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La Frittata con Patate w/ Garlic Cheddar Bread

I’ve been in a food rut lately. I’ve been cooking the same things, eating the same things, and wishing I would do something different. I’ve been trying NOT to eat like a frakkin’ garbage disposal, as I have been the past few weeks. Nothing will wake you up faster and harder than weighing yourself and realizing you’ve put on 7 pounds because you just “needed” to eat that entire bag of Cape Cod Cheddar Jack & Sour Cream potato chips or those 99 cent orange slices (sugar coated jellie *drool*).

So, I whipped out my McDougall Maximum Weightloss Program book to get some food ready for the week, and decided that instead of heading over to El Barrio for some veggie tacos, I would make dinner for tonight as well. I flipped through my copy of Sweet Basil, Garlic, Tomatoes, and Chives by Diana Shaw, settling on trying my hand at a frittata. It was new. It was different. It was exactly what I was looking for.

Plus, it’s fun to say. Frittata. Frittata. Fri. Ta. Ta.

Now, this book has a rather assorted collection of frittatas, not to mention a plethora of other recipes. Sure, Shaw has included a recipe for the basic frittata but it quickly makes a left turn and delivers recipes for things like Frittata di Pane (Garlic Bread Frittata) or La Frittata di Pasta (Pasta Frittata). What makes the book great in general is the varied recipes that range from simple, sometimes using as few as 2 ingredients, to complex. If you can find a used copy, like I did, do yourself a favor and add this 1992 Italian cookbook to your collection.

This was one of the simple recipes, made simpler if you actually read the ingredients. It’s two TEASPOONS of olive oil. Two tablespoons proves to be a little too much lubricant. Luckily I caught this before I started cooking. Also, it recommends cooking the potatoes in the oil for 20 minutes to make sure they are cooked properly; but it took me about seven. Maybe it’s because the stainless steel skillet I used heated the oil quicker than usual, but those potatoes were brown in no time. So, make sure to keep an eye on them, otherwise, you’ll be eating a potato chip frittata, which sounds more appetizing than it probably is. I also replaced the eggs with Southwestern Style Egg Beaters, as I was trying to make this a little healthier, and spicier, for myself.

I cannot, however, take credit for the Cheddar Garlic Bread. That’s from the Naperville staple, Great Harvest Bread Company, a store I’ve contemplated begging for a job more than once. I’ve yet to have a bad bread from this place, from their Pumpkin & Chocolate Chip or their Popeye’s Passion (spinach and red pepper), I could die happy being able to bake bread like theirs.

Plus, it’s fun to say. Frittata. Frittata. Fri. Ta. Ta.

The results? Quick and delicious. I ended up eating the entire thing myself. The peppers added a nice subtle kick to the frittata. The potatoes may have been crispy after being cooked, but after the baking they were soft and easy to cut. The hardest part of this entire recipe was getting the energy up to go out and by some Egg Beaters. They don’t call them Lazy Sundays for no reason.

La Frittata con Patate / Omelette aux Pommes de Terre

Ingredients
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
1 russet potato, peeled (or unpeeled if you prefer) and sliced into very thin rounds
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup Southwestern Style Egg Beaters (equivalent to 4 eggs), lightly beaten
Cheddar Cheese, grated (optional)

Directions
1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Heat the oil and butter together, to coat the bottom and sides of a 7-inch ovenproof skillet.
2. Add the potato slices in a single layer. Cook gently, turning to cook both sides, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Pour the eggs over the potatoes.
4. Cook over medium heat until the bottom is set, but the top of the frittata is still runny, about 5 minutes.
5. Place the skillet in the oven until the top of the frittata has set and browned, 3-4 minutes. Sprinkle the cheddar cheese over the frittata if desired, and allow to melt.
6. Loosen the bottom of the frittata with a spatula, invert on a large plate, cut into wedges, and serve immediately

Serves 2

Pringles Bacon Ranch Potato Chips

They’re going to run out of flavors soon. Just you wait. Soon, it’s going to be a world of bizarre mixes and creations and mashups that make no sense, yet they’ll slap limited edition on the side, and people (like me) will snatch them up and give them a shot. Companies will cross promote, and we’ll get some weird combinations like Boo-Berry Pringles or Eggs Benedict Hubba Bubba and they will have made their money, laughing all the way to the bank.

Pringles started out in the right direction, as I wrote about a while back. Their Thai Chili Spice chips were something different (and good!) that they were bringing to market. Granted, their Bruschetta chips tasted more like tomato soup than the traditional Italian appetizer, but at least they were trying.

And we all know about my obsession with jalapeno chips. And I have friends who loved pickle flavored chips. So, there’s always a market out there for wacky and bizarre flavors.

We’ll get some weird combinations like Boo-Berry Pringles or Eggs Benedict Hubba Bubba.

But, these new Pringle Bacon Ranch chips, while okay, don’t hold a candle to the Tato Skins flavored with fake bacon (facon?) from years ago. Hell, give me the loaded baked potato chips that Pringles also produces; because the bacon chips definitely taste like bacon. Almost TOO much like bacon. I was overpowered with the taste. One or two chips may be a decent snack, but if you’re like me and tend to attack a can of Pringles like they were the only food you’ve seen in days, there’s a good chance your stomach would seize, and you’d be regretting your life path that led you to such a decision of eating so many bacon flavored chips. But, my friend is still alive after doing such a thing, so maybe the artificial flavor was too much for me and my fragile stomach.

They’re decent. Bacon fan will probably like them. But, they’re most definitely not for me.

Also, in case you’re wondering, no, you will not see me review their spicy guacamole chips. Why? Because guacamole is a product of the devil. I’ll never understand why people would do such horrific things to such innocent avocados.