Egg-citing New Post!

Egg-spiring

Egg-tastic

Egg-cellent

Just my lame-o attempt to show how versatile an ingredient Eggs can be!! Breakfast for Dinner, anyone? Not to mention a quick fix meal for a week night!

But, here at The Gourmet Pantry, we like to turn even a quick week night meal into a Gourmet Meal! My Eggs-periment (OK, I promise this is the last time!) produced the following Gourmet avatar. I used leftovers from my refrigerator as well as some other staple pantry ingredients to create this go-to comfort Gourmet meal. Hope you enjoy!!

Roasted Veggie Frittata with Hollandaise sauce

Now I know what you are thinking….Hollandaise sauce is Gourmet alright but super difficult to make! You are wrong!! Well…at least about the fact that it’s difficult! Hollandaise sauce is so simple to make and can turn any creation into super sophisticated and rich! At the end of this recipe you will be ready to host your very own Gourmet Brunch party and wow all your friends!!

Ingredients for a Frittata (Serves 4-6)

6 eggs

¼ cup of fresh spinach (julienned)

¼ cup of diced onions

¼ cup of diced red and green peppers

¼ cup of frozen corn

1 -2 potatoes – sliced in ¼ inch thick rounds (I have substituted this with eggplant as well, and it’s delicious!!)

1 Jalapeno – finely diced

2tbsp of Olive Oil

½ tsp of Garlic Powder (You can add 2 cloves of minced garlic if you don’t have garlic powder – or skip this altogether if you don’t like garlic)

Salt and Pepper to taste

* Substitute any of the above vegetables with those you prefer: You can also add mushrooms, green beans and asparagus!

Ingredients for Hollandaise Sauce

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (In the absence of lemons you can also use white-wine vinegar)
3 large egg yolks (the whites can be saved and added to your Frittata!)

3 tbsps of hot water
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon cayenne (I added a dash of hot sauce too coz I like it spicy!)
1/2 teaspoon salt

A pot of boiling water and a stainless steel bowl to make the sauce in

For the Frittata

1. Prepare your ingredients for the Frittata first: Scramble 4-6 eggs in a bowl and season with salt and pepper * (Note that this is usually more than enough seasoning for the entire frittata - the Garlic Powder adds a slight saltiness too. You want to avoid over salting or else the dish will be inedible!)
2. In an oven proof skillet, add 1 tbsp Olive Oil and onions and peppers and cook until the vegetables are soft and translucent. Then add the corn, jalapeno and garlic powder and sauté until the mixture browns a little. Remove and keep to the side.
3. In the heated skillet, add 1 tbsp of Olive Oil. Line the bottom of the skillet with the sliced potatoes (or eggplant), let them cook for a couple of minutes and then turn each slice, still lining the bottom of the pan.
4. Now add the cooked vegetable mix and spread it around to cover the entire pan. Add the scrambled eggs (DO NOT STIR eggs once added to the skillet).
5. Top the eggs with julienned spinach and bake the eggs in the oven, at 375 for 20 minutes or until eggs are done.

The sliced potatoes on the bottom of the pan will crisp up in the cooking process and offer that perfect amount of crunch to this velvety soft Frittata.

For the Hollandaise Sauce

1. Melt the butter and keep it warm. Prepare your double boiler. There is absolutely no need to buy fancy and expensive equipment for this. Just use any pot you have at home and heat water in it until it comes to a boil. Lower the flame so water keeps simmering.
2. Place a stainless steel bowl over the pot of boiling water (not in the water – make sure the bottom of the stainless steel bowl does not touch the water or this will curdle your yolks – You don’t want that to happen!).
3. Place the egg yolks in the stainless steel bowl and whisk rapidly until it doubles in quantity. You will notice that the yolks will thicken and become a creamy yellow sauce.
4. Now add 1 tablespoon of the hot water.  Continue to beat the sauce until it begins to thicken. Repeat with the remaining water, one tablespoon at a time, beating constantly.
5. Now add the lemon juice and remove the double boiler from the heat.  
6. Continue to beat the sauce briskly and now slowly pour in the melted butter.  Add the salt and cayenne and beat the sauce until it is thick.

Voila! Hollandaise Sauce is ready!

Pour sauce on top of a slice of the Frittata and serve with toasted Olive bread and you will become the designated Brunch host amongst your friends, forever!!

Just have them bring the booze for a lazy afternoon brunch – sounds like a deal to me!!