Tag Archives: frittata

Breakfast & Brunch, Recipes

Simple Summer Dish of Zucchini Frittata

Let’s start the hot days of summer off right with a dish that is quick and easy to make for breakfast, lunch or supper.  Frittatas are very versatile.  Zucchini is a summer squash, but really, it’s available year round. It works well with eggs and sausage in this delicious frittata. Basically, a frittata is an Italian flat omelet that is either finished off by cooking on the stovetop with a cover over the pan to bake it or placing it in the oven to bake.   I used a lid over the skillet for this version.  They are easy and very tasty.  For a crisp top on the frittata, put it under the broiler for about 5 minutes.

Zucchini Sausage Frittata

By Rene Averett

3/4 cup Zucchini – sliced 1/8″ thick
1/4 lb. Italian Sausage, pork
2 tablespoons Sweet peppers, chopped
2 to 3 large Eggs
1 tablespoon Heavy Whipping Cream
1 teaspoon Coconut Oil or Olive Oil
1/4 cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
1/4 teaspoon Seasoning Salt
1/8 teaspoon Black Pepper
1/4 cup fresh Kale, chopped

Break the sausage into small pieces and cook in a 6″ skillet until lightly browned. Turn off heat or remove from heat source. Remove to a paper towel to drain.

Add oil to the skillet and arrange the zucchini slices into a circle around the pan, overlapping where necessary to fill the pan. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top.

In a small bowl, beat eggs, cream, sweet peppers and kale together. Add a bit of water if it is too thick. Return the pan with the zucchini to the stove and cook over medium heat until the zucchini begins to look translucent. Add the egg mixture, pouring over the zucchini to distribute the vegetables as evenly as possible. Distribute the sausage on top.

Let cook a few minutes until the egg is set and the edges are bubbly. Put a lid or an inverted pan over the top to keep the heat in. This will begin to cook the top of the frittata. After three or four minutes, remove the lid and sprinkle the cheese over the top. Return the lid and cook another three or four minutes until the egg is completely set and the cheese is melted.

Carefully turn the frittata out onto a plate by putting the plate on top of the pan then flipping the two together. Cut the frittata in half and serve. Makes two servings.

Half of the frittata with 1/3 cup of pasta sauce on top.

If you wish, you can add a low carb pasta sauce on top of the frittata and warm it in the microwave for 30 seconds. (You can also microwave it if the frittata isn’t done enough to your liking.)  This is a versatile recipe and you can swap out meats and vegetables as you like.

Nutrition Info per 1 serving
Calories: 320 Fat: 24.6 g Net Carbs: 3.9 g Protein: 18.4 g

Breakfast & Brunch, Italian Inspired Recipes, Recipes

Brunch Time Skillet Frittata

I often hear people say that they get so tired of eggs, which are just a mainstay in the low carb lifestyle.  The egg is super low carb’d, nutritious and very versatile.  There are so many ways to prepare eggs and they are ingredients in many things where they aren’t the star.  If you don’t like the taste of eggs,  then there isn’t much that will hide the egg flavor unless you bake them into custards, flan, cakes and muffins.  But dishes like this one change the basic taste and many more ingredients enhance the experience.

A frittata is like a quiche or an omelet, but is made in a skillet.  It’s the Italian version of a Spanish omelet that is not the same as an American omelet.  Typically, an American omelet is a fluffy, folded over egg with filling ingredients in the middle.  The European version has the ingredients baked into the eggs to make a skillet egg cake, which is essentially what the name means. The flavor is different from the American version and is just as versatile with the added filling ingredients.

Often a frittata will use potatoes or even pasta in the mix.  This version replaces the potatoes with diced turnips, but you can also use Daikon radish, kohlrabi or celery root in it to keep it low-carb’d.  If you aren’t too worried about the carbs in the potato, then use the potato.  You can get creative with the frittata and it makes a great breakfast or brunch dish.  It even serves up well cold or at room temperature so it can make a great summer dinner meal with a berry salad on the side.

Skillet Italian Frittata

3 or 4 Eggs
1 link Italian Sausage, removed from casing
1/4 cup sliced Sweet Peppers
1/2 cup diced Turnips, Daikon Radish or Kohlrabi, pre-cooked
2 tablespoons Pico de Gallo
1 Tablespoon Butter
1 Tablespoon Heavy Cream
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan Cheese
1/4 teaspoon Herb Seasoning
Salt and Pepper to taste

In a skillet, cook the sausage until it is browned, separating it into small pieces as you cook. Don’t overcook as it will cook more in the frittata.

If the turnips (or other vegetable) isn’t already prepared, peel it, dice it and cook in boiling water for about five minutes. The little cubes should be fork tender when you poke them.

Break the eggs into a small bowl, add seasoning, salt, pepper and heavy cream and beat with a fork until well mixed and frothy.

Over medium heat, melt a tablespoon of butter in an omelet skillet, then add the sweet peppers and sauté about five minutes. Add the turnips, pico de gallo and sausage and stir to mix into the peppers and butter. Stir the eggs again, then pour into the skillet.

Cook as for an omelet, letting the eggs set, the lift the edges to let the liquid egg in the middle run underneath to cook. Repeat until most of the liquid egg is set. Turn the heat to low and put a cover over the skillet and let cook about three to five minutes. Check to see if the eggs look set in the middle. If so, then sprinkle the cheese over the top and put the cover back on for two or three minutes. Turn off the heat (if using an electric range, move off the burner) and let sit a couple of minutes.

Cut the frittata in two and serve.

Nutrition Info:
Calories: 388 Fat: 30.5 g Net Carbs: 4.6 g Protein: 21.9 g