A Frittata Savory Custard for your lunch box by Foodie’s Market’s Chef Laura Brennan

    

April 27, 2018

 

My old-school Italian grandmother, Giuseppina, always had a frittata or the makings of a frittata on the stovetop.  I say this because there was ALWAYS a pan of sautéed peppers around.  I was intrigued by the pile of glistening strips that always seemed more ‘animal’ than ‘vegetable’.  If it was summer, they were just waiting to be turned into a frittata; a quick-cooking supper dish which wouldn’t make the kitchen any hotter.

 

I have modernized her frittata a bit:  the peppers are dehydrated, I’ve used two different cheeses and I have baked them in muffin tins in the oven in a water-bath.  They are now suitable to be packed up for lunch on-the-go.

 

(And a frittata would typically be made with leftover bits & pieces of vegetables and cheeses; it was frugal as well as efficient. Food was not wasted.)

 

 

  • Prep: 30 mins
  • Cook: 45 mins
  • Yields: 12 pieces

Ingredients

1 small spaghetti squash (weighing about 2 pounds)

3 pounds yellow summer squash (3 or 4 pieces, depending on size)

1 whole shallot, skin-on

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more as needed for seasoning the pans

2 tablespoons olive or cooking oil, plus more as needed

Optional: 2 tablespoons dehydrated, minced bell peppers (They may be mixed with dehydrated onions; that’s fine.

Kosher salt

Fresh ground pepper

2-3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

1-2 ounces crumbled goat cheese

1-pint (16 oz/ 2 cups) half and half cream

6 whole eggs, plus 4 extra yolks

2 teaspoons all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons fresh (or dried) chives, minced

Directions

-2 each Teflon-coated, or silicone muffin tins, each tin has 6 x ½ cup wells

-A pan, large and deep enough (i.e. a roasting pan) to create a water-bath for cooking the frittata/custards in their muffin tins.

-Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees (to cook both the spaghetti squash and the frittatas)

1. If you can, cook the spaghetti squash the day before, as it may take an hour to cook. Wash and dry the squash. Cut the squash in half through the middle (the circumference). Use a metal spoon and scrape out the seeds from the center of each half. Lightly coat each half with olive oil and season lightly with salt and fresh ground pepper. Place cut-side-down in a baking dish and sprinkle with a couple of tablespoons of water or white wine. Cover tightly with foil and bake until soft and yielding. It will also have collapsed a bit. Check for doneness after 40 minutes and continue to bake if needed.

2. Let cool. Take 1 piece of the cooked squash (set aside the second half for another use) and scoop out the middle—it’ll come out in short strands of pale-yellow squash. Put into a strainer set on top of a small bowl and let excess liquid drain away. If you can let it drain overnight in the refrigerator, that would be ideal. When drained, mix in 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese. Taste. Season with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. And more cheese if you’d like.

3. Liberally butter the muffin tin-wells. Divide the seasoned spaghetti squash into the bottom of each muffin tin-well.

4. Prepare the yellow squash. Wash and dry the squash. Cut a 1/2-inch off the top and bottom of each piece of squash. Cut each squash into 3 even pieces. One at a time, stand each piece up on an end, hold it steady and ‘shave’ off each side of the squash, taking the skin with a 1/8th inch of the flesh, leaving the soft inner core standing. (The inner core exudes too much water when cooked.) You can save the cores for making soup (freeze in plastic bags until you have a sufficient quantity).

5. Lay each ‘side’ flat down on the cutting board. First, cut ¼” strips and then cut those strips across into ¼” diced pieces. Continue to dice all the side-pieces.

6. Peel the shallot and mince very, very finely. Warm a sauté pan over medium heat. Add 1 each tablespoon of olive oil and butter to the pan. Add the shallots and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Do not cook on a high heat, because they burn easily. Season with a pinch of salt. Add more butter and oil if necessary. Add the dehydrated bell peppers, if using, to the cooked shallots and cook until softened; about 2-3 minutes. Add the diced yellow squash to the pan. Season with salt and cook on medium heat until softened. Taste. Season with fresh ground pepper. Drain any excess liquid from this completed batch of cooked vegetables. When drained, add to a bowl and while still warm, add 1 ounce or more of crumbled goat cheese. Mix to combine. Taste. Adjust seasoning.

7. In the muffin tins, cover the spaghetti squash with the yellow squash mixture. Divide evenly among all the muffin tin-wells.

8. Make the custard base:

In a bowl, whisk together 6 whole eggs plus 4 extra egg yolks. Add 2 cups half and half cream.

Whisk in the 2 teaspoons of flour. Combine thoroughly -no lumps. Add ½ teaspoon kosher

Salt and a bit of fresh ground pepper. Add the chives.

9. Pour the custard mixture into a pitcher and pour custard into each muffin tin-well. Use a spoon and gently stir so the custard reaches the bottom of each well. Fill to the top of each well.

10. Put the 2 muffin tins into a roasting pan and put into a 350-degree oven. Leave the oven door open so you can pour hot water around each muffin tin. The water should come half-way up the sides of each tin. Try not to spill the custard nor get any water into the custard.

11. Bake for 20 minutes and check for custard firmness. Turn the pan around in the oven..….if you can do it without spilling water and burning yourself. Cook for another 20 minutes and check again. Frittatas/egg custards should be firm at the edges..…a bit of softness in the very middle is OK.

12. Remove pan carefully from the oven. Let cool in the water bath.

13. Run a knife along the edge of each frittata/egg custard. Use a thin spatula and lift each frittata out of it’s cup. Alternately, if they are very cooled and firm you can invert the pan on the counter and gently tap them out of their molds. Try not to crush them!

14. Enjoy warm or at room temperature with a crunchy green salad.

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