Tortilla

I've been to Spain twice; it's my favorite of the European countries. The first time I traveled there, by train, when we crossed the border from France I felt different somehow - it was something I've never really been able to explain. It was a beautiful sunny day and we were traveling right along the coast and there was something about the light and the colors and the way that my heart felt and right then and there I fell in love with the entire country. I've never really lost that feeling - even when I was chasing down a guy who was making off with my pack in the Barcelona train station.
Anyhow.
My love of the country, naturally, extends to the food. And the food I ate the most, for nearly every meal, was the Tortilla de Patatas - the Spanish potato omelette. We ate it plain, on crusty bread, or on crusty bread with a thick coating of mayonnaise and a hot cup of coffee. It was cheap and delicious and when I'm really craving it now, I make my way down to La Bodega for their most excellent happy hour (theirs is served with a really tasty red pepper aioli). Or I make it at home and watch my husband's face light up. He's never been to Spain, but I'm sharing one of my favorite parts with him when I throw one of these together.
It is the perfect dinner with a tomato salad and a thick slice of crusty french bread, but it's even better cold the next day for breakfast.

Tortilla de Patatas

1 lb. red-skinned potatoes, thinly sliced
1 large white onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
6 eggs
olive oil
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 375.
In an oven-proof skillet, saute the potato slices in a generous amount of olive oil, salt and pepper over medium heat until softened (appx 10-15 minutes). Remove potatoes from the pan with a slotted spoon and add more olive oil. Saute onion slices for 10 minutes. Add garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes. Add potatoes back into the pan and incorporate, allowing to cook for 5 more minutes.
In a separate bowl, beat eggs. Pour beaten eggs into the pan and turn the heat to medium low. Gently shake pan to evenly distribute eggs and cook for 5-6 minutes on stovetop.
Place pan in oven to finish cooking. Cook for 10-12 minutes or until eggs are set.
Cool in pan. Cut into wedges and serve.