Western Wake Farmers’ Market Cooking Class at UNC Wellness Center in Cary. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Just prior to Fathers’ Day this year, I had an opportunity to make some wonderful Frittatas with a great group of local kids at the UNC Wellness Center in Cary. This class was part of a new youth cooking program hosted by the Western Wake Farmers’ Market at their second location. What a treat to work in a real kitchen designed for teaching with lots of equipment and tables!
WWFM Cooking Class at the UNC Wellness Center in Cary. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
We started the class by talking about what sort of food we enjoyed eating and cooking the most. I’m pretty sure our group was a bit tainted (in a good way) being at the UNC Wellness Center! The kids were a little surprised to find out that we were going to use duck eggs from the farmers’ market instead of chicken eggs for our frittatas. But they couldn’t see any difference except the eggs were bigger and the yolks were more toward an orange color. I brought along some dehydrated cherry tomatoes for them to taste and compare against the fresh ones from the market. We also picked up squash and greens to add more texture and color to our frittatas.
A class like this is where IBM’s Cognitive Cooking program “Chef Watson” is really fun to use. You’ll start by asking the program to use between one and four of specific ingredients you have on hand. In our case, we used just a couple ingredients we planned to get from the farmers’ market. The application will generate ideas for additional ingredients before it creates new recipes. You have the option to either select a dish or allow the application to create recipes without any requirements other than the ingredient list. I’ve found it useful to ask for some alternative dishes that might use similar ingredients, because the program will create additional combinations that might be useful. There’s even a neat wheel that shows how well the ingredients pair as you change them, based on the computer’s chemical analysis of the food. Once you find a recipe that you like, you can go in and make further changes to individual ingredients, based on the application’s suggestions for substitutes and ultimately save your personalized recipe into your file folder. From the file folder, you can share the recipe with others or post it to a public site for anyone to view. Pretty cool. And I think it’s a great way to get kids interested in creative cooking!
Washing fresh veggies from WWFM. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
We talked about different types of locally grown potatoes and how the color can work in your favor. And onion variaties that can change the sweetness of your dish. We smelled some fresh herbs and and noted differences in our cheeses. As a group, this helped us understand the pairings that Chef Watson made and how we could adapt them for local ingredients from the farmers’ market.
Cutting fresh veggies from WWFM. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Cutting veggies from WWFM. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Everyone took turns washing and cutting up the veggies from Meadow Lane Farm & Jones Farm.
Shredding cheese from Piemonte Farm from the WWFM. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Lots of wonderful cheese from Piemonte Farm!
and shredding the Old Glencoe & Don Agustin cheese from Piemonte Farm,
Beating duck eggs from The Grange / WWFM vendor. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Beating duck eggs from The Grange. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
and beating duck eggs from The Grange Farm.
A little oil in the pan to get started. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Then we preheated the ovens to 400F and started warming up the cast iron pans to saute the veggies. For a frittata you have to cook everything fully before you put it into the mixture. The veggies, meat and herbs don’t have time to cook very much once they are added to the frittata. With so many hands during class, the process went quickly and we finished with the vegetable just about the time the ovens signaled they were up to temperature.
Brushing the oil to cover the entire pan. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Picking out the ingredients for the frittata. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
After the veggies were finished, it was time to oil the pan a bit more. It’s really important to brush the oil all of the way up the sides so the egg doesn’t stick in the cooking process. Don’t skimp on the oil or butter at this stage. the pan clean-up goes much quicker if the frittata just pops out when it’s finished.
Pouring the eggs into the hot pan. Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Getting a second frittata started! Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
The first thing you’ll do after getting the pan oiled and warmed up again is to put your veggies back into the pan if you have taken them out. Then add the half of the cheese and herbs and quickly pour the egg mixture into the pan on top of your filling. The egg will start to set up immediately and as it does, in the first couple of minutes, add the remaining cheese and herbs. You’ll cook it on the stove top for no more than four minutes, making sure you get the egg and filling mixed together a little with a spatula. Then pop it into the hot oven, carefully, to avoid spilling the egg out the sides. Then set the timer and watch the frittata balloon upwards. It’s tempting to let it get all lovely and brown, but don’t! It will be over-cooked and dry. As soon as the center looks remotely firm, pull that cast iron pan out of the oven and let it cool on the stove top for a couple of minutes. It will continue to cook because the cast iron pan holds the heat. Then simply cut out wedges or serve up individual frittatas. We were really fortunate to have an expert young chef that pulled every frittata out perfectly without me even checking!
Sample Time! Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Enjoying seconds! Photo copyright Casey Boone Photography.
Happy Eating! I’ve included the recipes we used in class which I modified a bit from the Chef Watson application (remember I was using a beta version!) And I’ve included links to other frittata recipes I pulled during my preparation for the class. Have fun trying them or making up your own.
Summer Squash & Ricotta Frittata
- 1 cup chopped fresh summer squash & zucchini (bite size or sliced)
- 1/4 cup fresh onions, chopped or thinly sliced
- 1/8 cup dehydrated chopped cherry tomatoes (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 – 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (or butter / jowl fat)
- 4 eggs (1 cup) beaten with 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup Piemonte Farm Ricotta cheese
- 1/4 – 1/2 cup Piemonte Farm Don Agustin cheese
- 1-2 teaspoons fresh thyme, basil or other summer herbs
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Using a small 7″ cast iron pan, heat the olive oil or other fat until it is hot but not smoking.
- Add the vegetables and saute until they are tender, seasoning well with the salt & pepper.
- Before proceeding, make sure the pan is well oiled all the way to the top of the sides to avoid having the eggs and cheese stick as they cook.
- Add 1/2 cup of the cheese (or a blend of cheeses), 1/2 the herbs, tomato, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to the eggs.
- Pour liquid egg mixture into the hot pan with the vegetables.
- Using a spatula, make sure to lift some of the veggies so the egg mixture can flow around the bottom of the pan. Work quickly and only for the first minute.
- Add the remainder of the cheese and fresh herbs to decorate the top. Leave on the stove top no more than 4 minutes just to have the bottom set.
- Put into the oven to bake for about 10 minutes, give or take a minute. Watch for the edges to pull away slightly from the pan and rise a bit. Do not cook until there is any browning, as it will be too dry. The frittata will continue to back once removed from the oven so pull it out when it is yellow and firm. Cool for about five minutes before slicing.
- Serve warm with a salad, black beans or soup
- 4 ounces fresh fingerling potatoes (or small purple, red, yellow)
- 1/2 cup fresh onions, sliced thinly or well chopped
- 1/ tablespoon bacon fat or olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 1/16 teaspoon hot paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon chives, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon pimento peppers, roasted & chopped (optional)
- 4 eggs, well beaten with 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup Chapel Hill Creamery Quark
- 1/2 cup Chapel Hill Creamery Thunderhill Swiss, shredded
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme finely chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary finely chopped
- Preheat oven to 350F
- Using a small 7″ cast iron pan heat the olive oil or bacon fat until it’s hot but not smoking.
- Add the potatoes and onions and cook until tender, seasoning well with salt & pepper, half the thyme & rosemary.
- Add the paprika and stir.
- Mix the quark into the beaten eggs and pour into the hot pan with the potatoes and onions. Immediately drop in 1/4 cup of the shredded cheese (reserve 1/4 cup for the top).
- Stir the eggs gently for about a minute to lift the potatoes and onions into the egg mixture and then sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese and herbs on the top. Do not cook more than 4 minutes on the stove top.
- Put the pan into the oven and bake for 10 minutes until the edges just start to pull away from the side of the pan. Do not brown the top or it will be over cooked. The frittata will continue to cook a minute or two when it comes out of the oven. Cool for about 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
- Serve warm with a salad or as a side to a meat entree.
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced
- 1/2 cup grilled eggplant, chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 – 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 cup basil leaves
- 4 eggs, well beaten with 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
- (feta would be excellent as a substitution for part of both cheeses)
- Preheat the oven to 350F
- Using a small 7″ cast iron pan, heat the olive oil until the pan is hot but not smoking.
- Add the sliced tomatoes with salt & pepper along with the pre-grilled eggplant. Just warm through to release some of the juice.
- Add the beaten eggs and half of the shredded mozzarella & ricotta cheeses along with the basil.
- Stir gently for just a minute so the eggs and cheese blend with the vegetables and herbs. Then stop and add the remainder of the cheese to the top evenly. Do not cook on the stove top for more than 4 minutes.
- Put the hot pan into the oven and bake for about 10 minutes until the sides look firm and just begin to pull away from the edges.
- Pull out of the oven and let it cool for about five minutes. It will continue to cook in the hot pan while cooling.
- Slice and serve
Other Chef Watson Frittata Ideas:
