**Leek and parmesan frittata, pan-fried, with crispy breadcrumbs** — one pan, ~20 min.

**What happens to everything:** leek gets softened in butter, eggs + parmesan become the frittata, stale bread gets blitzed/rubbed into crumbs and fried in the leftover butter until crunchy.

**Steps**

1. **Prep (3 min).** Halve the leek lengthwise, rinse out any grit, slice thin. Tear the bread into bits and blitz it, or grate it on a box grater / rub it between your palms into coarse crumbs. Beat 4 eggs with a pinch of salt, a grind of pepper, and ~30g grated parmesan.
2. **Leek (6 min).** Medium-low heat, a good knob of butter in your widest pan. Leek in, pinch of salt, stir now and then until soft and sweet — no browning needed.
3. **Crumbs (2 min, overlapping).** Push leek to one side, add the breadcrumbs to the freed space with a little more butter, and fry until golden and crisp. Tip them out onto a plate.
4. **Frittata (8–10 min).** Spread the leek flat, pour in the eggs. Cook on **low**, uncovered, until the edges set and the top is mostly opaque but still wet. Here's the trick without an oven: flip in two halves like an omelette, or — better — cover with a lid or a plate and let the trapped steam set the top, 2–3 min. A splash of water in the pan before covering makes more steam.
5. **Serve (1 min).** Slide onto a board, shower with the crispy crumbs and a little more parmesan.

**Two shortcuts if you're running late:** skip the crumb-frying and just serve thick buttered toast alongside, or cut the bread into cubes and fry them as croutons (same idea, less fiddly). Also, if your gf eats dairy no problem — but note Parmigiano Reggiano is made with animal rennet, in case that matters to her; a hard vegetarian cheese or just more butter works fine too.