Alton Brown's Squash Frittata

Nick and I love the show Good Eats, featuring our favorite Food Network star Alton Brown. The reason we like it so much is because he doesn't just cook, but he teaches us about food science. It's truly an educational and entertaining thirty minutes. Speaking of food science, have you seen the show Brew Masters? It's a show all about one of my favorite brews; Dogfish Head Beer. It's one of the most interesting shows I've ever watched. If I hadn't gone into dietetics, I would have chosen food science as my major. I really think it's fascinating, especially when the knowledge is used to create something healthy and delicious!

Ok, so anyway, after watching Alton make frittata on his squash episode, which aired earlier in the fall, Nick and I both knew we had to try it. I found it online after the show but when I went to make it of course I couldn't find it online anywhere! I did manage to find a different frittata recipe by Alton Brown, which can be found here. The recipe below is a slightly modified version (of course!).

Alton Brown's Squash Frittata

Ingredients

1 pound yellow squash, sliced about 1/8 inch thick
1 T EVOO
1 T chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 t salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 t freshly ground black pepper
6 large eggs
(** Want to make this recipe lighter? Use egg beaters! 1.5 cups of egg beaters would equal 6 large eggs**)

1/2 cup reduced fat ricotta cheese
1/2 ounce parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Heat the oven to the high broil setting and place the rack 3-4 inches from the broiler.

2. Gab a medium bowl and toss the squash slices with the oil, rosemary, nutmeg, and pepper. Lay the coated squash in a single layer on a baking pan, which has been lined with foil.

3. Broil until the squash is golden brown on one side (~4 minutes)

4. Whisk the eggs, ricotta, and parmesan together in a medium mixing bowl. Put the browned squash in an oven-safe nonstick saute pan (~ 10 inches wide). Pour the egg and cheese mixture over the squash and use a spatula to make sure some of the mixture gets under the squash.

5. Cook without stirring until the egg mixture starts to harden on the sides and set on the top (~4 minutes). Put the pan under the broiler until the frittata is nice and brown on the top (**watch carefully!! I burned mine the first time!!**).

6. Take out of oven and scoop onto a baking sheet to cool for several minutes.


Nick and I had his mom and sister over for dinner on this particular night. We served the frittata with some good red wine and a side spinach salad.

Alton, you never fail to impress me. My new year's resolution (well, one of them) is to get through more of his recipes from his cookbook I received for Christmas last year. So far I think I've make three things. Yikes.

QUESTION: Have you ever made frittata? Have you ever tried any recipes from Alton Brown?

Acorn Squash "Boats"

Several weeks ago Katie posted these beautiful zucchini boats, which inspired me to do some "boating" of my own, but instead with the acorn squash from our garden.

I popped them in the oven (whole, not cut in half yet) for 30 minutes at about 350 degrees. Next I cut them in half, laid them seed side facing down, and then placed them back in the oven for about 15 minutes.


Next I flipped them over, scrapped out all of the seeds, and placed about 2 tsp of Smart Balance margarine and ~1 tsp Splenda brown sugar in the boats.



Next I added ~1/4 cup brown rice (brown rice is a whole grain, wahoo!).



Then I added ~1/4 cup black beans (beans are packed with soluble fiber, which is a great way to lower cholesterol, and they also have many disease-fighting plant nutrients).



Next I added ~1/4 cup lean ground beef, which had been seasoned with cumin and cinnamon. By the way, I bought grass-fed beef today at the store. I can't wait to use it. I've never tried it before! It's supposed to have a higher content of omega-3 fats.



Next I added ~2 T of FULL FAT shredded cheese and some spinach, then placed them under the broiler for about 2 minutes.



Ok, so I need some photography lessons. This picture doesn't make my mouth water, but these acorn boats were fabulous. Please, do yourself a favor, and make some today (large acorn squash work best)!



Question: Have you ever gone "boating" in your kitchen? What did you use as your boat?

The Summer of SQUASH

The last time I posted an update on our garden we were getting ready to harvest some squash. Since then we have consumed about six homegrown squash and are anticipating enjoying many, many more throughout the next few months.

Right now we have summer squash and acorn squash. This (below) is the yellow squash.


Here's the boring way to prepare yellow squash (cut it up and throw it in the steamer!).



The exciting way is to sautee the squash in a pan with some olive oil and some vidalia onions.


When the onions and squash are nice and soft (and still hot) sprinkle some cheddar cheese on top and watch it melt into a bowl of deliciousness.



I also tested this Squash Souffle recipe, but it didn't turn out quite as I had hoped. I guess I wasn't too surprised, as I had to use flaxseed for the eggs, and I didn't use bread crumbs like it suggested (since I don't eat wheat I used corn meal). In addition, I didn't have eight ounces of shredded cheddar cheese, only five ounces.

This was what it looked like prior to baking.


I left it in the oven for about 30 minutes longer than the recipe suggested. I wanted a crispy outer layer! It was definitely good, just not amazing like I had hoped. It actually reminded me a lot of my polenta recipe.


And what about the acorn squash? I haven't done anything creative with the acorn squash, because both Nick and I love it just baked and jazzed up a bit.


I simply throw it into the oven at 370 degrees, for about 30 minutes. Then I take it out and cut it in half. I then place it back on the baking sheet, seed side facing down, for another 30 minutes.


Then I sprinkle a bit of brown sugar on top (I use the Splenda brown sugar), and about 1-2 T Smart Balance margarine.


Then serve it with something delicious, OR just have it by itself! On this particular day we made soft tacos with wheat-free tortillas, ground turkey, tomatoes, wild rice, and lots of spinach.


Pretty soon I'll be posting about my pumpkin. Check it out! I can imagine this pureed and in my oats already :)

Question: What's your favorite way to eat SQUASH?!

Veggies, Veggies, Everywhere!

I thought I was the person in the house who was most excited about having a garden, but I thought wrong. Nick has become the "garden guru" and I swear he's spent more money on our garden than he has on anything, ever, in his life. When I came home from Pittsburgh I was happy to see he had purchased a compost bin (I think this was money well spent).


He also moved our water bucket closer to our garden. When it rains the water will go through the gutters and drop into the bucket, which will then be used by us to water our garden! The compost will be used for fertilizer the next time we plant a round of seeds.


Check out our pumpkin and squash plants! They are taking over the entire garden.



Who needs canned pumpkin when you can grow your own? Hmmm...actually I DO! While this little guy (below) really excites me, and I can't wait to puree it and add it to my oats, I still miss Libby's canned pumpkin :(


Nick has estimated that we will be producing over 50 squash. Some are yellow squash.


And some are acorn squash (our favorite!).


I saw a commercial for V8 juice the other day, which claimed "Drink one serving of V8 for three servings of vegetables!" Why would I drink V8 for three servings of veggies when I can enjoy them fresh and whole from the market or my garden?! Not to mention the fact that V8 is FIBER FREE.

This kale is from our garden. I added it to the skillet with some EVOO and roasted tomatoes.


Final product, over some egg whites, and sprinkled with some nutritional yeast. Perfect.

QUESTION: What's your favorite vegetable?