mexican frittata

Frittata.  Go on, say it.  Frittata!  See?  Fun.  Say you have 4 dozen eggs because your husband brought home 3 dozen from his fishing trip.  Just go with it.  What the heck do you do with all these eggs?  Well, besides giving the kids scrambled eggs for breakfast every. single. morning. you can make a frittata for dinner.  The nice thing about making a frittata is that you can adjust it to whatever you happen to have on hand.  As I looked around my kitchen, I found 4 dozen eggs, potatoes, onions, sweet peppers, a jar of jalapeno slices and leftover corn we had grilled the day before.  And shredded cheddar cheese, of course.  Mexican it is!

If it's Memorial Day weekend, be sure to have someone wave a flag in the background as you gather ingredients.

I diced up 3 red potatoes and threw them in the microwave (covered) for 5 minutes.  Whilst they are a cooking, chop three small sweet peppers and half the onion.  Then give your weird veggie-loving son some raw peppers and onions, because he really likes them.  I know.  I said he's weird!

Saute onions and peppers in about a tablespoon or 2 of olive oil in your trusty big iron skillet, or something that is okay to use on the stovetop and in the oven.  I don't have anything fancy, I just always use the big iron skillet for everything.  Did you know that cooking in an iron skillet leaches the iron into your food?  It's good for you.  Especially if you're a vegetarian, like I am!  Anyhoo, saute until nicely browned, of course, adding a touch of salt and pepper.  Or a dousing, according to your taste.  Also add some minced garlic, about 2 cloves.  If you like that sort of thing.  And I do!  While this is all browning nicely, crack open 8-9 eggs.  Add a few dashes of the following: chili powder, cumin, and nutmeg.  You heard me, nutmeg.  Trust me.  Then pour in some of your favorite hot sauce.  I'm adding Cholula here, cause I likes it.

Pouring left handed, shooting picture with my right.  Oh, the talent.

The amount of hot sauce is extremely subjective.  You know what you like.  Right?  Whisk all this together really really well until eggs get a little frothy.  Feel free to use a mixer, or child labor.

Remember the potatoes?  Take them outta the microwave and throw them into the pan with the onions and peppers and just go ahead and brown them, too.

If you grilled corn the day before and have an ear or 2 left over, then good for you!  If not, just use canned or frozen corn.  Or no corn at all.  Whatever you like!

Cutting corn off the cob.  It's fun!  But you want to cut it/break it in half first so you have a flat edge to stand it on.

Throw that corn in the pan, too, now that your potatoes are also browned.  Chop up about 10 jalapeno slices and throw them in also.  Spread it all out in the pan evenly.

Yum!  That looks good enough to eat!  But don't do it yet.

Now pour your frothy, spicy eggs all over the potato mixture.  Pour all over.  All over.  Pour it all over.  Sorry, I'm done.

Cook on medium-high until egg sets at the sides.  While it's cooking, walk out to your garden for some cilantro.  Then remember that you didn't plant cilantro this year because it gets all long and leggy after just 3 weeks no matter how much you pinch it back to get it to bush.  So pick some dill, parsley, and arugula.  Cause I'm an all or nothing sort of gal.  Or if you actually HAVE cilantro, I'm pretty sure that would have been tasty and you wouldn't have picked every other herb because you just didn't KNOW what the heck to put in.  If you're my friend, Jo, you would put in tarragon, because that's the herb she exchanges for any other herb in a recipe.  Chop it all up and sprinkle on top of your progressively setting egg mixture. 

See how the sides are setting?  It's about time to warm up the old broiler. 

Once the sides seem firmly set, place the skillet under the broiler for roughly 5-10 minutes.  Or until the eggs are completely set.  To find out, shake the pan.  If it still does a little shimmy in the middle, you need another minute or 2.  If it does the hokey-pokey, you need another 5 minutes.  Sorry again.  Now, just a friendly reminder for any of you scatter-brains out there.  Do not put the cheese on BEFORE you set the eggs under the broiler.  Only a scatter-brain would do that.  And then cut into it to find it did not set in the middle at all because you had put a protective layer of cheese on it.  No.  Don't do that.  You put the cheese on AFTER the eggs are set and THEN generously sprinkle cheese on top.  

Replace skillet under the broiler for another 3-5 minutes, or until cheese is melty and bubbly and ridiculously yummy looking.

YUM.

Slice into wedges and EAT up! 

If you were a scatter-brain and had to put the whole damn thing into the oven to bake because it wasn't set, your kid might be in the background eating peanut butter toast.  Because he was really hungry.  And couldn't wait.  But such a thing would never happen to me.  I'm just warning all of you that it's been known to happen.  Just not to me.  Fine, don't believe me.