I know I’ve been posting a lot of recipes lately, mainly because I have gotten back into cooking and have discovered new things and re-discovered old favourites. Like this one. My mother-in-law makes this one. It’s a good staple for a low carb, wheat intolerant vegetarian daughter-in-law as it works well hot or cold. Serve it room temperature for a mid week lunch or a Sunday picnic. You can use any veggies you have on hand, even leftovers, which is what I did for an impromptu lunch a week ago. Served with a simple green salad, my guests were suitably impressed.
Vegetable fritta
1 small eggplant, sliced long ways
1 medium zucchini, sliced long ways
2 bunches of asparagus with the woody ends broken off
Half a small butternut pumpkin, sliced into long thin pieces
2 good handfuls of baby spinach
1 can of organic tomatoes, chopped
a good handful of basil leaves
a good handful of parsley leaves
1 spring onion, chopped
6 eggs, seasoned with salt and pepper and whisked till fluffy
100g of freshly grated parmesan
Olive oil
Coat the vegetable slices in olive oil, salt and pepper then cook off in batches until they have lost their crunchiness, but are not too soft. This can be done on a bbq, fry pan or grill pan.
Meanwhile, empty the tin of tomatoes into a small saucepan and heat, add salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar to taste. Heat until the sauce had reduced by half. Then stir in the parsley, spring onion and basil.
In a square baking tin, layer the vegetables one on top of the other starting with the pumpkin, then the zucchini, then the eggplant, then a layer of sauce followed by the baby spinach and finally the asparagus.
Mix the grated parmesan into the egg mixture and pour on top of the layered vegetables. Give it a good jiggle so that the egg can sink down between the vegetable layers.
Bake at 170degC until the egg is sett and there is a nice golden brown crust on top. Allow to stand for 10 minutes. Then slice and serve with a simple green salad of leaves, mint, avocado and tomato dressed with olive oil and lemon juice.