KALE AND LEEK FRITTATA

    The frittata. The kale and leek frittata. So simple, but this one took so long. There are a few steps, one involving cooling the sauteed green before mixing with the eggs, the other remembering there is cheese in a frittata so you don't have to run out and buy some with the oven on waiting for that sweet frittata to start baking. 

    So I sauteed some leeks and garlic in lard. Yes lard, its excellent for sauteeing greens. Then added some peperoncino and the kale. A little salt and pepper, until the kale is soft. Cool the kale. In a bowl beat eggs, cream or milk, pecorino romano cheese, salt and pepper. Add the kale to this. You have to eyeball this. You might be left with some extra kale. Or if you don't have enough it will be an eggy frittata, but thats okay. I start the cooking off on the stove top in Grandma's cast iron pan, then after a few minutes I pop it into a 350 degree preheated oven for about 20-30 minutes until the eggs are firm in the middle but not overly dry. 

    Enjoy with a nice piece of Italian Bread and maybe a fancy salad on the side with some orange wedges. Oh and beer? How did that get into brunch? Oh well, it was nice.

FARM BREAKFAST 2

      Our first Local Farm Breakfast was such a success we decided to invite a few of our great friends over to share in another one with us. Not only is breakfast delicious, its such a laid back no-fuss meal, rarely shared with friends unless there is a sleep-over or group trip happening. I guess since it was noon, we could call it brunch, but there were really no lunch options. Mike likes this time of day for entertaining because unlike our 2am mojito gatherings we really aren't bothering the neighbors. And when we get together with two of our favorite couples, Matt and Amy and Lee and Stephanie we laugh out loud the entire time. (These peeps are so talented, so check out their work if you have time)

    Aside from the pork menagerie from Flying Pig Farms: 2 types of bacon, no nitrate and smoked, and breakfast sausages, which were all out of this world, we also had Spelt Pancakes, a Kale Frittata and Cinnamon Buns which I psychically knew Lee would bring over from Sette Pani in Brooklyn. Cinnamon buns were originally on the menu, but when I looked up some recipes, it was ALOT of work. So what a nice surprise for Lee to thoughtfully bring over what I was craving. And for "breakfast dessert," Mike suggested we head over to Eddie's Sweet Shop for homemade ice cream but since thats rather insane we enjoyed fresh cherries and currants from the Long Island City Farmer's Market. For drinks we offered bellinis, iced coffee and Mike's favorite, Iced Goji Berry Tea from Yogi Teas.

     The Spelt Pancakes, which I usually make with soy milk, I made this time with a mixture of heavy cream and water, since no soy or regular milk was available. They were decadent and delicious, but I think they come out much fluffier and lighter with the soy. Matt was making pancake tacos filled with sausages. So Tex-Mex, Matt!

     My pride of the entire breakfast was the Kale Frittata. First, the Kale was homegrown in the yard from little sprouts I bought from the Rooftop Farms and I had managed to keep them alive and thriving. In the frittata, the kale tasted delicious, perfectly creamy and cheesy with nice bites of the fresh garlicy kale enveloped in the thick farm fresh eggs from Tellos Green Farm. Mike was raving about the frittata the entire day, "the kale frittata was actually really good," which makes me very happy because for Mike to say anything as green as kale was tasty is a complete culinary success for me. Maybe it was the heavy cream I used in it.

     What a wonderful day it turned out to be lounging in the back yard with wonderful friends and enjoying a completely local farm fresh breakfast! 

KALE FRITTATA

7 eggs, beaten

3/4 C. romano or any grated cheese

1 C. milk or heavy cream

1/4 C. chopped cooked bacon (optional)

1 C. kale sauteed in olive oil or the bacon drippings, with peperoncino and garlic

Salt and Pepper

Beat the eggs, milk, cheese and salt and pepper. After the kale and bacon have cooled fold them in the pour the entire mixture into a heavy pan, preferably the pan you cooked the bacon in. Cook on the stovetop on medium heat for 5 minutes then back for 30 min in a 350 degree preheated oven.

Who says you can't find nature in Queens?

    My one requirement for moving from Middle Village to Rego Park (I know I am sellout!) was a backyard. The yard in the new place is really nice, and I have a lot of edible plants and herbs growing, a few that were adoptions from the Rooftop Farm. The rain has kept me inside, but has made my garden very happy. Now that it has stopped raining finally (as I write this dark clouds are descending), we can enjoy some dining al fresco. 

The first outdoor dining experience was the Farm Fresh Local Breakfast, which featured all local CSA and Farmer's Market food, but that didn't last very long because by the time we finished the last of the bacon we were blistering in the sun. So I just got an umbrella and we had our first special guests Mo and Yelena over for a mostly local impromptu al fresco dinner. I made some couscous seasoned with turmeric, cumin, fresh basil, parsley and pignola nuts. The kale, from the Woodside CSA and the star of the show, was sauteed in butter (that'll do it), fresh garlic, peperoncino and toasted pignola nuts. The round zucchini, which I got at the Unfancy Food Show from the Queen's Farm stand, was made the old fashioned Stewed Zucchini way, and the chicken sausage was from Trader Joe's. (I the sausage is not local and probably not humane, but Yelena is with child and I felt it was only right to give her some protein.)

   For dessert I whipped up a variation on Strawberry Shortcake, inspired by Jennie's Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes. I cut up some local strawberries and marinated them in sugar, fresh mint from the yard and lemon juice. Then I made whipped cream with sugar and some lemon zest and I used a store bought Angel's Food Cake (from Trader Joe's) as the shortcake. 

   While we were dining a gigantic raccoon ran over the garage roofs in the back! It was bigger than "C" my twenty pound cat. He is getting vaccinated for rabies this week. We also saw a few field mice scurry in the plants. (there are no rats in Queens!) Field mice are so little and cute. 

    And while tending to my parsley I bumped into this gorgeous caterpillar. I should be mad at him because he is single handedly eating all my greens, but he looks too much like a cartoon character. Who says you can't find nature in Queens? Maybe my dream to be a wildlife photographer will pan out afterall. (Wait, I just had a flash back of the Wild Turkey Attack, so I will just keep food blogging!)