How many times does dinner time roll around and you're hungry, tired and just want something good in your mouth and your stomach asap? Before you reach for the frozen pizza, or head to the over-priced deli around the block, think. Do you have eggs? Do you have some vegetables? You can have a beautiful, tasty, nutritious dinner. In your mouth. In less than 20 minutes. Seriously.
A couple of months ago, B got me into "Worst Cooks in America" on Food Network. Upon hearing the title, I wondered how I had not been nominated for this show. Watching these poor contestants being yelled at by a condescending woman with questionable hair choices whilst wrangling whole squid (sidenote: have you ever seen a whole squid? and then taken it apart and chopped it up? and then cooked it and eaten it? blech. shudder. gag. puke. No thanks.) and catching pans on fire just hit a little too close to home. In one challenge, the "recruits" were charged with making an omelette. Seems simple enough, right? Beat some eggs, chop some veggies, throw it in the pan, and voila. Not so much. The recruits' results ranged from "pretty good" to downright inedible. Cut to me in my kitchen a few nights later, feeling pretty confident after a number of seemingly more daunting culinary victories. With B's "helpful suggestions" to only use a non-stick pan! Keep the heat LOW! ringing in my ears, I made my first feeble attempt at an omelette. For some reason (definitely not my own impatience) my omelettes always turned into "scrambles". Which was a-ok with me. Are the eggs cooked? Does it taste good? Fine. I'm happy. But last night. Last night everything changed. I was on my own for dinner, which is always easier for me because B and I have such different tastes in food. I decided to make another veggie scramble. And lo, it actually turned into a successful omelette. It was so easy, y'all. I was so proud of my little creation I took a picture for B, and now it's on the internet.
See that red goodness sitting there all nonchalant, next to the greens? After months of summer produce withdrawals I celebrated the early arrival of spring and splurged on some fresh pico de gallo from Whole Foods. (Man that sounded nerdy. I love food so much I "splurge" on unnecessary food items.) It was so worth it. Bright, sweet, tangy, simple, deliciousness. The perfect accompaniment to this omelette. And the best part? The whole shebang took less than 20 minutes. You can do this. Tonight. Try it, you'll like it. Here's whatcha do.
Put a dab (about half a tablespoon or whatever floats your) of coconut oil in a non-stick pan (non-stick!). Yup. Coconut oil! I'll be singing praises of this new friend later in the week. (Olive oil would be fine too.) Turn the heat on a little lower than medium. While the pan's heating, chop yourself some veggies. I used mushrooms, onions, some sweet red bell pepper, and a little green onion. Then just throw those babies on in the pan. Let them sizzle and get nice and soft and release all those yummy flavors. The coconut oil gives a nice subtle sweetness and really compliments the earthiness of the mushrooms. While your veggies are cooking, break some eggs in a bowl. I used two whole eggs and one white, but you use all whites or all whole eggs or whatever makes you happy.
Now. This may be controversial to an omelette purist, but I like to live on the edge, so I added some spices. Not too much, just a little sprinkle of cumin, coriander and garlic powder. Then a pinch of salt and a nice healthy grinding of my main man, black pepper. Do y'all know about fresh ground black pepper? Such a robust, almost savory spice. It'll change your life.
Here's the fun part. Ya ready? If your pan is big enough, just move the veggies over to the side. If it's on the smaller side, just put them on a plate for a second. Now pour your eggs in the pan. Add those beautiful veggies. And wait. Make sure the heat is on medium low (not too too low) and let those eggs start to cook on the bottom. When you start to see the edges looking "done" flip one side over onto the other. If it breaks and goes all over the place, don't freak out. Just continue folding the eggs over on themselves until they're just about done and you'll have a nice little scramble. It won't look very pretty, but it'll taste good. Trust. But if you're a rockstar and your eggs stay together you've got an omelette, baby! I let mine cook another minute or so, flip it all over once more for good measure and voila. Slide that baby on a plate and your done!
I served mine with that delectable pico, some nice little baby greens (organic, from a bag) spritzed with lemon and a piece of Ezekial toast. That's a restaurant worthy plate I tell ya! Simple, satisfying, delicious and less than 20 minutes start to finish.
A couple of months ago, B got me into "Worst Cooks in America" on Food Network. Upon hearing the title, I wondered how I had not been nominated for this show. Watching these poor contestants being yelled at by a condescending woman with questionable hair choices whilst wrangling whole squid (sidenote: have you ever seen a whole squid? and then taken it apart and chopped it up? and then cooked it and eaten it? blech. shudder. gag. puke. No thanks.) and catching pans on fire just hit a little too close to home. In one challenge, the "recruits" were charged with making an omelette. Seems simple enough, right? Beat some eggs, chop some veggies, throw it in the pan, and voila. Not so much. The recruits' results ranged from "pretty good" to downright inedible. Cut to me in my kitchen a few nights later, feeling pretty confident after a number of seemingly more daunting culinary victories. With B's "helpful suggestions" to only use a non-stick pan! Keep the heat LOW! ringing in my ears, I made my first feeble attempt at an omelette. For some reason (definitely not my own impatience) my omelettes always turned into "scrambles". Which was a-ok with me. Are the eggs cooked? Does it taste good? Fine. I'm happy. But last night. Last night everything changed. I was on my own for dinner, which is always easier for me because B and I have such different tastes in food. I decided to make another veggie scramble. And lo, it actually turned into a successful omelette. It was so easy, y'all. I was so proud of my little creation I took a picture for B, and now it's on the internet.
this picture is motivation for me to learn how to use my
camera and quit taking crappy pictures with my iphone.
See that red goodness sitting there all nonchalant, next to the greens? After months of summer produce withdrawals I celebrated the early arrival of spring and splurged on some fresh pico de gallo from Whole Foods. (Man that sounded nerdy. I love food so much I "splurge" on unnecessary food items.) It was so worth it. Bright, sweet, tangy, simple, deliciousness. The perfect accompaniment to this omelette. And the best part? The whole shebang took less than 20 minutes. You can do this. Tonight. Try it, you'll like it. Here's whatcha do.
Put a dab (about half a tablespoon or whatever floats your) of coconut oil in a non-stick pan (non-stick!). Yup. Coconut oil! I'll be singing praises of this new friend later in the week. (Olive oil would be fine too.) Turn the heat on a little lower than medium. While the pan's heating, chop yourself some veggies. I used mushrooms, onions, some sweet red bell pepper, and a little green onion. Then just throw those babies on in the pan. Let them sizzle and get nice and soft and release all those yummy flavors. The coconut oil gives a nice subtle sweetness and really compliments the earthiness of the mushrooms. While your veggies are cooking, break some eggs in a bowl. I used two whole eggs and one white, but you use all whites or all whole eggs or whatever makes you happy.
Now. This may be controversial to an omelette purist, but I like to live on the edge, so I added some spices. Not too much, just a little sprinkle of cumin, coriander and garlic powder. Then a pinch of salt and a nice healthy grinding of my main man, black pepper. Do y'all know about fresh ground black pepper? Such a robust, almost savory spice. It'll change your life.
Here's the fun part. Ya ready? If your pan is big enough, just move the veggies over to the side. If it's on the smaller side, just put them on a plate for a second. Now pour your eggs in the pan. Add those beautiful veggies. And wait. Make sure the heat is on medium low (not too too low) and let those eggs start to cook on the bottom. When you start to see the edges looking "done" flip one side over onto the other. If it breaks and goes all over the place, don't freak out. Just continue folding the eggs over on themselves until they're just about done and you'll have a nice little scramble. It won't look very pretty, but it'll taste good. Trust. But if you're a rockstar and your eggs stay together you've got an omelette, baby! I let mine cook another minute or so, flip it all over once more for good measure and voila. Slide that baby on a plate and your done!
I served mine with that delectable pico, some nice little baby greens (organic, from a bag) spritzed with lemon and a piece of Ezekial toast. That's a restaurant worthy plate I tell ya! Simple, satisfying, delicious and less than 20 minutes start to finish.
You made that omelet sound so good,it made my mouth water. The red peppers I bought at Whole Foods are the best I've had...fresh veggies + Whole Foods definitely worth it.
ReplyDeleteK