Summer isn’t much different than the school year as far as lunch goes. Camp, school – same thing. Every day – ‘”what am I bringing for lunch today?” My girls are great eaters but for some reason figuring out what to bring for lunch isn’t always easy. This week one of the things I made was Orzo with Pesto. Sometimes I buy pesto but they were requesting my Spinach Arugula and Basil Pesto which they refer to as “the cold pesto”. Why? I have no idea!
Sometimes when I have leftover pasta, I try to see what else I can make with it. Kind of like “Chopped” but my basket ingredients contain leftovers! I’m always up for the challenge!
So this is what I found – leftover orzo with pesto, grape tomatoes, eggs, shredded mozzarella and some grated Parmesan cheese. I decided to make a fritata!
I took a handful of grape tomatoes, rinsed and dried them, cut them in half and heated them in a pan with some olive oil.
Once they started to get a little roasted, I added 2 cloves of chopped garlic.
Next went in my orzo with pesto – probably had about a cup and a half or so. Since the orzo had been in the fridge, I had to use a fork to smush it around and break it up a bit so there wouldn’t be any big clumps in my fritata.
Remember that the orzo is already cooked so we’re just trying to warm it though.
In a separate bowl, get your eggs ready. I used 4 eggs, some shredded mozzarella cheese and a small amount of Parmesan cheese. Not by choice mind you! I was down to the last bit of cheese! So sad. You can use whatever cheese you have on hand. I had leftover mozzarella from pizza that we made earlier in the week and we ALWAYS have grated PARM. I only had about a tablespoonful left but normally I would use at least 1.4 cup. Beat the eggs and cheese together and pour it in the pan.
Once you pour it in, use your fork to make sure everything is evenly distributed.
After a few minutes, you’ll see the edges start to stiffen. At this point, I pop it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. Make sure to use an over safe pan – no plastic handles! If not, just cook it on top of the stove in the pan and then after 10 minutes flip it to the other side.
After 25 minutes you’ll see it gets golden brown on top and a bit crispy on the bottom.
Transfer to a cutting board to make it easy to slice up.
This fritata is really filling! One or 2 slices at most will definitely fill you up. It’s great any time of day for a meal or snack and can be eaten at any temperature.
Next week as far as lunch goes, I have it easy. We signed the girls up to get lunch at camp! Yay!!
What do you like to eat for lunch?
This looks delicious! I can totally make this. I’ve never put pesto or grain in a fritata but clearly it’s time to change that 🙂
Fritatas are a great vehicle for experimenting! Anything goes! 🙂