Not Yo Mama’s Meal Prep

It’s probably the most beautiful Sunday in the history of Sundays outside right now. Seriously, I don’t think New England has seen weather like this since the Pilgrims landed. But what am I doing midst this wonderful weather? Writing a …

Mixed Potato Veggie Frittata

As I blogged yesterday, I made a mixed potato veggie frittata. It’s something I dreamed of in my brain Saturday and decided to see if I could actually create it. Well I did and I’d say it was pretty successful. It’s all I can do to not eat the whole pan of it right now. I highly, highly recommend it. This will last me all week and will encourage me to not only eat breakfast, but eat a homemade breakfast. Not some number from Dunks.

Ingredients: 

1 medium white potato (yukon gold or russet)
1 medium sweet potato
3 large pieces of roasted red pepper
1 Cup Spinach
1 Cup chopped raw broccoli – you could use frozen but be sure to drain out any extra water first
1/2 Cup caramelized onions
1 Tbsp Olive Oil or Coconut Oil
1/2 Cup organic shredded mozzarella milk
7 whole eggs
8 egg whites
1 cup low-fat milk
Salt and Pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a 9×13 rectangular pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

Wash potatoes thoroughly. Whether you peel them or leave the skins on is completely up to your preference. I usually peel sweet potatoes but leave the skins on regular potatoes.

Slice potatoes into thin circular slices. Do this as best you can, it’s not going to really change the dish if they aren’t all perfect circles. I have self-diagnosed OCD so I spent way too much time trying to get even, perfect circles.

Chop broccoli into manageable size. If you choose to use frozen broccoli, try to thaw and press any excess liquid out of the broccoli. Raw is preferred because frozen broccoli adds a lot of water to the frittata while cooking.

I always buy roasted red peppers packed in water. Pat excess water off before dicing. Slice and dice 3 relatively large pieces of roasted red pepper into manageable size.

For the caramelized onions, I try to purchase sweet onions. You’re just guaranteed better flavor and less chance of burning anything. Dice about 1/2 cup of sweet onion. Add about 1tbsp of olive oil or coconut oil to a fry pan on medium heat. Once oil has come to temperature, add onion. Toss around medium-high heat for a minute or so. Turn heat to low and let onions sit. This is where the magic happens. The onion should start turning translucent and slightly brown in color as time goes on. I let the onions sit on low heat, tossing occasionally while I finished the next few steps.

Arrange potatoes in alternating rows of sweet and white along the bottom of your pan. Like this image below:

Can you see where the OCD comes in?

Layer spinach on top of sliced potatoes like the image below. You want this is be a thin layer of spinach as there’s a lot more veggies to go.

Sprinkle your chopped broccoli and roasted red peppers on top of spinach.

Sprinkle your mozzarella cheese on top of veggies. You can use whatever type of cheese you prefer for this. You could also use whatever type of veggies you want too. I try to buy organic, grass fed cheese whenever possible. I also try to stick to part-skim mozzarella as well. If you want to go “full paleo” don’t use cheese.

Check your onions. If they are to your desired level of caramelization, sprinkle on top of mixture.

In a mixing bowl, combine eggs, milk, salt, and pepper. Whisk until well combined. Pour egg mixture over your layered veggies. It will NOT come to the top of the veggie mixture. That is okay. The eggs will rise as it bakes and everything will get nice and happy.

Here comes the tricky part. I can’t remember exactly how long I cooked this wonderful creation for. I know it was a while because I figured the “low and slow” cooking method would be best to cook the raw potatoes without killing the eggs. So this is my suggestion: check the dish after about 30-40minutes. I want to say this took about an hour to be fully cooked. But I was also baking the quinoa at the same time which I know slowed cooking time. The center should be firm to the touch when all is said and done.

The finished product will look like this:

I portioned this into 8 squares. I figure that’s about 2 eggs a square. Along with the veggies, milk, potatoes, and cheese, it makes for a pretty sustaining meal. I will bring a square of this to work, microwave it for about 80 seconds, and eat it for breakfast. Sometimes I’ll mix it up and have this for lunch or dinner and a smoothie and muffin for breakfast. Greatly depends on how early I drag myself out of bed in the morning.

I promise as I progress further in the blogging world to get better at recording how long things actually cook for. Also I have a tendency to just eyeball stuff when I cook so take all measurements with a grain of salt. Nothing I make can’t be altered a little. So if you want more or less of something just go for it.