BELLOWS FALLS — When Indigenous Peoples Day rolls around, I make one of the favorite egg dishes of our house - for Sunday-morning breakfast, for brunch with friends, or for supper after everyone leaves.
This recipe honors those who were here on this continent first and whose sustainable farming practices so strongly influenced New England cuisine –– corn, squash, beans, potatoes, peppers, and so much more.
I use the last of the local sweet corn, bountiful butternut squash, and tender green beans to create a dish based on these “three sisters” - the corn, the beans, and the squash - named by Iroquois legend.
The first people in multiple First Nations cultivated these crops in a way that became the first companion planting, and it served the Native population, and our Earth, well.
Unlike agriculture as we think of it now, Native peoples made their plantings in the late spring to be nearly self-sustaining so they could move about to various fishing and hunting spots through the summer.
The corn provided the grain for their diet throughout the long winter. The beans provided many nutrients, including important protein when hunting was sparse. The squash provided beta carotene, vitamin C, and other important nutrients.
Combined, the three sisters provided plenty of carbohydrates and all the amino acids necessary to create complete protein in the diet, important in times when hunting was scarce or the snows too deep to venture out.
These three staples were easily dried and preserved for the long winters, and all complemented one another in their cultivation. The corn provided the stalk for the beans, the beans fixed nitrogen from the air into the soil to benefit and feed all the crops, and the squash shaded the bottom of the whole collaboration at the ground level and thus cut down on the weeds and predators.
What a marvelous partnership - one that gave birth to as many Native fables as delicious meals.
Three Sisters Frittata
Use local ingredients at their peak of freshness. For many weeks in the fall, you will find the corn and beans and squash and peppers all sitting there together, like a happy family, waiting for you to make this recipe! When the corn is finished for the year, turn to your own frozen stash, or that of your favorite market.
If you have a dairy restriction, just leave it out - the dish will still work. But don't skimp on the local organic eggs; they are filled with beta carotene and taste better as well.
Serve hot or at room temperature. It's all good!
This frittata also includes red pepper, which the First Peoples of the Southwest also used in their plantings and cooking.
And if you add a few New World potatoes, all the better!
* * *
Preheat your oven to 425.
In a 12-inch non-stick or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, heat:
¶2 Tbsp. olive oil
Add and sauté:
¶1 medium or {1/2} of a really large onion
Cook for 2 minutes and add:
¶1{1/2} cups butternut squash, peeled and cut into {1/4}-inch dice
¶1 cup potatoes, cut into {1/4}-inch dice, optional
Let the squash and potatoes cook for 5 or 6 minutes, just until the squash is starting to cook in the center. You will have to taste to get this timed right. Add:
¶{1/2} cup finely diced red pepper
¶1 cup green beans cut into {1/2}-inch segments
Cook another 5 minutes, stir occasionally, and taste for the green beans to be crisp/tender.
While this is cooking, beat:
¶7 local, organic eggs
Add:
¶{1/4} cup half-and-half or light cream
¶3 ounces Vermont sharp Cheddar
¶Salt and pepper
To the skillet, add:
¶1 cup sweet corn, cooked
¶1 Tbsp. fresh chives, minced
Mix everything, and add the egg mixture to the pan. Stir the eggs gently until they are about half set.
Sprinkle the top with:
¶2 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
Place it in the oven on a middle rack, and immediately turn on the broiler.
Keep an eye on this; timing depends entirely on how quickly your broiler heats, and all ovens and broilers are different.
When the dish is set, with a nicely browned top, remove it from the oven and let set for 5 minutes. Then loosen the edges, run the spatula under it all, take a deep breath, and fearlessly turn it out on to a cutting board.
Cut into 8 portions, and enjoy, hot or at room temperature. This frittata is perfect as is, or you can add a roasted red pepper sauce, below.
If serving as an entrée, all it needs is a simple side salad of greens, topped with hot radishes and dressed delicately with a vinaigrette. The frittata is also great cut up into small pieces and served as an appetizer.
For the Potluck Brunch: Double this recipe for a great potluck brunch offering. Cook everything as directed, but have a 13-in.x-9-in. casserole dish waiting in a warm oven with a little butter melting.
Once you add the eggs to the rest of the mixture and move them around until they start to set, transfer to the baking dish. Because it is a little larger than the skillet, I finish it off in a 350-degree oven until the top is lightly browned.
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
This quick sauce goes well with everything: egg dishes, roasted vegetables, fish, meats, crostini.
Preheat your oven to broil. On a baking sheet place:
¶1 large sweet red pepper, halved, seeded
¶1 shallot, quartered
¶1 garlic clove
Broil until the shallot and garlic clove have just softened and remove those. Leave the pepper in the oven until it chars.
Place the pepper in a bowl and cover. The steam will loosen the skin after a few minutes, and you can rub it off with a paper towel.
Place the pepper, shallot, and garlic in a food processor along with:
¶{1/4} cup olive oil
¶{1/4} cup water
¶1 Tbsp. caper brine
¶Pinch of salt
Blend well, then scoop into a bowl and add:
¶2 Tbsp. capers
¶Hot sauce to taste, optional
Mix well, and serve.
In a pinch, you can use jarred roasted red peppers, and microwave the shallot and garlic for a minute to soften.