Winter Garden Vegan Frittata (Printable)
Savory chickpea flour bake with winter vegetables.
# List of ingredients:
→ Vegetables
01 - 1 cup butternut squash, peeled and diced
02 - 1 cup Brussels sprouts, trimmed and quartered
03 - 1 cup baby spinach
04 - 1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced
05 - 1/2 cup red onion, thinly sliced
06 - 1 clove garlic, minced
→ Vegan Egg Base
07 - 1 1/2 cups chickpea flour
08 - 1 1/4 cups unsweetened plant-based milk (soy or almond)
09 - 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
10 - 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
11 - 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
12 - 1 teaspoon baking powder
13 - 1/2 teaspoon black salt (optional)
14 - 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
15 - 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
→ For Cooking
16 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
# Steps:
01 - Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 9-inch ovenproof skillet or round baking dish with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
02 - Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add butternut squash and Brussels sprouts; cook for 5 to 7 minutes until beginning to soften.
03 - Incorporate red onion, red bell pepper, and garlic into skillet; cook for 3 minutes until fragrant and vegetables are tender. Stir in baby spinach and cook until wilted, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.
04 - Whisk chickpea flour, plant-based milk, nutritional yeast, turmeric, smoked paprika, baking powder, black salt (if using), sea salt, and black pepper in a large bowl until smooth and free of lumps.
05 - Fold sautéed vegetables into the chickpea batter until fully incorporated.
06 - Pour mixture into prepared skillet, spreading evenly. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the top is golden and firm, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
07 - Allow to cool for 5 minutes before slicing. Serve warm or at room temperature.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- It's the first vegan frittata that actually holds together and tastes rich, not apologetic.
- Winter vegetables taste ten times better roasted first, so you get caramelized edges and real depth.
- The chickpea flour does the heavy lifting with almost no fuss, and nutritional yeast brings that savory, umami punch people always miss.
- Leftovers are just as good cold the next day, straight from the fridge with coffee.
02 -
- The vegetables absolutely must be sautéed first; if you dump raw butternut squash into the batter and bake it, you'll end up with crunchy instead of tender, and the whole thing falls apart.
- Black salt isn't actually black—it's a dark purple-grey—and it's the secret to making vegan egg dishes taste like they have actual eggs in them; I learned this the hard way after three sad, eggy-flavored failures.
- Don't open the oven door before 25 minutes or you'll release all that heat and it won't set properly in the middle, which I discovered by opening it at 20 minutes to "check" and ending up with a jiggly mess.
03 -
- Cast iron skillets give you the most beautiful golden crust on the bottom if you care about presentation, but any ovenproof pan works perfectly fine.
- This keeps beautifully in the fridge for three days and tastes just as good cold with coffee the next morning or warmed gently in a 300°F oven for about five minutes.