Meatless Monday: Mini Frittatas with Asparagus and Hollandaise

I've been seeing a lot of variations on the frittatas made in muffin tins, so I decided to go ahead and try it last week when I had some spinach I needed to use up. I suddenly got a craving for Hollandaise sauce as well, which may not be the healthiest of sauces whatsoever, but it's one of my favorites, and I hadn't enjoyed it in a very long time. The outcome was quite lovely...

 
Mini Frittatas
(serves 3-6)

6 large eggs (you can double-up on the eggs to make them bigger)
1 cup baby spinach, rinsed and packed
1 cup chopped broccoli
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tbsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Saute the garlic and onion in a medium pan with 1 tbsp of the olive oil for about 5 minutes, or until fragrant. Beat the eggs, salt and pepper together in a large bowl. Add in the sauteed onion and garlic, along with the spinach and broccoli. Last, fold in the cheese, or else you could just add it to the muffin tins once you pour the mixture in them. 

Once combined, lightly grease the muffin tin cups with the rest of the olive oil, then pour some of the egg mixture into each until they are all equal. Add the cheese if you have not done so already. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until lightly browned on top. You can also use the toothpick method and stick one in the middle of one of the mini frittatas to see if it comes out clean. Once ready, the frittatas should pop out easily with a fork after you allow them to cool for a few minutes.

Steamed Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce
(serves 4)

20 asparagus spears, trimmed
4 egg yolks 
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup butter, unsalted, or butter substitute
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
  
For the asparagus: After rinsing and trimming the trunks of the spears, place in steam basket in large pot over about 1 inch of water. Bring water to high simmer, cover pot, and steam asparagus for about 5 minutes or until to desired tenderness. Alternatively, you can use a tabletop steamer for the same amount of time.
 
For the sauce: Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over low heat. Once melted, set aside, and place the egg yolks and lemon into blender. Blend on high setting until smooth, about 5-8 seconds. Add in the melted butter and seasonings, and blend again for another few seconds. Reheat in sauce pan if needed and serve over the asparagus.If allowed to cool down to much, the sauce may separate; just whisk and reheat again if needed when this happens.

All pretty easy, huh? It all tasted really yummy and gourmet...I was quite impressed with myself. You can throw in anything you want to the frittatas; I actually wished I'd had fresh tomatoes and/or bell peppers to add to them at the time. The Hollandaise complimented the frittatas very nicely, as well. Lily and Paul enjoyed it, too. Success!

Alongside some gouda

Like I said, and as many of you may know, Hollandaise sauce is in no way a healthy sauce. Butter is loaded with cholesterol and yolks are obviously fattening- or are they? Did you know egg yolks- albeit loaded with the "taboo" cholesterol -are actually more nutricious for you than the white part? The yolk holds all the nutrients, such as calcium, magnesium, iron, and vitamin C, just to name a few! In fact, eating an egg yolk everyday could work just like taking a multi-vitamin! So, forget that old adage of egg yolks being bad for you, and next time go ahead and eat it. I like mine nice and runny :)

P.S. If anyone knows of a healthier version of Hollandaise sauce that tastes just as good, let me know!

Now it's your turn to share your Meatless Monday dish below! Share your turkey-alternatives or other yummy Thanksgiving favorites. No rules, other than please only link-up meat-free recipes. No other un-related links or I will remove them. Sorry to sound so harsh, but let's keep it true to what it is, ok? Link up as much as you want, and feel free to spread the word with the button below. Thanks, and have a great week! 
          

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