This no-fuss Italian omelette recipe uses asparagus, potatoes and cheese, but the beauty of the dish is that you can include pretty much any ingredients you fancy…
The frittata is simply an Italian version of the omelette. It’s a no-fuss dish, with no hard and fast rules when it comes to adding fillings. It’s the ultimate ‘let’s open the fridge and see what’s in there’ meal.
In fact, the possibilities are endless. Virtually any pre-cooked vegetable, leftover meat, rice or even pasta can be added to a frittata. The real trick is finding a selection of ingredients that complement each other.
A mix of vegetables and perhaps some spicy Italian sausage is always a popular combination, but in the recipe that follows, I’ve opted to make a vegetarian frittata. I had some leftover asparagus from a starter, and who doesn’t always have a few roast potatoes left over after Sunday lunch?
A little cheese always adds a greater depth of flavour to a frittata (it doesn’t matter how stale it is). Apart from that, all you need is a few fresh free-range eggs to bind everything together.
Italian omelette | Frittata
➤ SERVES: 2
➤ PREPARATION: 10 minutes
➤ COOKING: 10 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 free-range eggs
- A handful of cooked asparagus stalks, roughly chopped
- A few cooked roast potatoes, chopped
- 30g Parmesan, grated
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Place the olive oil in a frying pan, add the roast potatoes and cook over a low heat, until warmed through. Add the asparagus and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Into a large bowl, crack the eggs; season them and beat well. Pour the eggs into the frying pan and cook over a medium heat until they set. Place onto serving plates and sprinkle generously with Parmesan. This can be eaten hot or cold.
TIP: When it comes to frittata, measurements are almost superfluous. It depends on what and how much of each leftover item you have in the fridge. Here, I have used asparagus and roast potatoes, but you could add a handful of peas or broad beans as well, or instead.
Clearing out the fridge? Find more Italian recipes for leftovers
Words and recipe by Mario Matassa