I made meringues at the weekend, and had some leftover egg yolks in the fridge. With a choice of custard, mayonnaise, tortilla or frittata to use them up, I went for the lunch friendly option.
Tortillas and frittatas are variations on the same dish, both consist of an egg based omelette. Traditionally the Spanish tortilla will contain eggs and potato and the Italian frittata will contain eggs and other ingredients. Neither are to be confused with the Mexican tortilla which is a flat bread, used as a wrap.
Frittatas (and Spanish tortillas) are great for a quick lunch, they are also great both hot, warm or cold, being robust and transportable are perfect for picnics. Whilst not being essential to the recipe I find that along with scrambled eggs the majority of egg based dishes benefit immeasurably from the addition of a couple of extra yolks, so I tend to make them after I have been cooking with egg whites. I have tried using liquid egg whites for my meringues and macarons, but I do not really get on with them and prefer the results of “real” egg.
My mother’s traditional Christmas Eve supper consists of smoked salmon, with scrambled egg enriched with extra yolks left over from using the whites in the Royal icing for the Christmas cake.
With an empty vegetable drawer I used a handful of chickpeas, pinto & flageolet beans in place of the traditional potato, coupled with half a red pepper and a lone spring onion. With the chickpeas and beans having more flavour and protein coupled with fewer carbs and a lower GI score I think it is a winning filling.
Adapt and throw in what you have. I keep a box of mixed beans and chickpeas in the freezer ready to add to salads and pasta dishes, I fried them in with the peppers for a few minutes to defrost them.
Red Pepper & Chickpea Frittata
Ingredients
- Glug olive oil
- ½ red pepper (cut into thin strips)
- 1 spring onion (chopped)
- 150 g (¾ cup) cooked chickpeas (or mix of cooked beans)
- 5 eggs
- 2 - 3 egg yolks (or another egg)
- Salt & pepper
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a (20cm / 8”) omelette pan and gently fry the peppers and spring onion until soft and starting to turn brown.
- Meanwhile whisk the eggs and extra yolks and season with some salt and pepper.
- Add the beans to the pan, stir and then pour the egg mixture over. Give the pan a gentle shake, then leave to cook over a low heat for about 5 mins.
- When the egg is nearly set put the pan under a hot grill for a few minutes until the top of the frittata is has risen (it will look puffy) and is golden.
- Flip out onto a plate to serve.
mj
This looks wonderful — so tasty and nutritious!
Sanchita
I love eggs and this can be a very healthy lunch. Thanks :)
katescakesandbakes
I’m always on the search for recipes to use up egg yolks from all the bloomin’ baking – thank you for the inspiration!
Krithi
Helen, this looks Simple and hearty… my kind of flavors.. yumm