basic frittata

You know what I really love about frittatas? You can make them to suit whatever it is you have in the fridge. As long as you've got eggs, you've got a meal.

This is the first time I've ever made one, and I can tell you that it won't be my last.

My frittata consisted of mushrooms, fresh spinach, parmasan cheese, roasted purple garlic, and some leftover rotini pasta. It's amazing what a few simple ingredients can accomplish.

This isn't the first time I've seen pasta in egg dishes, but it's the first time I've actually tried it. I happened to have some cooked frozen rotini and based on this recipe, I decided to add a cup. Pasta and egg, where have you been all my life?

based loosely on Martha's

(you can add any vegetables you like, this is just a basic blueprint)

6 eggs

1/4 cup (or more) parmasan cheese

4 sliced mushrooms

4 cloves of roasted purple garlic (or regular garlic roasted or not)

about a handful of chopped fresh spinach

about a cup or more of any cooked pasta, I used multicoloured rotini

salt and pepper to taste

red chili pepper flakes to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl, mix all of the ingredients together until the eggs are thoroughly combined with everything. Heat a 10" cast-iron pan (or any pan that's oven proof) on medium high heat with a drizzle of oil. Once heated, pour the egg mixture into the pan and gently spread it around so it's a nice even layer in the pan. Cook the eggs, undisturbed, until they look as if the top is just beginning to set and the mixture is pulling away from the sides of the pan a bit. Then transfer the entire pan to the oven and bake until the eggs are completely set, about 10-15 minutes. Test the center with a fork if you're not sure it's done. You can serve it right out of the pan or carefully invert it on to a plate. We had ours with a side salad and extra parmasan cheese.