Spring Asparagus Frittata with Spring Onions and Green Garlic

Recipe by Barbara Kobsar
Illustrations by Caroline Gould

Serves 4

1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 spring onion, trimmed and chopped
1 green garlic, trimmed and chopped
½ pound fresh asparagus, trimmed, cleaned, and cut into
1-inch pieces
6 eggs
1 tablespoon water
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 325°. 

Melt butter and olive oil in an oven-safe 8-inch skillet over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and asparagus. Cook and toss occasionally for about 5 minutes. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and water. Pour into skillet, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook 5 minutes. Transfer skillet to oven. Bake 10 to 15 minutes until eggs are set. Top with Parmesan cheese and place under broiler until cheese is lightly browned. 

Garlic goes through a lot of changes as it grows from a small green sprout into the fat, papery-white bulb we bring home to our pantries. Immature “green garlic” might show up at your farmers’ market when farmers are thinning the rows, and that’s when they also bring the young onions called “spring onions.” The two can look a lot alike, but bring the bunch up to your nose and you’ll know which is the garlic by the familiar aroma.

Veteran journalist Barbara Kobsar has authored two cookbooks focusing on traditional home-cooked meals using local produce. You’ll find her each week at the Walnut Creek Farmers’ Market selling her Cottage Kitchen jams and jellies made from farmers’ market produce.

Berkeley-based illustrator and musician Caroline H. Gould is a transplant from Brooklyn, New York. She is especially fond of illustrating desserts. carolinehgould.com