Day three of wisdom teeth extraction recovery has left me craving real food (i.e. solids). After a day of eating popsicles, I opened my refrigerator and tried to look past the pudding, cottage cheese and yogurt that all seemed to be staring back at me. No, these would not do. I needed something warmer. Soup? Still liquid. Mashed Potatoes? Better. I was momentarily pleased with myself until I realized I had no potatoes. Damn.
I opened the freezer and did a little digging, for what, I haven't a clue. (Inspiration, maybe?) And, voila!, that is exactly what I found in a wrinkled, half-used bag of shredded hash browns. Frozen hash browns are frozen potatoes, right? Score! I soon realized that frozen hash browns were obviously not going to translate into decent mashed potatoes, so I tried to rethink my dinner plans.
It was at that very moment that one of my Bed, Bath & Beyond kitchen purchases caught my eye: a mini muffin pan! And with that, I had my answer. Time to make mini egg frittatas flavored with hash browns and onion (don't ask where this new idea came from, I can't explain it either).
I checked to make sure I had the staple frittata ingredients (eggs, milk, cheese) and then got to work.
Boy was I glad I did, because fifteen minutes later, my cute, bite-sized frittatas came out of the oven and I tasted a solid for the first time in 72 hours. So delicious, so mini, so flavorful, so wonderful. Make them for breakfast, or if you're like me, for a random nosh at 5:00pm on a Friday afternoon! They are ridiculously easy, ridiculously quick and ridiculously yummy.
To make 12 bite-sized frittatas, you need:
-3 eggs
-2 Tbsp milk
-2 Tbsp grated parmigiano cheese (any cheese will do, but parmigiano gives the frittatas a slightly salty flavoring)
-1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
-1/3 cup shredded, raw hash browns (I popped the frozen ones in the microwave and defrosted them for about 1 minute).
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
In a medium sized bowl, wisk together the eggs, milk and cheese. Add in the chopped onions and shredded hash browns. Mix well.
Spray or grease a mini muffin pan with butter or oil.
Pour in the mixture to just below the top of each of the mini muffin tin line (about 1 heaping tablespoon for each).
Bake for 12-14 minutes.
Remove from oven and serve immediately!
*The frittatas should pop right out of the muffin tins and I promise that they will go fast if there are hungry family members or roommates around. These are also great to serve at a brunch or as an appetizer at a party. Or, if you're like me, you'll eat six of them yourself and relish in the fact that solid food is once again gracing your palette :)
