Courgette & Ricotta Frittata served with a Cherry Tomato Salad
Prep time: 10 minutes / Cooking time: 35 - 40 min
Serves 4 to 6
This recipe is vegetarian
INGREDIENTS:
4 tbsp. oil
2 courgettes, thinly sliced
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
8 eggs
125g ricotta cheese, crumbled
75g cheddar cheese, grated
2 tbsp. fresh basil, chopped
Salt & pepper, to taste
Cherry tomato salad, to serve
METHOD:
1. In a large bowl: whisk the eggs, add both cheeses and whisk again to mix well. Add the basil and seasoning, stir and set aside.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil to a large frying pan on medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the courgette slices to the pan in one single layer. After 4 - 5 minutes turn them and cook the other side. You want them to be lightly brown on both sides. Remove them from the pan and set aside. (If all the courgette slices do not fit in your frying pan at once, cook them in a couple of batches – do not overcrowd the frying pan, otherwise you will not get the lovely light brown colour that makes them super delicious)
3. Add another tablespoon of oil in the frying pan, add the onions and cook at medium heat for 5 minutes until soft, add the garlic and cook for a further couple of minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
4. Transfer the cooled courgette slices, onion and garlic to the egg mixture. Mix well to combine.
5. If you do not have a grill, check note on Step 6 before continuing. Heat the last tablespoon of oil in a medium non-stick frying pan, when the oil is hot add the egg & courgette mixture. Do not stir; let the egg mixture cook for 4 to 5 minutes on medium heat running a spatula along the edge of the frittata to prevent sticking if necessary.
6. Transfer the frying pan under a medium heat grill and cook for a further 5 to 6 minutes, or until the egg is fully cooked and is lovely and golden - try gently shaking the frying pan, if it does not wobble and there are no runny bits of egg, this means that it is cooked.
Note: If you do not have a grill, forget about the frying pan altogether and bake the frittata at 180°C in a greased oven dish until fully cooked (as you would do with a quiche). Like when cooking it in the frying pan you will know it’s cooked when there is no runny bits of egg and it does not wobble.
Remove the frying pan from the grill; use the spatula to gently loosen the edges of the frittata and slide it onto a large plate. Cut into wedges and serve with a cherry tomato salad.
TIPS:
✓ Exchange the courgette for any vegetables you have available like peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, sweetcorn or potatoes – just make sure to cook them first if they are raw. Great recipe to use up left over vegetables that you have laying around in the fridge, either raw or cooked.
✓ In addition, a very good recipe to use up left over bits of cheese that you have in the fridge.
✓ Ricotta cheese is a well-known Italian fresh cheese that is low in fat and salt but if you would like to further reduce the calories in this dish you could use quark instead of ricotta and reduced fat cheddar instead of normal cheddar.
✓ The frittata can be eaten cold and would make a nice addition to a packed lunch.
✓ You could turn it into a quiche by adding a pastry base and just baking it in the oven.
✓ This dish is low on carbohydrates so you could make it more filling by serving it with some crusty bread.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:
Nutrition per serving, based on 6 servings per recipe with no added salt:
Serving of 200g frittata:
Kcal 283.57
Fat 22.53g
Saturates 7.27g
Carbs 4.83g
Sugars 0.22g
Fibre 0.91g
Protein 15.39g
Salt 0.62g
Serving of 80g cherry tomatoes:
Kcal 14.40
Fat 0.32g
Saturates 0.08g
Carbs 2.40g
Sugars 0g
Fibre 0.80g
Protein 0.64g
Salt 0.03g
Eggs are one of the most nutritious food we have. Eggs are a good source of high quality protein (1 medium egg contains around 6g of protein) and a good source of fat.
Eggs contain vitamins B2, B12, D, A amongst others. They also contain selenium, iodine, iron, choline, and other beneficial minerals. Choline contributes to normal fat metabolism and liver function.
Cheese is a good source of protein and calcium. Cheese is high in saturated fat and may raise blood cholesterol levels, therefore should be eating as part of a balanced diet.
Garlic & onions are among the vegetables highest in antioxidants and have been shown to help cholesterol levels.
Courgettes have few calories and a high water content so they are the ideal vegetable if trying to reduce calories in your diet. They are not super nutritious but contain useful amounts of vitamin C, some potassium and soluble fibre in their skin (soluble fibre is great to keep things moving in the inside).
Tomatoes (a type of fruit) are a good source of potassium, vitamin C, beta-carotene (the body converts this to vitamin A) and lycopene, a natural antioxidant known to have many health benefits. Tomatoes flavour will improve considerably if stored at room temperature.
The tomato salad will provide a portion of vegetables. The courgettes and onions are also a source of vegetables.
