A Perfect French Omelet - With Recipe!

I don't know about you, but I've always been lousy at making omelets. No matter how hard I tried, I always ended up with eggs scrambled with whatever filling I put in the pan. It's not pretty.

But no more! One night when I was watching America's Test Kitchen on PBS, they showed how to make a perfect french omelet. The recipe is straight from Julia Child, so it comes as no surprise that it's more about technique than anything else. Also, it contains more butter than you might expect. Please enjoy this recipe in moderation.

If you log onto America's Test Kitchen's website and try to access the recipes, they ask for all kinds of personal information, such as your email address, shoe size, and the name of your first dog. But fear not, gentle reader - your intrepid blogger was in front of the TV with the DVR remote in one hand and a pen in the other. Follow these instructions and you will be impressing one and all with your culinary expertise. Don't be put off by the number of steps. Once you get the pan hot, everything moves really fast. Make sure you prep all your ingredients and have them ready before you put the eggs in the pan.

Ingredients:

3 eggs
1/2 tsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp butter
2-3 tbsp shredded cheese
1 tbsp chopped chives or scallions

Method:

1. Get out an 8-inch non-stick frying pan, add the 1/2 tsp. vegetable oil, and place over medium-low heat (or low; you want to slowly bring it to temperature over about 10 minutes). Find a lid that will cover the pan completely (it doesn't have to fit perfectly).

2. Cut half the butter in small pieces, place in a ramekin, and freeze for a minimum of 10 minutes. If you're like me and you keep extra butter in the freezer, cut 1/2 tablespoon off that, cut into small pieces and continue.

3. Chop chives or scallions and shred cheese. Place next to stove.

4. Beat eggs a minimum of 80 strokes. (Seriously. Julia means business.) Add salt and pepper to taste, and drop in the frozen butter.

4. When pan is ready, turn heat up to just below medium. Wipe most of the oil out of the pan with a paper towel, then place the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of cold (but not frozen) butter in the pan.

5. When the butter stops foaming, pour in the eggs. Using chopsticks or the handle of a wooden spoon, scramble eggs until almost set, about 45 seconds. Pat eggs flat with a spatula.

6. Take the pan off the heat, but leave the burner on. Sprinkle the cheese and chives or scallions quickly over the eggs, slap a lid on the pan and let it sit 1 minute 30 seconds if you like your eggs runny or 2 minutes if you prefer them more cooked. Set a timer. Wash your cutting board, bowl, and utensils while you wait.

7. Return the pan, with the cover, to the heat for 45 seconds (again, set a timer).

8. Roll cooked omelet onto a plate with a folded paper towel on it to help you to get that classic jelly roll. Once you do it a few times you won't need the paper towel because you will be rolling the omelet like a pro. If I can do it, anyone can.

Crispy Potato Goodness

Tater Tots are always the same: crispy on the outside, soft and tasty on the inside. In a world where any crazy thing can - and often does - happen, the Tater Tot will never let you down. I like that.

Chocolate Caramel Tryst

I'm on vacation in Tucson, AZ, with limited access to the technology I need to transform my old-school drawings into jpegs. So today I'm dipping into the archives.

The Army Dude and I had this delectable dessert at Finale in Boston a few weeks ago. If your first impression is that it's enough food for a family of four, you would be correct; however the Army Dude and I are made of tough stuff. We polished it off like a pair of champions. It was heaven. Absolute heaven.

Just Another Manic Wednesday

Contrary to what you probably think given all the treats I've been posting lately, this is the type of thing I tend to eat during the work week. Alas, a woman cannot live on chocolate alone - or at least not unless she wants to get as big as a hippo or work out two hours every day.

Here's the thing about a stir fry. If you decide you are going to make it into an art assembly project by using fancy knife cuts and insisting on eleventy kinds of vegetables, you will be prepping it until doomsday. If, like me, you limit the vegetables to between one and three kinds (depending on how much you have on hand of each), and you chop them like a normal person instead of a Martha Stewart wannabe, you can be eating in half an hour. And that includes making rice.

This particular recipe is healthy and really good, especially in the spring when pencil-thin asparagus is in the stores. It could be done with chicken, I suppose, but the great thing about tofu is that you can prep it without having to declare the cutting board and counter a hazmat area and dealing with it accordingly. That's why it's smiling.

Also note that the asparagus spears are not only smiling, but are also sporting some pretty fancy bouffant hairdos. That's a lot of fabulous for one meal.

EZ-Cracker

A week or so ago, Army Dude and I were going to lunch at a restaurant whose TVs blare the bad new of the day around the clock for the diners' convenience. The TVs are muted or I would flat-out refuse to go no matter how good their Buffalo wings are.

As we were being seated, I saw an ad on one of the televisions. I looked at Army Dude quizzically. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Did I just see what I think I saw?

Army Dude: Yes.

Me: No, really... that commercial... are they advertising...?

Army Dude: An egg-cracking gadget.

Me: A gadget. That cracks eggs. For $19.95?

Army Dude: Plus postage and handling.

Me: [Still looking at him quizzically.]

Here's the thing: eggs are fragile. They are heavy compared to the strength of their shells. They crack. The challenge with the egg, as I see it, is to avoid having it crack until you want it to. An entire industry has developed around the harvesting, storage, and delivery of eggs using specialized equipment and packaging to avoid breakage.

So after millennia of using our hands to help the egg meet its cracking destiny, now we're being told we need a $20 gadget? It's enough to make me despair for the future of the human race. Seriously.

Guest Blogger: Elizabeth, Age 5

I'm excited to bring you the work of an wonderful new talent, fresh from a gallery showing on the front of my refrigerator. The artist is my great-niece Elizabeth; the event is Katie's birthday dinner.

Depicted from left to right: Katie, me, Lizzie (you can see the family resemblance), and the Army Dude. Katie (Lizzie's mother) drew and colored the hearts; I provided the hair styling for the Army Dude because Elizabeth specializes in ponytails and not Army regulation flat tops. As you can see, a good time was had by all.

I'm delighted to feature this up-and-coming young artist, and I expect big things from her in the future.

Culinary Quote: Rob

Gentlemen, I believe we have a winner.