Use Up Leftovers in a Protein-Packed Breakfast Frittata

Branch out from the yogurt and fruit for a breakfast this week with this frittata from Elyse Kopecky. Made right in a cast-iron skillet, it’s a surprisingly simple recipe that uses up roasted potatoes and packs in other vegetables while still delivering lots of good protein. When using leftovers in a frittata, it’s best to keep it simple.

Part of the Mastering Meal Prep with Elyse Kopecky video series.

Read the transcript, below:

ELYSE KOPECKY:

Hey guys, I’m going to teach you today how to make a simple dish that doesn’t require a recipe. You can make this dish with any leftover veggies that you have on hand; it’s super flexible.

Today, we are going to make a frittata. I make frittatas on a regular basis. It stores really well in the fridge. The leftover triangles you can just wrap up and reheat the next day for your lunch. And I’m going to show you just how simple it is to make it.

I have here a 10-inch cast iron skillet. You can use any kind of skillet that can go from stovetop to oven, because we’re going to cook it mostly on the stovetop, but then we’re going to put it under the broiler on the oven to get the nice browning on top and the cheese really melty.

So for this recipe, you will need about eight eggs. You could use a little bit more if you have a bigger skillet—you could go up to 12 eggs. And then you’ll need some veggies of choice.

Today, we are going to use onion and kale. We’re going to add some leftover roasted potatoes. You could also use sweet potatoes. Then I like to add some creamy richness to my frittata. You can use grated cheese, you could use feta, you could use chèvre/goat cheese—if you’re avoiding like cow’s milk, goat cheese is a great option. And then I’m going to add a little splash of milk and some salt and pepper. That’ll keep it really creamy, but you could add nut milk instead if you’re avoiding dairy

OK, let’s get started. First, we’re going to make our batter. So I’m going to crack my eggs, eight eggs here. We’re going to get our pan heating up. So you want to whisk your eggs really well. Whisking helps break up the yolk, incorporate some air so your frittata will be lighter and not dense. We’re going to add about half a teaspoon of salt and then some fresh ground pepper. And then I’m going to add about a cup of grated cheese, right into the eggs, and then just a little splash of milk. You could use yogurt or nut milk. I’ve got just regular whole milk here. Just about a couple of tablespoons of milk. Let’s give that another whisk.

I’m going to cook the frittata to save time. You could do the whole thing in the oven after you sauté your onions and veggies, but I like to cook it longer on the stovetop so that it could finish cooking in the oven really quickly.

We’re going to add about two tablespoons of olive oil and then our onions and get those sizzling. We’re going to sauté those just until softened. After the onions get soft, you can add your other veggies. I have kale here today. You could use broccoli, you could use any kind of hardy green—spinach works great. I’m going to add my kale and cook that down just a little until it gets wilted.

And we’re going to add our potatoes. You want to use potatoes that are already cooked. So if you’re starting with a raw potato, it’s hard to get it to cook all the way through. So roasting your potatoes in advance is the best method that adds a lot of flavor. You can adjust your heat as you go. You want your heat to be at medium to medium-high.

All right, we’re ready to add the eggs. So this is our egg mixture with just cheese and milk. You want to just pour that evenly over top. And then this is a technique that just helps it cook a little bit faster: I’m going to go around the edges. So I’m kind of stirring it a little bit so that the liquid of the egg from the middle is falling down, is going down to the bottom of the pan. And this helps it cook a little bit faster. I’m going to let that cook one more minute on the stove top, and then we’re going to pop it in the oven.

I’ve got my oven set to broil, and you want to have a rack raised to the highest shelf in your oven and eggs will continue to cook. Even after you take it out of the oven, it’ll firm up. You really want to be careful not to overcook them. Overcooked eggs can taste a little bit rubbery, but you really can’t mess up this recipe. I’m going to turn off my stovetop and pop this in the oven. I’m going to set the timer for five minutes. You really want to keep an eye on it though because broiling can go from cooked to burnt pretty quickly. So definitely keep an eye on it when it’s in the oven, but we’ve got our timer set for five minutes.

All right. Our frittata’s almost done. We are going to pull it out of the oven. And you know your frittata is done when the eggs are fully set and firm, and you want a nice golden crust on top, and that looks beautiful. Who’s hungry?