Spring Greens Frittata

Food bloggers – they’re everywhere! Including, as it turns out, at our own Easter brunch, where I had the pleasure of re-meeting Kristen Taylor, who posts delicious  photos of food on her blog kthread. She was nice enough to share a photo of the meal, below, which included lamb, asparagus, and a spring greens frittata.

It’s always a good idea to have a vegetarian option when friends are coming over for a meal, because you never know who’s going to show up and what their dietary restrictions might be. A frittata made with an oniony mixture of spring greens seemed like the perfect way to ring in the new season. Of course, when I actually started to make it, I realized I’d forgotten the original recipe card, grabbed from the vegetable section at Whole Foods, so I’d have to wing it. Here is the resulting frittata recipe, cooked entirely on the stove top using a technique from Mark Bittman.

Spring Greens Frittata Recipe

Serves 6-8

2 tbsp. or 2 tbsp. plus 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 ramps or 1 spring onion*
8 large eggs
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 handfuls baby mixed greens (salad mix)
1/2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
1/2 cup grated gruyere

Slice the white part of the onion or ramps into rounds, then julienne the green part into 3-inch long, fat matchsticks. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a non-stick frying pan and saute the onion over medium-high heat until wilting, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, beat the eggs with 1/2 tsp. sea salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper.

If you don’t have a non-stick frying pan, scrape the onion out and set aside, heat 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil in the stainless steel frying pan over medium-high heat until hot, and pour in the eggs and onion. (It takes a lot of olive oil to keep the frittata from sticking.) If you’re using a non-stick frying pan, just pour the eggs into the sauteed onion and stir.

Turn the heat down to medium and sprinkle the handfuls of baby greens, thyme and gruyere on top of the egg mixture. Tamp down with a spatula so the egg mixture covers the greens and cheese. Cook undisturbed until the edges set, about 10 minutes. Pay attention to the smell – the eggs shouldn’t smell as if they’re burning on the bottom. Play with the heat as necessary.

When the edges have set, run a spatula along the sides and under the bottom of the frittata to release it from the pan. Then take a large plate, place it over the frittata, which should still be runny on top, lift up the frying pan and carefully flip the frittata onto the plate. Add a little more olive oil to the pan, let it heat up, then slide the frittata back into the pan. Continue cooking until the bottom sets, about 5 minutes, then carefully slide it out of the pan onto another large plate.

At this point you can either set the frittata aside and reheat it when your guests arrive or let it cool slightly and slice it into wedges. Serve it as the Spanish do: not hot, not cold, but just a little bit warm.

* If you can’t find ramps, spring onions have a medium-sized white bulb on the bottom and scallion-like greens on the top. They’re sold at Whole Foods.

Note on the other foods: The lamb recipe was adapted from April’s Bon Appetit.

Correction amended. (I forgot the thyme!)