What? You didn't really think I'd be able to leave my copy of Southern Living magazine alone, did you? Seriously? Have you seen it yet? It has breakfast. It has a recipe for risotto. Get this; on the same page it has Tequila-Lime-Coconut Macaroon Bars, Strawberry-Lemon Shortbread Bars and Ginger-Lemon Bars with Almond Streusel. Yeah, no. I'll be dipping into this little gem here and there this month. I just have to.
This dish is an example of why. It's the Tomato-Herb Mini Frittata. Looks pretty heavenly, no? You can just about see every ingredient that's in the dish right in front of you. There are tomatoes (I didn't have cherry so I just cubed up a regular one), herbs (chive, parsley and oregano to be exact), eggs and cheese, as well as the important but invisible salt, pepper and cream.
Hubby and I were both hungry this morning so I was able to whip this up in about a half hour. I did have a laugh at the instructions. They said to process the eggs, half-and-half, salt and pepper in a blender. Say what? A blender? Seriously? Trust me; you can get your eggs and cream just as frothy if you put those twenty muscles in your forearm to work with a fork. It's good for you and it means you don't have to clean a blender.
However you do it, mix up the eggs and cream stuff. Then in another little bowl, combine the herbs. Prepare the ramekins by spraying them a little and putting them on baking sheets. A layer of tomatoes goes on the bottom, then cheese, then herbs. The eggs get poured over that and more cheese is sprinkled on top. Then it all gets baked.
Here's the glory of this dish. Because it's made in individual ramekins, not everyone has to have the same thing. for instance, I'm married to a man who is not a tomato fan. When I met him he couldn't even stomach the thought of putting one in his mouth. He's made baby steps and can handle itsy bitsy pieces in a dish, but there was no reason for that today.
Instead, when I made his I simply left the tomatoes out and included some cooked bacon instead. The combinations you could use are endless. Using the individual ramekins, everyone can have what they want. It's a very cool idea.
We dove into a nice quiet breakfast together since Dudette was in preschool. I enjoyed the tomato frittata very much, but I have to admit that I really liked the bacon one. I know that it's an unfair comparison because, well, it's bacon. He loved it and wished that there was more (which he said very pointedly as I took my taste-testing bites).
I can't wait to utilize this method next time we have overnight guests. Being able to customize the bottom layer will make for a very fun meal together. This is definitely a winner on a lot of levels.