I have a busy life, unlike my parents who went to the grocery store religiously, every Saturday morning, I’m only able to get the car out and do a big shop about once every two weeks (if I’m lucky). The rest of the time I find myself running out on my lunch break to scavenge for dinner ingredients from the local market a few times a week.

I love fresh veggies. I buy a lot of fresh veggies. The hardest part about buying fresh and cooking fresh is actually using everything you buy before it goes bad. So before I run out and buy more more more, I try to use up what I already have the best I can. In my home, stir fry’s, soups and brunches are the best way to use up a wayward vegetable before it goes bad. This veggie frittata is one such dish. Come the weekend, before you run out to the grocery store, have a peek in the fridge and see what you can whip up.

For this weekend special, I used: 10 eggs, an onion, some mushrooms, a bit of red pepper, spinach and swiss cheese. The most important ingredient in a frittata, aside from the eggs, is onions. It makes the flavor.

Preheat the oven to 350 and then start with the prep. Chop the veggies, shred the cheese and crack the eggs into a large bowl. Next, you will need to choose your pan. Not only do you want a pan that goes from stove top to oven, but you want choose a size that adequately fits it’s contents, too large a pan and too few ingredients and you’ll end up with a tortilla instead of a frittata.

Heat some olive oil in the pan, add the onions and saute until soft. Next add the pepper and mushroom, saute for another minute or two then remove from heat and transfer the ingredients into the bowl with the eggs. Add a dash of milk (about 1/8 cup) and stir slowly adding 1/2 the grated cheese and the chopped fresh spinach.

Keep in mind the amount of cheese and veggies is completely flexible. I didn’t write amounts because I usually just use what I have lying around – a 1/4 cup of this, a few pieces of that. The one thing that I do try to include though, if I have it on hand, is an entire medium sized onion.

When everything is stirred together, return the egg mixture to a lightly oiled pan on the stove over medium heat. After about a minute, mix everything up and then let cook over medium low heat until the edges of the egg start to pull away from the pan. At this time sprinkle the remaining cheese over the egg, transfer the pan from the stove to the oven and cook on the middle rack for 10-15 minutes or until the eggs at the middle of the pan look set. Remove from oven and let cool for 5-7 minutes before you slide the frittata out of the pan. Cut like a pie and serve with fresh tossed greens.

If you enjoyed this meal, check out my other frittata recipes:asparagus mushroom and Gruyere frittata, and veggie and cheddar frittata