(Welcome, Guardian readers! If you liked this recipe, why not have a look at our Maltese (and other) European recipe collections? Click on regions in the right-hand menu columns for recipes from specific European countries.)

Doubtless this omelette shows a little of the Italian influence in Maltese cooking: there are similar frittati di pasta in the cooking of Sicily, Malta's near neighbor. But elsewhere in the Mediterranean many variations on this theme can be found -- probably invented by some frugal chef who didn't want to waste that last cupful of leftover capellini or penne or whatever.

Possibly because they help hold the omelette together best, long pastas seem to be the favorite for this kind of treatment: anything from vermicelli to normal spaghetti would probably work just fine. (We did our froga in the photo using a Polish soup noodle called sloneczny, which was perfectly acceptable.)

Some cooks like to do this recipe as a batch of mini-omelettes several inches wide rather than as one large omelet. You also see versions of the recipe that incorporate spinach or chopped scallions to the cook's taste, instead of the parsley called for in this basic version. The froga in the picture contains scallions because EuroCuisineLady happened to have some on hand at the time.

Click on "read more" for the recipe.

Ingredients:

• 400g vermicelli or angel-hair pasta (or any other thin pasta on hand: pre-cooked plain pasta is fine)
• 3 eggs
• 2 tablespoons parmesan
• Oil
• Salt & pepper
  
• Chopped parsley

Boil the pasta for 5 minutes. Drain it. (Or, if you're using leftover pasta, just proceed to the next step.

Lightly beat the eggs; add the parmesan and most of the parsley. Mix the egg mixture into the pasta and stir well. Season with salt and pepper.

Fry the mixture in an omelette pan. When it's set firmly enough, turn the froga so that it can finish cooking on the other side. When lightly golden on its bottom side, lift out (folding it, if you like your omelettes folded) and serve piping hot, sprinkled with chopped parsley.

You could also add spinach, scallions, or other greens to this froga.

(This is one of a sequence of Maltese recipes posted to celebrate Malta's annual Freedom Day. You might like to check the other recipes out as well.)