Pasta Frittata with Poached Egg
There is no such thing as throwing food away.
In my family, my siblings and I joke about the the crazy dishes my grandparents make. We call them “World War Two” food. I should have a series on those crazy dishes. I mean really, some things they cook are just not meant to be eaten together. But we eat it, and you know what? It tastes good!
In my last post, I made a basic tomato sauce and as always, cooked too much pasta. I need to get better at that. My eyes are way bigger than my stomach. But I wasn’t worried. I still had to make lunch for work the next day. The classic dish to make with leftover pasta is a Frittata. Most people cringe when they hear of it because they’ve probably eaten the flavorless, cardboardy pasta cake that the old-old country people would make. I mean, yea, they didn’t have much. But that’s what they ate. I “took it up a notch” and added a simple twist.
Instead of the regular pasta cake, I added a poached egg on top. This way, when I break open the poached egg, the liquid would cover the frittata and give it a different texture. I never made it before, and I”ll put my thoughts at the end of this post when I finally eat it. Who knows, maybe it’s a great dish or a complete disaster. What I WOULD have loved is to add a bit of sausage or pancetta to the frittata, but alas, I did not have it on hand. It could have been a frittata-omelet! And probably have tasted much better, too.
Anyhoo, here’s my experiment:
FRITTATA WITH POACHED EGG
1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
1 cup leftover cooked long pasta
2 eggs
1 tbsp of whole milk or half/half
1 tsp of grated cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1. In a small frying pan, add the oil until it heats up.
2. Add the pasta so it forms a loose and even pile. You will hear it fry. It’s ok, it is just heating up. Leave it alone.
3. Beat one egg, the milk or half/half, grated cheese, salt, and pepper.
4. When the pasta is heated through, add the beaten egg mixture around all the pasta. DO NOT TOUCH IT THAT MUCH. Let it settle and cook.
5. When the sides of the egg and pasta become solid and you can swirl it in a pan, it is time to flip it.
6. Slide the frittata mixture onto a small dish.
7. Place the frying pan upside-down on top of the small dish. (Be careful, its hot!)
8. With one hand on the frying pan handle, the other on the small dish, FLIP!
9. Place the flipped frittata back on the stove and let the other side cook.
10. When the other side becomes slight browned, its time to take it off.
MEANWHILE
1. Fill a small pot with water.
2. When it boils, crack open the other egg and drop it into the boiling water.
3. With a spoon, try to keep the whites together. Don’t go crazy, some of them will eventually separate.
4. Lower the heat to the lowest possible setting and let the egg cook for 2-3 minutes.
5. When the egg can be visibly seen as a solid mass, spoon it out with a slotted spoon and put it on a dish to rest.
6. When the frittata is ready, place the poached egg on top of it, add some pepper, and enjoy!
The Mixture: Egg, Cheese, Whole Milk, Salt, and Pepper
Fresh Cooked Pasta with Egg Mixture
Flipped Frittata!
Lonely Poached Egg
Finito!
VERDICT: It definitely could have used more, like cubed up peppers or sausage chunks. But i was pleasantly surprised. I thought it was taste like this bland blob, but it was quite cheesy and the eggs were tasty. I’d even prefer more cheese. The poached egg did make a difference. But I wouldn’t cook this and heat it up again. I would eat it right then and there.
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