Mushroom Frittata

Puffball, Maitake, Shiitake

The primary mushroom vendor at the Portland Farmers Market had a nice selection this weekend. A friend decided I should make something with Puffball, Maitake, and Shiitake mushrooms, so she handed me a bag when I arrived at her house. “Use these for supper,” she said, and asked if we needed to go shopping. “Do you have eggs and salad greens?” She nodded.

A frittata is always quick and easy and is a great way to use up leftovers. All you need is eggs. Potatoes are a traditional filler, and cheese is the most common topping. My home creamery additions included fresh butter and crème fraîche; from the pantry I added sweet onion marmalade, garlic confit, and extra virgin olive oil flavored with rosemary and pink peppercorns. A quick trip to my friend’s recently planted garden yielded a couple of sage leaves and a few chives. A nice spring onion from the Farmers Market rounded out the ingredients.

First, a sauce. To crème fraîche I added snipped chives, several mashed cloves of garlic confit, and some Bali sea salt smoked with cinnamon. Making a simple topping like this before preparing the main dish allows time for the flavors to marry.

For the frittata, I first browned some butter with sage leaves, then added the rosemary-pink peppercorn olive oil and sautéed the chopped mushrooms.  When the mushrooms were about ready to give up their water, I added thinly sliced potato–not too much–and diced spring onion. After a couple of minutes I deglazed the pan with some white wine and covered to steam the potatoes for about five minutes. Meanwhile, I readied the broiler.

When the potatoes were ready, I added a bit more olive oil–no nonstick pan for this dish–then added five room-temperature eggs, lowered the temperature to medium low, and stirred just enough to mix everything well. I spooned some sweet onion marmalade on top, then I patiently waited.

Once the bottom was set I sprinkled some grated parmigiano reggiano on top and put the pan under the broiler, which is why no nonstick pan. As the frittata finished under the broiler I quickly made a balsamic vinaigrette (3:1) for the greens. The finished frittata was dressed with a generous dollop of garlic-chive crème fraîche.

Mushroom Frittata