ASPARAGUS + DUCK EGG FRITTATA

Happy Sunday everyone! If a springy brunch or simple leisurely weekend supper is calling your name, this recipe may be just what you need.

I'm in love with my new butcher shop - they handle animal products with all the TLC it deserves.  "All of the meat... comes from animals who have been 100% pasture raised, no antibiotics, no hormones, just pure, clean, true meat." Plus, everything is sourced from thoughtful farms within 150 miles.

Each time I walk in, there is so much deliciousness to tempt me: quail, house smoked bacon, goat chops, and the eggs... always the eggs. Once you switch to real farm eggs, it is nearly impossible to go back to the bland, mass-produced industrial kind. Farm eggs have so much more flavor, not to mention the health benefits!

Recently I went to the butcher and they were out of chicken eggs, but they had duck. I'd eaten duck eggs before, but had never cooked with them myself, so I asked Monica if they needed any special treatment. She encouraged me to experiment with them in both savory and sweet dishes. We had so much fun making a duck egg scramble for friends. I cooked up some pancakes, and of course this duck egg frittata. The duck eggs didn't disappoint - they were rich, with big fat yokes. I'm going back for more!

 INGREDIENTS
(printable recipe)

• 1/2 cup asparagus, sliced and steamed
• 1 tablespoon (+ 1 teaspoon) olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced shallot, or spring onion
• 1 tablespoon thinly sliced leeks
• sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
• 2 duck eggs or 4 chicken eggs
• 2 tablespoons salty feta
• 4 teaspoons chopped mixed fresh herbs: tarragon, parsley, and chervil are nice

Slice and steam asparagus. Set aside.

In a small saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Saute shallot and leeks for 3-5 minutes, but do not brown. Add steamed asparagus to the bubbling mixture. Saute veggies for another minute. Remove from heat, salt generously to taste, and let cool.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk eggs with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pinch of freshly ground pepper. When veggies have cooled, add them to the eggs and give the whole thing a good stir.

Crumble 2 tablespoons of feta into a little prep bowl and set it near the stove.

Turn on your broiler.

Place a small well-seasoned cast iron, or non-stick frying pan, on the stove top over medium/high heat. (I used a 6 1/2 inch fry pan for cooking - a perfect size for a two person lunch. But you can easily increase the size of the recipe to make a larger frittata.) Add 1 teaspoons of olive oil to the pan. Swirl the hot oil around to thoroughly coat edges of the pan and prevent sticking. Pour out the excess oil. Put oiled pan back on stove for 30 seconds over medium high to make sure it's nice and hot. Then pour egg mixture into the hot pan and turn the heat down to medium/low. Sprinkle feta over the top of the eggs.

Let the frittata cook on the stove top until you see that all of the edges have cooked, and are starting separate from the sides of the pan. Stick the pan under the broiler to finish cooking the top of the frittata. Keep an eye on it  - you want the eggs to be just cooked, but not well done. A nice moist frittata is what you are looking for.

Let the frittata cool to room temp. Sprinkle with herbs and serve with a simple green salad.

For more eggiliciousness, go here...

Serves 2