Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Omelettes


For a long time, I didn't like omelettes.  I think it was because I never had a good one.  They were always too thick, so either the outside was WAY overdone, or the middle was runny (raw). Yuck.
Then I started watching cooking shows, and their omelettes didn't look anything like any of the omelettes that I had tried (I never tried to make one myself; I am talking about restaurant omelettes---okay, yes, diner/dive restaurants, but still). 
Anyhoo, when I saw the ones they made on these shows, I thought they actually looked appetizing.  The only hitch was that they always mentioned how difficult it is to make a good omelette. 
Well, I bought right into that.  I figured that making an omelette was something only chefs could do.
(rolling my eyes), Wrong.
Now that I have experimented with them, I think they are easy.  There are two main rules.  The first is, don't make it with too many eggs, or in too small a pan.  The pan should be non-stick, big enough to handle the amount of eggs you want (The egg mixture should not be more than 3/8ths of an inch deep) and the sides should be a gradual slope, not too steep. 
The second is, the pan must not be too hot.  On my stovetop, I start on the setting "6"or just past medium, preheat the pan just so the butter melts and starts to bubble gently, add the egg mixture, turn the heat down to "4" or medium-low, and as the eggs coddle a little, stir them gently all around but not so much as to mound them up, then add any other ingredients you want in a line in the middle of the omelette (the way you would for a burrito), let it cook until the egg is almost set, but still moist on top, then with a spatula lift and roll one edge over the ingredients, and roll and slide the whole thing off the pan and onto a plate. 
The omelette above is made with Fresh Free Range Chicken Eggs that I get from one of my dressage students, New York Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Seared Sirloin and Crimini Mushroom Pieces, and Chopped Fresh Basil.  I served this with Sourdough Toast for dinner tonight. 
I like omelettes for dinner, because it just seems like kind of a heavy meal for breakfast.
Momma T., do you like omelettes?

Sunday, May 22, 2011

My Summer Garden is Growing

Do you remember those cute little seedlings that I had grown from saved seeds in a flat that I took a picture of a couple months ago?  Well, they are growing up very well, and are promising to produce some fruit and such.
Here are some pictures:

On the left is the Heirloom Red Beefsteak Tomato.  When it first started flowering, the flowers would just fall off and not develop into the tomatoes, so I just left it alone and it corrected itself.  I think it was just too humid in those first two weeks of flowering (we had an early heat/humidity wave here in Florida).  Then we had a cool front push through, and the humidity level dropped and voila!  8 tomatoes.  I am happy. They are about half grown now, and will be very large tomatoes.  There are also more blossoms, and the plant is indeterminate, so maybe we will have even more on this plant.  On the right is one of the German Pink Heirloom Tomato, and I had a blossom-end rot issue with them early on, which is caused by a calcium deficiency (I found that out by online research--thanks Bonnie's website!). I didn't have the product that thei recommended, but I do have human calcium supplement pills, so I crushed them up, dissolved them in water, and used them as a drench.  It seems to have worked (and Bonnie's site was a bit pessimistic about anything helping once the plants set fruit). I have 6 tomatoes on that bush so far.  We will see if any survive.

 I don't know if you can see the little sweet peppers on the bush---->  but there are many flowers, and 6 have already begun to form into the bell peppers; the biggest is the one close to the top of the picture, and one just right of center.


And here is one of the three personal mini-watermelons that have set so far on the watermelon vines.  I have a couple more that are just starting to develop, but certainly aren't noteworthy yet.  :-)

The basil is growing at a really fast pace.  I have been cutting it almost everyday, and using basil in almost everything I cook.  All my herbs are producing so well that I am providing fresh herbs to one of my clients, who gives me her free-range chicken and duck eggs in return!  I love bartering with food!  LOL