Potato and goat cheese frittata with roasted red pepper and sundried tomato sauce

From this week: eggs, red peppers, potatoes, goat cheese

From weeks past: frozen spinach, sundried tomatoes, roasted garlic, mushroom broth, milk

Staples: oil, salt, onion


I loathe forced social events. Words like "mingle" and "meet and greet" and "network" make me want to vom. So you can only imagine how terrible the law firm summer associate dance was for me. The 9 to 5 (or 7 to 9, whichever the case may be) was no prob, even semi-enjoyable; but the lunches with partners, baseball games in the firm suite, and wine tasting casino night (yes, that's real) were hell. I know, right? Free food, wine, and entertainment - poor me.

But for serious, I hated it all. Except for maybe I sort of had a teensy tiny bit of fun at one event: the cooking class! Not only did I get to show off my cooking skillz, but everyone was so occupied that they no longer wanted to mingle or meet or greet me. AWESOME!

I also learned how to make a Spanish tortilla de patatas with a roasted red pepper sauce. Of course, although I still have things like the instructions to access the office's supply closet (???) almost two years later, I failed to save a copy of that recipe. I wanted to replicate the deliciously egg-y and sweetly sauced dish, but I didn't want to go to the trouble of flipping the big mass like tortilla recipes seem to require. And I wanted cheese. And I felt like I should add something green. And I didn't have enough red peppers to make a sufficient amount of sauce (because, obvi, I have other plans for it).

So really, I didn't replicate that recipe at all.

And to think, this whole time I've been blaming the recession for the firm's refusal to make me a permanent offer...

Potato and goat cheese frittata

Serves 6-8

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

1/2 onion, thinly sliced

1 lb yukon gold potatoes, diced into 1/4 inch pieces

1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach

1/2 tsp kosher salt

6 eggs

1/2 cup milk

2 oz goat cheese

Whisk eggs and milk together and set aside. Heat 1 tbsp oil over medium heat in a 10 inch oven-proof skillet. Add onion and cook until soft and lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Remove from skillet and set aside. Add second tablespoon of olive oil and potatoes. Cook until just tender, about 10-12 minutes. Add frozen spinach and stir until defrosted.

Put oven rack in top 1/3 of oven. Preheat broiler. Add onion and salt to skillet and stir. Pour in egg/milk mixture and cook, lifting up edges with a rubber spatula and letting raw egg run underneath, for 5 minutes (the center will still be runny). Break up goat cheese with your hands and drop onto the frittata. Place under broiler and cook until just solid, about 8 minutes. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes, then loosen edges with a rubber spatula and flip onto a plate. Serve topped with roasted red pepper and sundried tomato sauce (below)

Roasted red pepper and sundried tomato sauce

Makes about 1.5 cups

2 red bell peppers

1/2 onion, sliced

1/2 cup chopped sundried tomatoes

4 cloves roasted garlic (you can buy pre-roasted garlic or roast it yourself and freeze)

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup vegetable broth (I used mushroom broth)

4 tbsp olive oil, divided

Roast peppers: place oven rack in the top 1/3 of the oven (with just enough room so the red peppers don't touch the heating element) and preheat broiler. Place red peppers on a dry cookie sheet and then put under the broiler. Broil until the skin is black (really, black), then turn and do the same all the way around the pepper. Place peppers in a paper bag while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. When peppers seems cool enough to handle, peel them with your hands (the peel should come right off). Remove seeds and stems.

Make sauce: heat one tbsp oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook until soft and lightly browned, about 15 minutes (you can do this at the same time as the onions for the potatoes and kill two birds with one stone). Process (or blend) cooked onions, roasted red peppers, sundried tomatoes, garlic, and salt. While food processor is running, pour in broth and remaining oil and process until smooth and saucy. Store in the fridge and heat in the microwave or a small saucepan on the stove before serving.