Wild Mint and Pancetta Frittata (Frittata alla Menta Selvatica e Pancetta)
What better and more refreshing way to serve a frittata than with wild mint. Mint is a very popluar herb in Italy especially in the Marche region, where it grows abundantly on the hillsides. The mint frittata has become an authentic regional dish served mainly as a second course with a refreshing green leaf salad.
In the city of Macerata in the the Marche region, as an Easter tradition, the mint frittata is served for breakfast on that morning along with salami, a variety of cheese and their local Easter Pizza bread. The Maceratesi call it an Easter Blessing.
The frittata is characterized by the refreshing mint as well as the cured belly pork (pancetta) which seems to add a little moisture and sense of bite to the frittata. The fusion of the mint with the cured belly pork seems to blend well together and just the right amount of pecorino cheese adds that extra flavor. By serving this dish one is definitley bringing to the table a dish with texture, color and deliciousness.
Though the dish requires to add salt to taste , being the pecorino romano a very tasty but also salty cheese, before adding the salt I always make sure not to over do it; therefore I just add a pinch of salt, which is just enough to bring out the flavor of it all. The pancetta itself is also very flavorful and most of the time it can be quite salty, therefore it is also very important to keep this in mind when adding salt.
The frittata can be served warm or cold and leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for about 2 days. It can be served the following day alone or in a sandwich. I usualy use the leftover in a salad, I just dice it and toss it into a nice mescolin salad, bringing to the table a fresh, colorful and flavorful salad. Me and my family enjoy it as a quick Summertime lunch. The Frittata is about 1 and 11/2 inches thick and thats what I call a real good frittata.
Wild Mint and Pancetta Frittata
Preparation: Easy 15 minutes
Serves: 4/5
Ingredients:
2 large handfuls of fresh wild mint
6 eggs
1.5 ounces of pancetta
2 tablespoons of grated pecorino romano cheese
1 fresh green garlic
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Procedure:
Start by cutting the pancetta into matchsticks and set aside.
Heat a tablespoon of extra virgin oilve oil in a medium size frying pan and saute' the pancetta on low heat and allow it to sweat completely. Remove from heat. Place the pancetta on a dish and set aside. Don't remove the oil from the pan which you used to saute' the pancetta. The flavor is all in the pan.
Trim and wash the wild mint and chop finely. Afterwards mince the green garlic.
Crack the eggs into a bowl and beat the eggs gently, add the grated pecorino romano cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Add the chopped wild mint and the pancetta then mix well.
Place the same pan used to saute' the pancetta on the stove and add another tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, when the pan is hot add the egg mixture and lower the heat and allow to cook for about 5 minutes, stirring gently and raising the sides with a spatula. This will allow the frittata to cook inside without burning on the outside.
Turn and allow to cook on the other side for about 3 minutes.
Plate on a dish and serve cold or warm.
Buon Appetito!
Italian Foodista
