Bacon Sausage and Tot Frittata

8 large eggs

1 cup Cheddar and Jack cheese, shredded

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil (optional)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

3/4 pound Sweet Italian Sausage

1- 16 ounce bag Tater Tots

1 tablespoon olive oil

6 slices maple bacon, cooked and chopped

2 cups spring salad mix (or spinach)

1/2 cup chopped roasted peppers

3 ounces sliced Provolone cheese (5 or 6 slices)

In large bowl, whisk together eggs, shredded cheese, basil, salt and pepper; set aside.

In a large skillet, cook and crumble Sweet Italian Sausage, remove from pan.  Remove most of the drippings and then sauté Tater Tots over medium high heat for about 3-4 minutes, until golden.

Pre-heat broiler in oven.

Add back to the skillet, with the potatoes, olive oil, the cooked sausage, cooked bacon, salad greens, and roasted peppers, stirring to combine.  Pour egg mixture over everything and cook over medium-high heat, lifting up the cooked egg around the edges with a heat-proof rubber spatula, to let uncooked egg flow underneath, 2-3 minutes.  Reduce heat to medium and cook, covered, until it appears mostly set, with a moist top and center, 3-5 minutes more.

At this point, if skillet is oven proof*, remove lid & broil in oven 5 to 7 inches from heat until set, but not browned, 1 to 2 minutes.  Then cover top of Frittata with sliced Provolone and continue broiling until browned, 1 to 3 minutes. (watch carefully!)

* If your skillet is not oven proof, slide frittata into casserole dish and continue with broiling instructions.

(To make a handle of a skillet oven-proof, wrap it in tin foil.)

1st Place Winner, Mountain State Fair

Susie Zuerner, Arden, NC