Frittatarrific! Or, Breakfasting in the Bedroom

posted April 28, 2009
  by Josh Gunn, Bachelor Chow

Believe it or not, writing a column every week for over a year can exhaust one's creativity, y'all. This week I tweeted to Crackbook friends that I was needing some ideas for this column, and more than one lady friend said "breakfast in bed" and specified I supply a recipe for some sort of egg dish. Since I've already written about my super-special migas and my love of omelets, that doesn't leave me much to work with—at least from my own breakfast repertoire. Since I made a frittata this morning for myself and an overnight guest, I reckon I'll share that recipe (see below).

However, somewhere between this sentence and the recipe down yonder I have to talk about the bed: breakfast in bed is especially nice to make for an overnight guest, and I have yet to see anyone who was not delighted by it. The trouble, however, is that you're not supposed to eat in bed, and you may get breadcrumbs on the sheets (and this, as you might know, is not fun to sleep in). Now, depending on how special your guest is, dear bachelor, this may be a moot point.

Breakfast in bed is most easily done with a bed tray made specifically for that purpose. The edges of the tray will help keep food bits on the tray and out of the bed. You can also just use a plain old tray which you guest can set on his or her lap.

Now, to properly do breakfast in bed, you need the following: a fruit serving; toast; coffee or tea; a juice serving; an egg item; and some sort of meat, like sausage or bacon or vegetarian sausage. If you can find one of those small, cute jelly jars for the toast, that's particularly fancy and impressive. Finally, a flower of some sort (a rose if you're serving a special friend) also looks fetching on your tray. If you get the morning paper, you might consider bringing that to your guest as well. Assemble all these items on the tray (and care should be taken not to burn the toast).

Okay, now, some of you are thinking the issue of how to serve up breakfast in bed is obvious. I would agree if you've seen a Hollywood movie in the past century. If movies were a true measure of reality, we'd all be eating breakfast in bed at least once a week. But let's face it: it's not that common. And believe it or not, there are some bachelors out there who are totally clueless about how to be for another person and look after guests. Hence, I have a job!

Now, today's egg dish is basically an Italian omelet. These are fluffier and sort of like a quiche without the crust. Traditional frittatas are made by putting last night's leftovers (e.g., spaghetti) into an egg mixture, frying in a skillet, and then finishing off by broiling it in the oven. Today, however, you can buy special frittata pans made specifically for, um, for making frittatas. What I do, however, is just use skillets, which is a little tricky, but works just fine for me.


Zucchini and Feta Frittata Recipe
http://www.cdkitchen.com/


Serves/Makes: 2
Ready in: < 30 minutes

* 5 large eggs
* 1 dash hot sauce
* 1 pinch baking soda
* 1 ounce half-and-half or milk
* 2 zucchini squash, sliced into thin rings
* 4 ounces Feta or similar goat cheese (more if desired)
* 3 tablespoons butter
* 2 tablespoons fresh, finely chopped oregano
* 2 tablespoons fresh, finely chopped parsley
* salt and pepper to taste
* sour cream
* salsa

Whisk your eggs together with hot sauce, baking soda, and the half-and-half or milk. Whisk for a good while so that you can get a lot of air into the egg (which will make your frittata fluffier).

Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a skillet and sauté the zucchini rings on medium heat for about a minute. Then, add the fresh herbs and sauté for another minute or two. Pour in your egg mixture, and briefly stir with a spatula to get the egg under the zucchini.

Lower the heat to "low" and: LEAVE IT ALONE for about five minutes! No touchy da eggs!

Meanwhile, melt the remaining tablespoon of butter in another skillet and coat the entire surface. Place this skillet on top of the cooking-eggs skillet and flip! Now you're cooking the gooey topside.

In about five minutes the thing should be pretty solid (frittatas are cooked to "well-done," and both sides may be a little brown). Slide the frittata onto a plate, and cut it into wedges like you would a pie or cornbread. Serve it up with a dollop of sour cream and a little salsa on the side!

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