It’s been really gross in New York this week. REALLY gross. Like, I’m sitting in an air-conditioned room right now and I’m still sweating. Also, I have Hermione hair. But really, my main problem with the weather is how much I’ve been sweating. Making this frittata the other night did not help the situation. Why? Because I ended up having my oven on BROIL for at least an hour before I actually needed to broil the frittata for three minutes. (I always forget to preheat the oven, so I was being proactive here, by preheating the over long before I needed to.)

Despite turning me into a melting mess, this frittata ended up being a pretty good learning experience. And pretty good, to boot.

On Tuesday night, I wanted to make something simple because I also had a lot of laundry to do and knew I would be running back and forth between my apartment and the laundry room in the basement. I was doing my usual frantic search around the internet for “weeknight recipes” when it hit me — I would make a frittata! I’ve actually never made a frittata from a recipe before but I thought this time I would give it a try. I found this one on The Kitchn. It looked simple enough. And I was craving breakfast for dinner. Perfect.

I did my grocery shopping and purchased leeks for the first time ever. It didn’t occur to me until that moment that I had never handled leeks before. When I got back to my apartment, I threw in my first load of laundry and then got right to cooking. First order of business (i.e. first mistake), I preheated the oven just as the recipe stated. Then, I started prepping everything else. I cleaned the leeks, which took me pretty much forever because they had dirt on them and I started freaking out about eating dirt that’s been sitting on vegetables that have been sitting in a grocery store that’s next to a combination KFC/Taco Bell and I wanted to make sure they were super clean. But then I remembered that good things come from the earth and that if I got sick, I could just go to the hospital, I guess. (I think I’ve covered this here before, but I am a raging hypochondriac.)

Anyway, I cleaned the leeks. I whisked the eggs. I grated the lemon. And then I realized I forgot parsley and was just like, “Whatever, fuck it. I don’t even LIKE parsley.” That’s not actually true but it helped quell my perfectionist anxiety in the moment.

I got to the point where everything was together in the pan – after I had cooked the leeks for about ten minutes – and I remembered that I was supposed to crumble the goat cheese into the egg mixture before everything was in the skillet. So then I frantically had to crumble goat cheese into the frittata, which was already cooking at that point. This was difficult because I couldn’t get the goat cheese packet open and also, it was literally 200 degrees in my kitchen so the goat cheese was melting. By the time I had “crumbled” it all into the mixture, I had it all over my shirt and pants. I also found some in my hair later.

Anyway, I let the frittata set. And then I broiled it for about 4 minutes. And then it was done. It was maybe a little too lemony tasting for me. But it was good, nonetheless.

RECIPE

Lemon Frittata with Leeks and Goat Cheese
By Faith Durand

makes 1 10-inch frittata

Ingredients:

7 eggs
1 Meyer lemon, zested (Note: I used a regular lemon because I couldn’t find Meyer lemons – are they ‘in season’? is there a season for Meyer lemons? – and honestly it was probably fine.)
3 ounces goat cheese
Olive oil
2 large leeks, cut lengthwise and rinsed
1/3 cup Italian parsley, chopped (Note: I didn’t use this because I forgot it. And I didn’t really miss it!)
Salt and fresh ground black pepper

Pre-heat the broiler. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until slightly bubbly and well-mixed, then stir in the lemon zest. Crumble in the goat cheese. (Note: Definitely maybe wait to preheat the broiler. Also, remember to crumble in the goat cheese!)

Heat about a tablespoon of olive oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. It can be cast iron or another metal; just make sure it can go in the oven. Trim the leeks of any dry or browned edges on the green tops, then slice the remaining stalk into half moons. Toss everything into the skillet and cook, stirring frequently, for about ten minutes or until the leeks are softened. Stir in the parsley and cook just until wilted. Remove from the heat and add salt and pepper to taste. Let cool for just a minute or two, then pour the cooked leeks into the bowl with the eggs and stir.

Put the skillet back on the heat and film lightly with just a bit more olive oil. Pour the egg and leek mixture in and cook over medium heat for about 10-15 minutes, or until the frittata has mostly set. Use a spatula to lift up the edges and make sure it’s cooking evenly, letting the uncooked eggs run down into the bottom of the pan.

When the frittata has set, put under the broiler for 3-5 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and slightly puffy. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes. Flip out onto a platter and serve immediately.