Chorizo and Chickpea Frittata

Let’s get back into the swing of things shall we?

Tax season? Check. Another CPA exam? Check. Vacation planned? Check.

We’re taking off soon [as in next week] on a road trip. That’s the big trip this year. I realize doesn’t sound nearly as glamorous as jetting off to Europe or Asia for a few weeks, but I really think it’s going to be equally as awesome. I’ve never gone on any sort of significant road trip other than down to California a couple of times or over to Salt Lake City when I was so young that I really don’t remember it. I’ve been to Europe a handful of times now, so it sounded good to dig into a bit of the US for once. The focal points are a few national parks — Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier — but I’m honestly looking more forward to the quirky little towns we stop in along the way. Let’s be real, I’m not that outdoorsy despite living in the Northwest. The No Reservations: Montana episode kind of inspired this whole thing. Bring on the obscure, the hearty, and the history.

Speaking of obscure and hearty, I really didn’t know what to think about this frittata. I would have never thought to put eggs and beans together on my own, but I put a lot of stock in Food52. The whole eggs and beans thing actually makes a lot of sense. The beans are soft, tender, and provide a whole heck of a lot of fiber to a protein heavy breakfast. Eggs and chorizo will do that to you. The spinach and roasted red peppers really brighten up the whole thing. If I had feta on hand, you can bet that would have been in/on the whole thing. It’s like a fully loaded frittata. The egg takes a back seat holding everything together, and lets the rest of the big flavors take over. It comes together quickly when I’m starving on a weekend morning and want to eat ASAP.

Completely unrelated, I’m really liking Food52’s Burnt Toast podcast. I’m not usually a podcast person, but this one is fun. Random food topics that I wish I could get into conversations with people about.

Inspiration: Food52

Ingredients

• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced or use a microplane like I did
• 1/2 cup roasted red pepper, diced
• 1 can chickpeas, rinsed
• 1/2lb ground chicken chorizo
• 2 handfuls of spinach
• 5 eggs
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• olive oil
• salt

Preparation

Brown the chorizo in the pan you’re going to bake your frittata in. Once browned, remove the chorizo but do not drain the grease. Add the onion. Sauté for 5-10 minutes until the pieces are soft and fragrant. The edges might start to brown and that’s a-ok. Add the garlic and stir for about a minute.

Add the chorizo back along with the chickpeas, roasted red pepper, and the smoked paprika. Stir to combine. Add the spinach. Stir to combine. The heat from the pan should start to wilt the spinach.

Turn on the broiler on high. Whisk the five eggs in a small bowl. Pour the eggs into the pan and stir so it’s fully distributed throughout. Stop stirring and let it sit for a couple minutes. When you jiggle the pan the eggs should be mostly set.

Place the pan into the oven. Cook the frittata for a couple of minutes until the top is set and starting to brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool a bit before cutting. It can be served from the pan or inverted onto a serving plate. Slice into wedges and serve.