TALLGRASS KITCHEN

Got eggs? Make smoked salmon frittata

Tallgrass Kitchen

Anna Thomas Bates
Special to the Journal Sentinel

It’s officially spring — and around here that means lots of eggs.

Smoked Salmon Frittata uses a full dozen eggs -- great especially if you have a surplus from backyard hens.

Our small backyard flock is free-ranging once again, looking for any green vegetation and intrepid insects that cross their path. As the days grow longer and they start finding lots of fresh forage, their egg output increases dramatically.

Our current flock is a pretty, congenial group of Easter Eggers and Barred Plymouth Rocks — Priscilla, Baby Jezebel, Baby Jezebel Jr., Bilbo, Pip, Nutmeg, Clove and Pudding. And I can’t forget Shadowskull, the hen lucky to be named by my 6-year-old.

I sell a few dozen to friends and neighbors, but we still have an abundance and I’m always looking for new ways to use them. Several get hard-cooked for snacks and egg salad, lots are scrambled at breakfast and many get added to baking projects such as crepes, popovers, cookies or quick breads.

At least once a week I chop up all the leftover veggies and make a “kitchen-sink” frittata with extra bits of cheese, but sometimes it’s nice to change up the flavor profile.

I borrowed a copy of “The Wellness Mama Cookbook” by Katie Wells (Harmony Books, 2016) from our local library for some dinner inspiration, and I was pleased to find lots of breakfast, lunch and dinner ideas.

Wells is the author of wellnessmama.com and while she is not unique in her approach (grain-free, no refined sugars, lots of natural home products), I did find her recipes very accessible. I’ve read similar cookbooks and sometimes the cost and challenge of sourcing the ingredients can be daunting. That’s not the case here.

I have marked several more recipes I’d like to try, including a breakfast fruit crisp (genius), browned butter-glazed radishes and one-pan Pakistani kima. But for tonight, I honed in on the smoked salmon and cream cheese frittata. It’s protein-packed and I knew my kids would love it, especially my older child, who is inordinately fond of smoked fish.

This dish cooks up fast because it’s started on the stovetop and finished in the oven. It stores well, so you can eat it for breakfast or lunch for a few days after making it. It’s like a beloved cream cheese and smoked salmon bagel, but with a healthy dose of eggs instead of bread.

Recipe

Smoked Salmon Frittata

Anna Thomas Bates is a mother and writer living in southern Wisconsin. Find more recipes and stories on her blog,tallgrasskitchen.com. Email her attallgrasskitchen@gmail.com.