How to Make a Fluffy Omelette
I had about 1/3 of this week's tomato tart (Tomato Tart, February 22, 2013) left over so I saved it, of course, for this morning's breakfast.
I made an omelette and put the leftover tart inside the eggs as they cooked, for a filling.
 It was delicious, quick, easy, and cheap.

Making omelettes seems to scare people off but I have been making them for years.
Believe me, they are so quick and easy especially with leftovers or bits of this and that added as the filling.
They can be savory or sweet.
And they are great in a pinch when you need a meal quickly.
Here's what I do:

Omelettes

• Crack two eggs per person into a bowl. Whisk or use a fork to mix together the egg white and the yolks.
• Pre-heat a large pan---I prefer well-seasoned cast iron---into which a small amount of oil is added.
  Non-stick sprays work okay, but oil is better because you want the eggs to kind of float atop the oil.
• When oil is kind of bubbly but not smoking (if it is smoking it is too hot, remove from burner, wait a few seconds and then add eggs, then put back on the burner). You want the pan pretty hot so that
  when the eggs hit the pan they sizzle but don't burn. You can test this by dropping a very tiny amount of egg mixture from the fork or whisk into the pan---if it sizzles but doesn't burn it's ready. On my old range top I need it on high but a lower temp may work better for your range.
• Working quickly, take your metal spatula/pancake flipper (whatever you call it) and begin pushing the cooking edges, as they form, to the middle of the pan. If you are doing this correctly the pan will have no egg residue on it since it will be floating on the oil. Immediately after that, tilt the pan so that the uncooked egg fills the part of the pan you just pushed the eggs from.  If the whole omelette base moves you have added too much oil. Cook a little longer if this happens or just barely tilt the pan. Continue to repeat this process working around the edge of the pan over and over until it is almost thoroughly cooked. This makes for a fluffy omelette instead of just a cooked egg base which I prefer. It is much more moist and tasty than just slow cooking the eggs then adding the filling. It has a more rustic appearance and will be a little lumpy instead of foamy and cooked through.
• Add whatever you want----to the middle of the egg mixture in small pieces so they warm up or melt quickly. 
• Fold the egg part in half over the ingredients. Don't worry if it doesn't flip neatly, just take your spatula to reshape it and flip it over---serving "bad" side down on plate.
• When it is heated through and the filling is melt-y or warm it is ready to be served
• I like to add some shredded lettuce or sprouts, diced tomato and/or avocado on the plate side. Cooked potatoes, toast, or any stir-fried veggies could also be served along-side. If making a sweet omelette add slices of fresh fruit or whatever goes with your omelette. I like to make it look attractive. "Decorate" your plates before you start cooking the eggs so they are ready to serve.
• You can also serve with any sauce you wish if you have some leftover, or sour cream, gravy, salsa, syrup, fruit sauce, pudding. Whatever you like---be creative.
• If you are making several you can keep others warm in the oven on low or use a very large pan and divide into servings. This morning I put 1 double-yolked egg and two others mixed together into the pan at the same time for my husband and I. When done I just cut it in half.

Filling ideas: Leftovers are the best and easiest fillings:
any meat, cheeses or anything with cheese in it.
Asparagus is wonderful as are mushrooms, peppers, onions, leftover stir-fried veggies or potatoes.
Chili or refried beans are great especially served with salsa on top
and some green onions or raw red onions diced.
Leftovers from a Mexican dish are my favorite.
That last enchilada or tamale chopped up,
leftovers from taco or burrito makings, anything that sounds good to you! They are also good filled with something sweet as a quick dessert. Some examples are apples, berries, pudding---home made of course! That last piece of pie or crisp, crumbled up inside, chocolate chips, nuts, dried fruit and coconut, homemade cookies with chocolate, granola----served with drizzled chocolate, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, syrup, yogurt, sweetened sour cream, or cream poured over top ---whatever you like and have on hand. Be creative and enjoy  "...the incredible, edible egg." 

Kathi~

This is the Nightstand 
...that was re-purposed to hold my spices,
which was put in the empty oven hole,
 because there was no oven.
But now there IS an oven,
so the spices are moved to the new shelves,
and the nightstand sits under the table,
 holding tea towels, crocks and bibs,
among the baskets, jugs and more crocks.
.

Welcome to My Pantry.......ideas on storage and re-purposing


Top shelf: I have arranged things closest to where they are used. Here are spices in an industrial metal tray from Goodwill and serving pieces (espresso cups) I bought used. A magnetic spice bag holder (re-purposed office mail holder) on refrigerator wall behind shelves holding packets of stevia and bagged spices from our natural food store..

 Top shelf: baking items and custard cups because they are closest to my baking area. Plastic shakers filled  flour for dusting, cinnamon sugar and cocoa powder sugar (made with organic cane sugar).

Second shelf: oils, vinegars in a re-purposed wood crate so they don't tip over, staples in antique canisters         inherited from my husband's parents and glass jars we bought containing other food, canning jars with tart pans for lids, rice cooker. Small crockpot on counter next to shelves.

Third shelf: canned goods, some kitchen-emergency foods, jars, small recycling container.
Bottom shelf: large vinegars for household use, soup pot, bread maker, wines made by a
friend, empty jugs. Cloth bag of donations to the needy on floor next to shelving.

This is my pantry. Or, technically since it is not a room, these are my pantry shelves. When I  figure out where I am going to put the rest of my things I will post more pictures. Right now they are covering the tops of our counters and the dining room table.

So, what is a pantry? Okay...I Googled it. "Pantry" is from the Latin root word "panis" meaning bread. In Medieval Latin it became "panataria" which was a room where the servant who had charge over all the food slept. In the 14th century the French borrowed it, changed it to "panterie" denoting simply a bread room. Somehow the servant disappeared with the bread and it came to mean just a room where non-perishable food was stored. I wish the servant hadn't left with the bread, but, oh, well. I am thankful I now have shelves! Someday, I hope to have our originally-planned walk-in pantry with our freezers and other stored items inside.But for now this will do nicely and I am very thankful.

The shelves do not hold all that we need them to hold and they do take up precious space in our kitchen and due to our poor planning make the total use of one cabinet and one drawer difficult since they won't open all the way. Things can still be gotten to but with a little bit of agility and contortion.

Today I am working again on the reorganization of the kitchen, trying to figure out how I might re-purpose some free-standing small shelves and an old nightstand that were used in the kitchen before we got the shelving unit. This will be temporary and no longer needed once my husband has time to build a small island with shelves and we can afford a range top to replace the still-present old stove.

Re-purposing requires me to imagine the piece I am working on backwards, sideways, on its side or up-side-down or cut up and more than likely in a different color. I love doing this but with such a small kitchen this is a BIG challenge. I may end up putting the items in a different room or relegating them to my husband who always can use more storage in our basement-turned-garage. What I am striving for right now is simply reasonable-looking order so that it is easier to work in my kitchen again.

Right now I am working on a  white back-less bookcase previously used for canned goods, a soup pot and small appliances. I imagine it spray-painted black to match other items in my gold, red and black kitchen. I will put it on it's side on the counter top which is now too crowded with cereals---oatmeal, granola, my 7qt black crockpot and some other things. I will put the crockpot on top with a set of knives so they are out-of-reach for little grandchildren-hands. The jars of staples should fit nicely on the counter next to the bookcase. And I will put muffin tins, cookie sheets and other metal baking items in the cubicles.

Not sure about the repainted, re-purposed (yellow-gold) nightstand that held our spices in the oven-hole. It was one of two white particle board nightstands that were thrown in free when we got our youngest daughter's bedroom set which is made of nicer stuff. It was white with painted ugly metallic gold around the edges to try to match  the white bedroom set. I  took off the metallic gold drawer pull and painted the whole stand a yellowy gold, screwed a bright red wooden chili pepper that I found at Goodwill onto it instead of the ugly pull and used the whole thing for spices in the oven hole. My husband then installed a painted-to-match shelf to the top of that adding more room to store staples in our oven hole. I don't know if I will find a use for the nightstand-turned-spice storage unit.. I am hoping something comes to me while I am working on the above. The other ugly nightstand was put in one of the upstairs bathrooms. I spray-painted it white, replaced the pull with a metal (silver) decorative leaf  pull that I also found at the second-hand store. The drawer holds shampoos and the shelf holds rolled white towels.

My husband just came in for a minute before he and our son-in-law head out to work on a project and he had ideas for the nightstand unit. Wow, nice!

I hope this gives you some ideas regarding how to reorganize and re-purpose items you have. Doing the best with what you've got is so much fun!

More pictures will follow! 

Kathi~

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