Hot lunch

I'm a fan of a hot lunch.  I eat leftovers from the night before, or if I go the sandwich route, it's almost always on toast.  I often make egg whites, but recently I've been taking a little extra time to make myself a frittata.  Because we are still picking tomatoes from the garden (crazy, I know!), I've been doing my own riff on a caprese frittata.   Here's how I do it:

Pre-heat the broiler.  Take a little olive oil and heat it on the stove in an oven proof pan.  Add about 10 - 12 small tomatoes cut in half and season with salt and pepper.  Saute the tomatoes for a minute or so and then add some chopped basil to taste.  In a small bowl, whisk 3 egg whites with 1 egg.  Pour the egg mixture into the pan, stir it a bit so the eggs get under the vegetables.  Sprinkle the top with a bit of mozzarella cheese.  Cover the pan and cook the eggs over medium heat until they are set.  Once the eggs are set, remove the lid and place the pan under the broiler until the top is browned to your liking.  Using a spatula, slide the frittata onto a plate and enjoy.

It takes little time - about 10 minutes - and is super satisfying. This just may be my go-to lunch this fall.  Of course, I won't have garden tomatoes and basil much longer so I am looking for other combinations.  My friend Traci likes her egg whites with spinach, tomatoes and goat cheese.  Emily turned me onto carmelized onion and zucchini frittata.  I think leftover roasted veggies in eggs would be great as would some chicken taco meat, black beans and salsa.  There are all kinds of options.  If you have a favorite combination, I'd love to hear about it.

Back tomorrow, I hope.  I've been knitting.  And sewing.

Comments

[emily]

i'm loving (and planning) the idea of roasting a whole bunch of veggies and keeping them on hand for just such a moment. (come to think of it - didn't you tell me that your mom adds her leftover roasted veggies to her eggs in the morning?)

[Sarah Jackson]

I make mine with kale and caramelized onions and if I have sausage or bacon, I'll throw that in. I also like them with sauteed mushrooms and greens. Basically, I'll make a frittata out of whatever I have in the refrigerator that needs to be eaten.

[rachel]

I like them with goat cheese, sun dried tomatoes and caramelized onions. Or just simple tarragon and tomato.

[Erin]

Yes, she does!

[Deanna]

Oh lovely. Gotta have the real-food lunch!

[Vintage Chica]

I've been on a soup kick...another great way to use up leftovers. But a frittata sounds really yummy....Hmmm...ham and asparagus sounds pretty good right now.

[char]

I love eggs any way...but my fave lunch, which you may already know about...because I tell the World...is to saute red onion,parsley and mushrooms...add ham towards the end just to heat up.
Make an omlette, add the above ingredients to the omlette with a couple of slices of swiss...take half of the omlette in the pan and fold it to the other side.
Dice some tomatoes and avacado...have on the side.
YUM!
I am a HOT lunch kinda girl too Erin...especially on days like these!
4 degrees is WAY too cold on an early October day.

HUGS
Char.x

[tara thayer]

if i have leftover kale or brocolli rabe from pizza or burritos the night before, that goes right into my eggs in the morning, or under some cheese on toast for lunch. today, broccoli rabe and cheddar on a whole wheat bagel. i may have overdone it though. i need a nap.

[Kristin]

That sounds like a lovely change for soup. Though I must confess, I won't be making it with egg whites. :)

[meg]

I prefer a poached egg on top of whatever is in the fridge, but fritatta is fun to eat (and say) too. I like them with artichokes, red peppers and goat cheese; or zucchini, tomatoes and black olives.

[Tory]

Anything in the fridge goes into our eggs! What are you doing with all those yolks? How about homemade ice cream?

[Carrie S.]

Hey! I love those shoes! Where did you did get them? (Sorry to post completely off topic. The caprese frittata looks super yum!)

[Suzanne]

It's amazing how quickly eggs come together. When you really think about it, they're a great fast food and feel so comforting. I've gotten some tasty ideas for later this week. I love kale!

[Erin]

the shoes are from boden - a couple of years ago.

[Andrea]

My favorite go to lunch is a piece of toast, or tortilla topped with sauteed kale (in olive oil) and a fried egg on top of that. I love the frittata idea too!

[sewkatiedid]

We carmelize onions, then saute mushrooms and add spinach for topping our pizzas and make a little extra for frittata the next day, but I love any veggie roasted and put in a tortilla with an egg.

[Indiana Lori]

Love it! Another idea for what to do with the tomatoes STILL pouring out of my garden. It's October in Indiana and I have a garden and flower beds bursting with color. WEIRD, but great.

[Farmgirl Susan]

There's nothing more luxurious than a quick hot lunch. Are fritattas one of life's greatest inventions or what? Yours looks wonderful - and your cherry tomatoes are so beautiful! I'm envious of your bumper crop. We had our first frost yesterday, and while I diligently covered up everything *else* still growing in the garden, I somehow spaced out my sprawling patch of volunteer cherry tomatoes - which are the only tomatoes out there this year. And then I forgot about them again last night!

I'm loving all these fritatta ideas - especially the ones that don't call for tomatoes. ;)

[erica]

Yum! Any and all of these options call to me. I could eat eggs for any meal of the day, whether it be a scramble, omelet, or a frittata. And while I should eat more of them with egg whites, I feel wasteful not using those yolks, somehow.

[alexia]

we still have lots of tomatoes too! I'll have to make this for lunch soon! looks delicious

[Eden]

You could still have your cherry tomatos in the winter. Last year we froze a bunch and they worked great in fritatas and omelets. We just froze them whole in freezer bags. Cheers!

[CathyT]

I make mine similar to yours but i also add in basil. yum!