Farm Fridays: Spinach Leek Frittata

Oops. I forgot to take a picture of this week's share. No big deal, though - it was essentially the same as last week's. Just add a pound of spinach and exchange the leeks for some hakurei turnips.

I was sad to learn that the strong storms yesterday brought hail to the Chesterfield farm, where most of the spring produce is planted. Much of the spring harvest was damaged or lost, including tens of thousands of heads of lettuce. While I hate to see things go to waste, I have to admit that I'm not that bummed about this. I'm already tired of lettuce (why in the world did I start buying it from the farmers market knowing I would be inundated by the CSA?). If there had been, say, a tomato crop failure, then I would be upset. Mother nature can have my lettuce.

Spinach wasn't on the list of affected crops, so I'm guessing we're going to see a lot of that in the next few weeks. I've already taken home five pounds of it. When I did my meal planning this morning, I made sure that every day of the week included plenty of spinach. This recipe is one I cooked up a few days ago, with last week's spinach and leeks. It's a tasty frittata packed with crusty French bread crumbs and Gruyere cheese. A large slice of this on my plate with a generous side salad (because we have to use that lettuce and arugula somehow) made me feel like I was eating at a trendy bistro.

Enjoy the holiday weekend!

Spinach Leek Frittata
From the Rolling Prairie Cookbook.

1 tbsp butter
2 large leeks, thinly sliced and well rinsed (I soak them in a large bowl of water for a while after I cut them, to loosen the grit)
3/4 lb spinach, washed and chopped
1 tbsp fresh oregano
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 c skim milk
4 oz Gruyere cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 c French bread, cut into 1/4" cubes

Preheat oven to 350°F. Melt the butter in a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks and saute 4-5 minutes until softened.

Add the oregano and the spinach (I had to do it in batches, stirring to wilt it down and then adding more - it seems like the spinach will never fit that small pan, but I got all of it in there). Remove from the heat. 

In a medium bowl, beat together the eggs, milk, cheese, salt and pepper. Stir the bread cubes into the spinach and leek mixture, then pour the egg mixture over the top (you may want to stir it a bit to spread everything around evenly).

Put the skillet into the oven and bake 45-55 minutes, until the egg has set and the top is golden brown.