Eggs are incorporated into more than just breakfast in our household.
Everyone in our family loves them and we eat them all sorts of ways. One of the easiest egg dishes that can be served for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner is a frittata. If you have chops, cheese and of course eggs, all you need is time. Our 22 month old eats asparagus as long as I chop it up and add it to a frittata. In comparison, I don't think I was willing to eat asparagus until I graduated from college. If you have abundant chops or purées, use them in a frittata. This asparagus-gruyère frittata is one that I make regularly, but broccoli, peas, ham, carrots, leeks, mushrooms, cauliflower and just about any other chop-able vegetable will work in a frittata.
Frittatas are easier to make than egg scrambles but do require more time and some patience. The secret of a successful frittata is to leave it alone after you add the ingredients at the stove-top stage up until the point you slide it out of the pan an hour later. A frittata needs time to sit and properly set. If your baby has reached the point that he or she is picking up Cheerios, after the frittata fully cools, cut it up into small bite-sized pieces, scatter a few small pieces on your child's tray and encourage your cutie to pick up pieces to eat on their own. Little bites work well for the barely-toothed, especially if your main non-egg ingredient is a purée and you substitute plain yogurt for grated cheese.
As I noted in a previous post, some pediatricians do not recommend feeding eggs to babies so if you are allergic or have concerns that your baby may be, be sure to ask first. Our doc said it was fine to introduce eggs to our daughter before 12 months. We did and she gobbled them right up from the start. Nutritionally speaking, eggs are considered the gold standard for protein. If your little person isn't gobbling up meat (many do not, including ours) eggs are a healthy go-to for protein. My friend and nutritional consultant Bettina RD adds that egg yolks in particular have a lot of nutritional goodness in their fatty, yellow yolkness. Egg yolks are high in lutein and zeaxanthin, antioxidant carotenoids that protect the eyes and skin and that are fat-soluble.
Family Frittata
Equipment:
- 4 oz. small single-serving containers
- Frying pan (non-stick helps but is not essential)
- Spatula
- Whisk
Ingredients:
- 7-8 eggs -- I get my free-range eggs fresh from the farm. If I'm lucky, my egg purveyor will bring me a few duck eggs, which have rich yolks and yield delicious frittatas.
- 1/2 a shallot finely chopped or one chopped scallion bulb.
- Chopped asparagus -- be sure to snap off the woody ends before you start chopping.
- 1/4 cup-1/2 cup grated gruyère (or any hard cheese like cheddar, swiss, jack). If your baby does not have many teeth, use a microplane or substitute with yogurt or softened cream cheese. The cheese is essential as it will bind the frittata together when it has fully cooled.
- 1/4 cup of whole milk
Instructions:
- Turn the heat to medium and add a pat of butter or a spoonful of olive oil to the pan.
- Add asparagus and shallot or scallions. Sautée lightly until the vegetables begin to soften. About 3-5 minutes.
- While the asparagus is cooking, beat 7-8 eggs leaving out two yolks.
- Mix 1/4 cup of milk to the eggs.
- Remove from heat, drop contents of pan into a bowl and allow to cool.
- Turn the heat to medium-low and pour the egg mixture into the pan.
- Scatter vegetables evenly around the pan. Don't mix them. You want the frittata to set.
- Scatter grated cheese evenly on top of the frittata. Try to mix the cheese into the eggs without disturbing the bottom of the pan.
- Add a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Turn heat down to low and set the timer for 10 minutes. Don't touch the contents of the pan or cover it.
- When it looks like the frittata is nearly ready, turn on the boiler. Remove the pan from the stove-top while the boiler heats up.
- Place the pan in the boiler for 3-6 minutes. Keep an eye on it to make sure the top does not burn.
- Remove from the oven and allow the frittata to fully cool. This might take 40-60 minutes. Letting the frittata fully cool is the most important step. Once it is cooled and set, it will be very easy to slide the frittata out of the pan. If you try to remove it too soon, it will tear apart and you will have a very messy mess on your hands.
- Slide the frittata out of the pan onto a cutting board using the spatula to separate it from the pan.
You can cut up the frittata any way you like -- you don't have to cut it like a pie. I cut ours in long strips and then into bite-sized pieces for our daughter. She picks up the frittata cubes and pops them into her mouth like popcorn. Between Mr. Witty-Charming and me, we usually polish off the other 1/2 of the frittata for dinner (which sounds like a lot but is actually only 2 eggs each) with a frisée or arugula salad. Baby Wonderful will eat her share and we reserve the rest in a few 4 oz. small single-serving containers for lunch or dinner the next day. To mix it up and add some fiber, I toss frittata cubes with warm quinoa or rice the second time around.
Posted via email from citybaby
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