Clearly Delicious: Omelettes, the Right Way

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Omelettes, the Right Way

Due to a series of fortunate disasters, I found myself at the mercy of two amazing people/friends last night on my drive back from North and South Carolina. Lydia Dorsey and Jeramey Jones are fabulous people and very good in the disaster solving business. Not only did they put me up at Jeramey's awesome new house, but they also saved my butt in what was a rather retched, but human catastrophe.

Disasters aside, Lydia made these DELICIOUS (and I dare say, clearly delicious) "Truedrivers" to take the edge off of my nerves and lull me into a baby-like sleep akin to a greyhound racing and passing out after a major spaz attack. These "Truedrivers" certainly settled my nerves and are a combination of orange juice and vodka (what would be a regular screw driver) with red fruit juice produced by the makers of True Blood. Lydia is a huge fan of True Blood (as am I) and pointed out that the products match the beverage bottles used on the actual show. You can find them here at HBO's website. They are truly fascinating and make for delicious bevarages.

However, this post is not about Truedrivers, but rather their hangover cure in the form of a tasty omelette. As many of us know, omelettes can be made from a combination of eggs, cheese, and any other ingredients one likes after being pan-fried, and cooked thoroughly.The below recipe is a little unique because it calls for pesto. Pesto in an omelette?! Absurd! Actually...not so much. The ingredients in pesto are pretty ingenious--olive oil, basil, parmessan, and pine nuts. Who wouldn't want to flavor a simple egg dish with this combination? In the words of Lydia "Yes." Also in the words of Lydia, "this is the best omelette I've ever eaten!!!" I was so proud. I almost said something silly about it being "clearly delicious...."

Omelettes
The key to any good omelette is to COOK THE FILLING FIRST and add the eggs second. I cannot stress this tip enough for it makes all the difference in the cooking time, process, and final outcome. Before I knew much about cooking, I would always cook the beaten eggs in the pan first, add the ingredients, and wait until the eggs were cooked long enough to fold over the omelette. Sadly, many people also use this technique and it just doesn't work right. Not only are the filling ingredients never fully cooked, but seldom is the egg casing structurally sound enough for folding and flipping. Thus, cook/saute the ingredients (minus the cheese) first for several minutes and then pour the egg mixture on top of this as the directions below suggest. Your omelette will be structurally sound and more attractive!

* 2 eggs, but more can be added for volume or preference
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* salt and pepper, to taste
* 1 tablespoon italian seasoning, or oregano/thyme mixture
* 1-2 tablespoons pesto, optional
* 2 tablespoons chopped turkey, optional
* 1-2 cloves garlic, chopped finely or pressed
* 1-2 tablespoons chopped onions
* 1 handful of spinach
* 1/4 cup cheese, any kind
* any other filling ingredient (i.e., bacon, sausage, tomatoes, etc.) or seasoning (i.e., Tony's Cajun Seasoning, basil, rosemary, etc.).

1.) Turn pan to medium and heat up olive oil. Add onions, spinach, and any other vegetable or meat that may require a longer cooking time. Sautee until cooked and season accordingly with the above seasonings (my combination of italian seasoning, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper, etc. is a pretty common seasoning and works nicely for most palettes). Add pesto and mix in thoroughly.
2.) Once ingredients are properly cooked, pour two beaten eggs over mixture and allow the ingredients to meld together and cook for about one minute.
3.) In the following minutes, you'll want to thinly spread the cheese (if you're using cheese) over the mixture, and any final seasoning before you fold the omelette.
4.) Once the omelette is stiff enough to be lifted and folded in the same pan, do just that. Fold omelette in half onto itself and press down to push out any uncooked egg and cook for one minute. Unless the egg is looking under done, this will probably be plenty of cooking time.
5.) Transfer to a plate and enjoy!