Flippin’ Omelettes

Breakfast — how I love thee. But my bed fools me into loving slumber more. I hit the snooze button about ten times every morning. Getting to an office less than a mile from my house by 9 AM shouldn’t be that much of a challenge, but it truly is.

I know I say this fairly frequently, but my life has been hectic lately. I just started a new job, joined a kickball league, and I’m about to start Arabic classes two nights a week on top of half-marathon training. Oh, and I’m currently sitting at Reagan National airport awaiting a flight for a quick rendezvous in Bogota. So naturally, I haven’t had ample time to draw together a good post for this blog. Not to mention, I’m supposed to start blogging on my office’s international development blog amidst this. My social life will be reduced to kickball. Which could be good or bad, I guess. Anyway, point being, I barely have time to sleep — let alone wake up early enough to really do breakfast right.

This morning was different. Last night was rough. Between kickball, packing, and all the excitement that you go through in anticipation that comes with traveling to a part of the world you’ve never been to before, saying that I didn’t get much sleep is an extravagant exaggeration. And despite, or possibly because of, the fear and anxiety I felt last night at the thought of not waking up in time for my flight, I woke up early. And I made breakfast with the food in my kitchen that would have rotted in my absence if I didn’t make use of it soon enough.

Omelette flipping is a skill I take pride in. It’s something that is always fun — my stepmom actually taught me how to flip them after I moved home for a year of college. Omelettes are actually one of the first things I learned to cook, thanks to her. So these days, I try to pass on the omelette lessons. It’s all in the flick of the wrist. And even when you get good, there’s still probably a 30 percent chance that you’ll end up with a scramble instead. But when it works, it’s beautiful.

I had this omelette photo stored on my computer from a brunch with my favorite sous chef, Rachel, who frequents my bed after a night of bar hopping or a bottle of wine on my balcony. She got it on her first try! I can always trust my Bruin friends to learn quickly. Most of them, anyway.

WHAT YOU NEED:

For each omelette:

2 eggs

Vegetables and filling of your choice. My favorites are:

Plum tomatoes
Sun-dried tomatoes

Onions

Mushrooms

Feta cheese

A good non-stick omelette pan, usually about 7 inches in diameter. They come pretty cheap; I got one for about ten bucks.

I scramble the eggs in a mug, and set aside. If you choose to go with onions and mushrooms, toss them in the pan and sauté lightly. Mix your tomatoes in the mug with the eggs. Use olive oil or some non-stick spray to grease the pan, and then throw in the eggs and tomatoes. On a high flame, let the omelette cook until it’s opaque, at which point you should take a small silicone spatula to lift the sides, letting the raw egg slide under the already cooked eggs. When it seems solid enough, loosen the sides of the omelette with your spatula, and flip. Don’t be scared; it’s deceptively easy.

Right after you flip it, put your fillings on top. After about a minute, it should be done cooking. Slide it onto a plate and serve with a fork on a beautiful balcony :)