Spinach and Bacon Frittata with Sweet Potato Hash

We never really do much for New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day.  I have grand plans to host a New Year’s Day brunch one of these days, but this year I enjoyed some quiet time with my family.  I did cook some brunch-like food for lunch on New Year’s Day- a frittata and sweet potatoes.  This is only my second time cooking frittata, and they are amazing!  SO much easier than a quiche because you don’t have to bake a crust, and in theory, a little healthier too (though I suppose that depends on what you put in your frittata).  And besides, it’s fun to say frittata.  Frittata, frittata, frittata!

I’ve been craving sweet potatoes lately, and they made an excellent and colorful side for the frittata.  This is my favorite way to prepare sweet potatoes!  I love the contrast of the sweet potatoes with the bold and slightly spicy flavors of the seasonings.  I’ve included my sweet potato hash technique below, but I never really measure the seasonings very precisely.

Spinach and Bacon Frittata

recipe from $5 Dinners

Ingredients:

• 4 slices bacon, crumbled
• 8 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 tsp salt and pepper, each
• 1/2 onion, sliced into circles (I used frozen chopped onions)
• 2 tsp olive oil
• about 3 cups spinach
• 1/2 – 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

In a bowl, whisk bacon crumbles, eggs, milk, salt and pepper.  In skillet, saute onions in 2 tsp olive oil.  Once brown, add a few tsp of water and cook another 1-2 minutes.  Add spinach and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes, until it wilts.  Pour egg mixture over the spinach and onions.  Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, until the eggs have set around the edges.  Bake at 450 for 5 minutes. (Note: Stick your skillet in the oven, but be sure to remember that the handle will be HOT when you pull it out!) Add shredded cheese to the top and bake another 1-2 minutes until cheese melts.

Sweet Potato Hash

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large sweet potato, chopped into approx quarter inch cubes (the smaller they are, the faster they’ll cook!)
• garlic salt
• cumin
• paprika
• cayenne pepper
• seasoned salt
• thyme
• onion powder
• salt

Heat oil in a large skillet on medium high heat.  Add sweet potatoes to skillet.  Add a dash of each of the seasonings to the sweet potatoes, then stir to coat.  Spread the sweet potatoes into an even layer across the skillet, then cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes until cooked through and no longer crunchy in the middle.  Don’t stir too frequently!  It’s been my experience that sweet potatoes take a little longer to cook than regular potatoes.