekend. A frittata is a favorite because of its versatility and ease. Each morning, I cut a slice and warm it or allow it to reach room temperature and eat it with some fruit. For variety, I like to try different vegetables and seasonings each time I make it. Frittatas also make a great brunch entrée.

Taste in Bloom Original Photo

Difficulty: Easy; Serves: 8-10 Total time: 30 mins (15 mins for prep)

Taste in Bloom Original
Ingredients:

• 8-10 large eggs
• 1 Tbsp water
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 3 chicken sausage links or 3 breakfast sausage patties or breakfast meat of your choice, diced (opt.)
• 1/2 cup - 1 cup fresh steamed broccoli or veggie of your choice
• 1/4 small onion, diced or minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp turmeric or seasoning of your choice
• freshly grated Parmesan cheese or cheese of your choice (opt. - omitted in this recipe)
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preparation:

Preheat oven broiler on low.

Melt butter in a large oven-proof skillet on medium-high heat.


Beat eggs with 1 Tbsp of water. Season the eggs with turmeric or your choice of seasoning and add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Whisk seasonings into the eggs.

Combine sausage, onion and garlic into skillet and allow to cook until the sausage is heated through and the onion is slightly browned, about 5 minutes.

Add steamed broccoli or veggies and stir to combine.

Pour the egg mixture slowly into the skillet, making sure it spreads evenly around the sausage and veggies. Cover and reduce heat to low. 

The frittata should only cook long enough for the sides to solidify. The middle should remain runny. Sprinkle a generous amount of freshly grated Parmesan cheese on top if using.

Once the sides have cooked, remove cover and transfer the skillet to the top rack of oven and broil on low just until the top has browned. Remove and allow to sit a few minutes before slicing. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to several days.

Note: Frittatas are a great dishes in which you can exercise creativity with flavor. Instead of using onion and garlic, try mincing a shallot. Diced roasted red pepper or jalapeños also create exciting flavor. Nutmeg and cinnamon can make the frittata more earthy. 

Fried Apples

In 2011, my husband and I decided to try the Paleo Diet. We both enjoyed it and had great success. At first, it seemed like a daunting task to plan even one meal that is entirely grain-, dairy- and even sugar-free. But we stuck to it and did a lot of research online and used cookbooks specializing in the diet and managed to follow it, strictly, for six weeks. We both felt great as a result. Our friends still ask us for information on how they can get started.

Though we are no longer following the diet strictly, we still use many of the same recipes we found. I will be posting them here as I continue my food blog journey. This recipe is one of our all time favorites. It's incredibly simple and tasty. You can adjust the flavor of this dish from tart to sweet by the apples you choose to use. We started with Granny Smith, then started mixing in some Cortland apples. Now we are using Empire apples and it tastes like a dessert. Fried Apples are especially good as a side dish for pork. Each year, I make them as a side dish for Thanksgiving.

Taste in Bloom Original Photo

Difficulty: Easy; Serves: 4; Prep time: 10 minutes + approximately 18 minutes cooking time

Adapted from Paleo Diet Lifestyle
Ingredients:

• 4 apples (Granny Smith if you like tart; Empire, Cortland, Braeburn or Jonathan if you prefer sweet)
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 3 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Preparation:

Peel, core and slice apples evenly into 1/4" slices. 

Melt butter over medium heat in a large pan or skillet with a lid. Once the butter is hot, add the apple slices to the bottom of the pan, careful not to overlap the slices.

Sprinkle apples with cinnamon and nutmeg. Cover and reduce heat to low. Allow to cook for 18-20 minutes or until the apples are tender enough that a fork slides through them easily.