Zucchini Frittata
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If you grow zucchini in your home garden, you know how quickly you find yourself overrun by it. Usually by the second or third week of them becoming ripe, I give up and either throw them away or give them away to anyone I happen to make eye contact with. "Here, have some zucchini!" "Who are you?" Yep. Just like that.
This summer, we've been having bizarre weather in California. One day it's 105º with about 80% humidity and other's it's been 65 degrees, overcast with a chance of thunderstorms. Originally, we had planned to barbecue but because nobody liked the idea of possibly getting struck by lightning, we quickly changed our plans for dinner.
So, when you've got a counter full of zucchini and a fresh carton of eggs from your neighbor, you make a frittata!
Frittatas are awesome for many reasons. They're quick and easy to prepare and they can be served hot or at room temperature, so if you're in need of a quick appetizer, think "frittata!"
For this simple recipe, you will need:
- 2 zucchini
- two tablespoons half-and-half
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped yellow onion
- 1 minced garlic clove
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
- salt and pepper
Shred the zucchini either with a grater-shredder or a food processor, which is what I choose to do. Once it's all shredded up, lay the shredded zucchini on paper towels to drain the liquid.
Whisk together the eggs, half and half, half of the cheese, 3/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Stir in the shredded, drained zucchini.
In a frying pan, melt the butter with the oil over medium-high heat. When the butter foams, add the onion and sauté until translucent.
At this point, you can either add the egg and zucchini mixture to the drying pan or you can put everything into a tart pan such as the one I used. If you're going to continue cooking this on the stove, cook this for 3-4 minutes. Be sure to lift the edges to let the uncooked portion to flow to the bottom. Continue looking until the eggs are nearly set, about 5 minutes more.
However, if you're like me and don't have the patients to stand at the stove for 10 minutes turn on your oven to 350º and cook it for about 35 minutes.
You can finish off the recipe by putting it under the broiler for about 2-minutes if you want a crunchier top. I opted not to do it this time.
