Hakuna Matata Apple-Onion Frittata

When I wake up on Saturdays--particularly during the winter--without a brunch plan in mind, I get a little depressed. Before I even grind beans for my french press coffee, I pull on a hoodie and some thick wool or cashmere socks, and pad into the kitchen doggedly determined to whip up something tasty, plan or no plan.

On this particular Saturday, things weren't looking good. I had apples, onions, eggs, various cheeses, and bacon--and pantry essentials, like flour--but I wasn't in the mood for ANOTHER set of pancakes with maple syrup. I ran through the other options quickly in my mind--popovers with sauteed apples, caramelized bacon (again??), an omelette (boring), or perhaps some eggs in purgatory--but I wanted something special. I also knew that I could do a frittata, but I've never been fond of the frittatas that I've had in restaurants. They tasted like quiche, sadly separated from their buttery crust, and seemed to overcompensate with butter and too much cheese.

I grumpily narrowed down our options. "Frittata or pancakes?," I hollered at Chris, still underenthused. "Frittata!" was the answer from the living room couch, where Chris was ensconced in multiple blankets, eyes and hands peeking out for the purpose of internet perusing. I sighingly turned to my trusty Bittman cookbook, flipped to the frittata section, and was immediately hooked. Sauteed apples and onions? In a frittata? With bacon? With that mix of fillings, I knew I wouldn't miss the pastry crust.


Now that I've made my first frittata, I've come to love how versatile they are--as long as you follow the general formula of 5-6 eggs for every 1-2 cups of filling, you should be golden. I prefer my frittatas with cheese in the filling as well as on top (parmigiano or gruyere to grate for the filling, and then another cheese to grate or scatter over), and with some sort of breakfast meat in the filling (bacon, ham, canadian bacon). If you fill your frittata with veggies, keep an easy hand with the cheese, and use some egg whites, you can easily make it light, as well.

Sweet Apple-Onion Frittata with Bacon and Goat Cheese (serves 4 or more as part of a larger breakfast spread, or 3 alone)

Ingredients
1 apple, peeled, cored, and sliced
1 sweet onion, or 1 one regular onion with 1-2 tsp sugar, sliced very thinly
Bacon, maybe 1/3 to 1/2 cup, chopped, optional
Goat cheese, 2-4 ounces (or gruyere, if preferred)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano or other cheese
5-6 eggs
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbsp butter or olive oil, if not using bacon, optional

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Saute the bacon in a large, preferably nonstick skillet until crisp. Remove bacon from the pan onto a plate lined with paper towels. Drain off all but 1-2 tbsp of the fat (if not using bacon, heat the butter or olive oil in the pan at this point), and keep it over medium heat.

3. Add the onions to the pan, and saute until tender and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the apples and continue cooking til tender, about another 3-4 minutes. Take the pan off the heat to cool slightly.

4. Beat together the eggs, parmigiano, salt, and pepper. Once the apple-onion filling has cooled slightly, add the filling to the beaten eggs along with the bacon, mixing gently. Return the pan to medium-low heat, and pour the egg mixture into the skillet. Cook, undisturbed, for about 10 minutes, or until the bottom of the frittata is firm.

5. Scatter the goat cheese (or whatever cheese your prefer) over the frittata.

6. Transfer the skillet to the oven. Bake, checking every 5 minutes or so, just until the top of the frittata is no longer runny, 10-20 minutes more. Served hot or at room temperature.