It’s coming to that time of year when some of our colleagues and neighbors are looking to unload some of the extra bounty from their home gardens. Zucchini is an especially popular giveaway because it grows so abundantly.
I’ve got an Italian-inspired solution for anybody who suddenly finds themselves loaded up with these green summer squash. Make a frittata.
The frittata is Italy’s answer to France’s omelet. Unlike the omelet, however, a frittata is cooked slowly over low heat. The eggs are firm and set, not creamy and moist. And you don’t have to fret about folding a frittata in half. It’s served flat and round.
We asked olive oil lover and author Carol Firenze to share a favorite recipe from her fine book, The Passionate Olive (Ballantine Books, 2005). She immediately steered us toward her frittata, dubbed “Firenze’s Famous Frittata.” Firenze, by the way, is a second-generation Italian who lives in California. Her last name is the same as the drop-dead beautiful Italian city of Firenze, or Florence.
We cooked Firenze’s zucchini-laden frittata at home and loved it. You use five medium-sized green zucchini. To brown the top, she suggests inverting the frittata onto a plate and then placing it back in the pan. Or you can brown it under the broiler. Because we used a nonstick pan, we browned the top by placing the nearly completed frittata in a 450 degree Fahrenheit oven.
After we pulled the frittata from the oven, we topped it with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and a drizzle of our Arbosana extra virgin olive.
You’ll enjoy this Italian creation. And you won’t have to worry if you suddenly find yourself with a windfall of zucchini.
Bon appétit,
Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch
