Dog Days of Summer (and the grilling's easy)

Hey friends!

For those of you on the northeastern seaboard today, how ya holding up?  Hot enough?  It's a real scorcher, and it's supposed to only get hotter.  So do what I do: stay in the AC, remain pantsless for as long as you can, and sip on some ice cold minty lemon sun tea.

It's so hot, I bet you could grill a cheese sandwich on the pavement...

Oh snap, lame segue!  Well, here's what I had for lunch today: Grilled ham and swiss on 7-grain with red pepper spread and sweet cream butter.  Mmmmmmm...

What did you have for lunch?  I hope it was filling and delicious.  Until next time, stay cool, kiddos!

Dressing Up the Egg: Mediterranean Frittata

Ahh, this is the time of year I love. The sun is shining, the days are long, the produce is plentiful - but it's sooooo hot! Especially in my sunbathed kitchen, after blasting the oven for 5 or 6 (who can remember?) straight hours in my quest for roasted chickpea snack perfection (this is my new little business venture, by the way). At least we have the ol' A/C unit whizzing and whirring away in the bedroom. Paying it a visit is like dipping the toes in ice water: it helps, but it's not as good as plunging right in. Anyway, I should have called it a day after my test kitchen adventures, but there was dinner to be had and special people to feed! Namely, Dan the Man and my friend Emily Case, who trudged from Brooklyn in this heat, a real trooper-lady. I made this festive frittata, inspired by a recipe (and lovely pictures) found on this sweet blog.


Mediterranean Frittata
(serves 10-12 as a nibble, 4-5 as a main dish)

7 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup ricotta
1/4 cup grated pecorino
salt and fresh ground pepper

2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 cup spinach, washed, chopped, and wilted
1/2 cup kalamata or other oily black olive, pitted and chopped
zest of 1 lemon
3 cups cooked penne (whole wheat optional)

1 tbl. olive oil
1 tbl. butter

Preheat the oven to 350. Beat the eggs with the milk, cheeses, and s+p. Mix in the remaining ingredients, except the fats.

Place a large cast iron skillet over medium-high and heat the olive oil and butter, swirling to coat the bottom and sides. Pour the egg mixture in and lower the heat to medium. Cook untouched until the bottom and sides of the egg are firmed up (you can test this by separating the egg from the side of the skillet with a rubber spatula).

Place the skillet in the preheated oven and continue to cook for about 20 minutes, until the top is just firm. Remove the skillet from the oven and invert the frittata onto a plate. Then invert again onto another plate, or onto a cutting board, and cut into slices.