sauteed kale and scallion mini-frittatas

For some of you, this will not be a revelation, but when I had my first mini frittata, made in a muffin tin, I wondered where they’d been all my life.

I love eggs and could eat them every morning, but except for a sandwich, they’re not exactly a portable breakfast. A bacon, egg and cheese on an everything bagel has gotten me through most of my horrible hangovers, but it’s not exactly what you want to be should be eating for breakfast every day.

Also, I don’t have the time to cook breakfast evrey morning, though I wish I did. And working in the city (Manhattan) means that if I want to buy a remotely healthy egg breakfast that isn’t a deli sandwich, I’m probably shelling out too much cash on breakfast. So when Mom Rubino told me I could take a regular frittata (or quiche) recipe, and bake it in muffin tins, the light bulb went off. I’ve also previously mentioned my addiction to freezing food, and she mentioned that these freeze spectacularly well. My new favorite breakfast at work was born.

I’ve started making these frittatas in huge batches every few weeks. The advantage is that I can sauté all of the vegetables at once, thereby getting one pan dirty, and then make a bunch of different One word of caution: when you take that approach, you may want to look at an egg for a few days, but that’s okay. These will be waiting in the freezer for when you do.

This last time, I used the same basic recipe and made 3 different types:

Spinach and mozzarella – sautéed some spinach with garlic and oil, squeezed as much of the moisture out as I possibly could, then chopped it and added diced mozzarella and grated pecorino romano.

Mushroom and swiss – in the same pan I used earlier, I sautéed mushrooms with olive oil, salt and pepper until they were cooked through and browned around the edges (trying to take as much moisture out as possible!), then combined the mushrooms with small chunks of swiss cheese and lots of black pepper. Yum.

The last type, well, I just have to share the recipe for it because (of course) I used leftovers, and made only 5 frittatas, but it came out the best. Now I’m rationing them. Figures!

sautéed kale and scallion mini frittatas

This makes anywhere from 6-8 mini-frittatas, depending on how much you fill the cups, or it can be baked full-size in an 8×8 square pan, or you can make it into a quiche by baking it in a pie dish with a pie crust on the bottom (Pillsbury or homemade, no judgement here!)

Regardless of whatever vegetables you wind up using, if they have a high moisture content, make sure you cook out or (in the case of spinach) squeeze out as much moisture as you can, as it will affect the final product. Oh, and kale and scallion might sound like a weird combination, but trust me, I’m addicted. I’m having a scallion moment after having an irrational fear of cooked scallions for a long time. (Thanks, Mom!)

My last word of advice… please do not do what I did, and forget that you only had one muffin tin because you gave your other away to a friend. Making these, plus muffins (which I will also post soon!) meant that I had to keep cleaning the same pan over and over again, and felt a little like Phil Connors. (Yes, my Groundhog’s Day joke is two weeks late.)

2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 small bunch of kale, washed then dried thoroughly; leaves only, torn into smallish pieces
1 bunch scallions, green and white parts sliced into ~1/2-1″ pieces
2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
5 eggs
4-5 tablespoons of grated pecorino romano
1/4 cup of half and half or whole milk (you can use cream, I won’t tell anyone)
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded or diced small
salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees (350 if your oven runs hot), and butter/grease a non-stick muffin in.

Heat the olive oil in a 10″ non-stick frying pan or skillet over high heat. When shimmering, add the sliced garlic and stir/shake the pan around, cooking for about 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until the garlic is slightly browned around the edges. Lower the heat to medium-high, and add the kale to the pan. Using tongs, stir the kale around so it’s fairly coated with the oil. Saute, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes, or until the kale is bright and starting to wilt. At that point, add the scallions, and cook for an additional minute or so, until the scallions are wilted. Turn the heat off, and let this cool for 10 minutes so it won’t automatically scramble the eggs when you add it to your egg mixture.

Beat the eggs, grated cheese, half and half, salt and pepper together in a medium-sized bowl, mixing well; I usually beat eggs with a fork, that way when I add cheese and other fixins, it doesn’t get all clumpy and stuck in the whisk. Speaking of, add the diced mozzarella and kale/scallion mixture from the pan, and mix well.

Portion the frittata mixture between the different muffin cups; I typically use a ladle for this step, so I can make sure I get lots of mix-ins into each cup. Bake at 375 until a toothpick inserted in the center of your mini-frittata comes out clean and mostly dry, or until you can shake the pan and the tops of the muffins don’t jiggle at all, even in the center. You’re looking for the mixture to set, without overcooking the eggs.

PS: I know I mentioned I’m addicted to these for breakfast, but with a crusty piece of bread and a small side salad, you’ve got a pretty healthy, filling dinner on your hands. Enjoy!