My veggie packed Caramelised Onion Chickpea Frittata with healthy Roasted Capsicum Sauce, all started with the delivery of my Chris Antico Fruit and Veg Box. Sydney weather had me sweating it out at over 40 degrees, and the thought of venturing out to re-stock the fridge just didn't seem like an appealing option.
A few clicks on the Chris Antico website, and a lovely guy arrived at my door with the 'Little Chris'. Why it's called 'little' I'll never know, as it was absolutely jammed with the freshest, most vibrant and healthiest looking fruit and vegetables I've ever seen.
All in a beautiful wooden create - my Foodie props mind was rubbing it's hands with glee at the crate alone and it's photographic future prospects - that's sad I know!
The box was jam-packed with not only my favourite anti-oxidant packed berries and stone-fruits, but also a ginormous cauliflower (a health nut's best friend for all sorts of low calorie recipes), onions, red and yellow capsicums, sweet potatoes, spinach, rainbow chard, and the list goes on...
So, determined to make something healthy, I decided to try my hand at a vegan frittata. Something I've been wanting to make for a while, and have never got around to trying. What a perfect excuse to cram some of my new veggies into a tasty treat for the family.
Everyone knows that a good tasty recipe starts with some caramelised onions! Yum.
So I started by caramelising two chopped onions. To cut down on fat I don't use any oil. I just add a splash of boiling water every now and then when the pan gets dry.
After 35 minutes, I added garlic, chopped rainbow chard and spinach, and sautéed again for another 5-10minutes until softened.
While my onions were sautéing initially, I prepared my frittata base. You don't need a base on this, and it will work out just fine. It's also not a quiche, so I didn't want a calorie laden pastry. I do however love combining quinoa with my beans and lentil meals to ensure I'm getting a good complete source of protein and amino acids. So quinoa was the perfect addition to this meal, and saved me adding it separately later.
So I mixed 1 cup of cooked quinoa with an egg replacer and pressed it into the base of a lined round tin with a removable base, and put in the oven for 20mins.
Once your caramelised onion mix is ready, spoon it over the cooked quinoa base, and then pour over your chickpea flour liquid.
I garnished with a few slices of rainbow chard, just for fun, since it was so vibrant.
Place in the oven for approx 40-50 minutes. Wider, and more shallow frittatas will cook quicker than deep ones. So adjust to suit what you're using. Test with a skewer or give it a press to see if it's cooked.
Allow to cool in the tin for another 20 minutes for further setting to occur.
Hopefully it comes out looking something like this!
While that's cooling, it's the perfect time to make the sauce. Once again, this isn't compulsory, and the frittata is super delicious on it's own. Great for a quick lunch, or meal prep for work over a few days. The sauce just added some extra zing and substance for a night time meal. Plus I just couldn't go past using my glorious Chris Antico produce.
I chopped up 2 capsicums and 200g of cauliflower florets and put them in the oven to roast until the capsicum skins were blistering. Approx 20-30mins.
Once cooked place the capsicums in a bowl of ice cold water for 10mins, and then the skins peel off really easily.
Once your sauce is blended with the spices and stock, spoon some on top of your sliced up frittata, and serve with a side salad.
This really is one of the most delicious meals I've tasted in a while. I just wanted to keep eating more. Lucky it's made with such fresh and healthy ingredients!
If you live in Sydney, definitely check out the Chris Antico website.
There's also a 25% off discount for new customers. It really is a great way to get seasonal local produce, that's packed with nutrition, delivered straight to your door.
I hope you give this recipe a try, and if you order a fruit or veg box, please tag me on Instagram, as I'd love to see where your imagination takes you.
Jo xx
Caramelised Onion Chickpea Frittata with Spicy Capsicum Sauce
(Serves 4)
Frittata
1 cup cooked quinoa
1 egg replacer or flax egg
2 onions diced
1 cup chopped rainbow chard
1 cup chopped spinach
3 cloves of garlic crushed
1 tsp kala namak (black salt) *
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 cups chickpea or besan flour
2 and 1/2 cups water
Add the onions to a frypan and sauté using a splash of boiling water over medium heat for 35 mins. Keep adding a little water occasionally to avoid sticking.
After this time add the garlic, chard and spinach and cook for another 5-10mins until softened.
Mix the cooked quinoa with the egg replacer and press into a lined round baking dish or quiche dish. Bake for 20mins at 180C/350F and allow to cool
Add the salt, pepper, chickpea flour and water to a bowl or blender and mix until smooth.
Spoon the Onion mix over the cooked quinoa base and poor over the chickpea liquid
Bake for 40-50 minutes at 180C/350F until a skewer comes out mostly dry. Further setting will occur while the frittata is cooling. Allow to cool before slicing.
*You can purchase Kala Namak salt online or at Indian grocers. It has an eggy flavour, which is perfect for vegan 'egg' dishes. If you don't have this, normal salt can be used.
Capsicum Sauce
2 capsicums quartered and de-seeded
200g cauliflower florets
1/2 - 1 cup veggie stock or water to desired consistency
1 garlic clove crushed
1/2 tsp sweet paprika
pinch chilli or cayenne powder to your taste
Place the capsicums and cauliflower florets on a baking tray and cook for 30 minutes at 180C/350F until the capsicum skins are blistered.
Remove for the oven and place the capsicums in a bowl of ice cold water for 10minutes.
Remove the skins.
Add the capsicum, cauliflower, garlic and spices to a blender and blend, adding the stock until your desired consistency.
Spoon the sauce over your frittata and serve with a side salad, or some fresh steamed veggies.
This post was proudly sponsored by Chris Antico. All thoughts, recipes and pictures are my own