Frittata comes to us from the Italian word "fritta" for "fried." It is made made from beaten eggs into which various ingredients (cooked and chopped vegetables, etc) are thoroughly mixed with cheese before cooking and the complete mixture is then fried slowly over a medium flame in extra virgin olive oil.
Frittata is believed to be introduced in Europe by the Arabs like the French omelette and Spanish tortilla.
A Frittata can be prepared in a big bunch and cut like a pie before serving or can be prepared for individual serving.
In Sicily, the Frittata ingredients can be versatile or can be prepared using the traditional or popular ingredients, such as: local grated cheese, but other kind of cheese, like Gongonzola can also be added. Popular ingredients are boiled and chopped wild asparagus, Sicilian artichokes, fava beans, tomatoes or wild fennel, chopped ham or salami. Chopped fresh fresh fennel or mint leaves can be mixed into the eggs. Capers can also be added after rinsing to remove salt and vinegary taste.
To have a better result, it is suggested to use one or two (2) flavors to dominate by avoiding to add dozen ingredients to the Frittata. Frittata can be served as breakfast meal or lunch course
Personal Note: I am so fond of making Frittata, like my mom used to prepare when we were young. Here in Germany, I used fava beans, tomatoes and onions to prepare mine, although, I omit grated cheese all the time for diet purposes Now I know that adding chopped mint leaves will make my Frittata more wonderful.
List of books: Frittata