There's Nothing like a Meat Cheese Omelet
A favourite tv chef of mine once said that every good chef should have a few cherished recipes that they commit to memory. I thought that I might betray my secret oath and tell you about one of mine. It's super simple, with only four ingredients, and with some subtle changes, makes two of my all time favourite dishes.
I figure I'll start off with the basic recipe:
2 cups flour
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup water
pinch salt
Combine and whisk thouroughly (we want some gluten here) and then let sit for a least an hour. Overnight is better.
What is it? Well, it's the start of what is probably my all time favourite Swiss dish: Swiss omelets. A far cry from the heavy, over burdened monsters of the American diner, these omelets are more akin to a french crepe, although they are a little thicker and always unsweetened. Made like a crepe, they're filled with slices of Lioner (pronounced like the French city, not the king cat) sausage (or more authethenically, fleischkase, or "meat cheese") or jam. The sausage is my favourite (surprise, surprise...).
Cooking them couldn't be easier. Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat and when hot, lightly oil the pan, wiping away some of the excess with a paper towel (you could also use butter here if you don't mind the extra calories and saturated fat, and appreciate the improved flavour that butter brings to the party). Pour in slightly less than one ladle-full of batter and tilt the pan back and forth to insure the omelet is distributed over the pan and even. Cook until the upper side of the omelet is matte and the bottom is beginning to brown. Flip. While quickly cooking the second side lay three piece of sausage along the centreline of the omelet. Once the second side has developed a few brown spots, roll the omelet in thirds, by first folding one third over onto the sausage and then folding the sausage filled part onto the remaining third (believe me, this is the easiest, I tried them all...). Keep the omelets warm in the oven until the rest are made. Delicious.
I usually make a single batch for myself (hey, my uncle can eat like 15!), but for normal people, you should be easily able to feed two.
You should feel privileged. This recipe took me a few years to prefect, and I'm anxiously awaiting my opportunity to demonstrate my omelet prowess to my three chef uncles in Switzerland. One quick hint: sometimes the stores sell "veal lioner" in addition to the plain stuff. Don't buy this; I find that it has a weird aftertaste.
I feel that I must warn you. Not everyone likes the deli-meat filled omelet (I know Jenn doesn't, more for me...). In that case, you can fill them with jam. Any type of jam will do, so choose your favourite. I like strawberry. Just put a little bit in place of the sausage. Be a little more careful when flipping as warm jam gets a little runny.
Now, for those of you that think this Swiss omlete stuff might be just a little too much, there is a really simple modification to make to this recipe that brings it back to breakfast (or dinner if you're me), something that I affectionately called "rubber pancakes" as a child. They're a sweetened version of the above omelet, and they're my favourite type of "pancake", although again, they're more like a thick crepe.
Prepare the batter as above adding approximately 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. You can play around with these amounts to your taste. I don't like the pancake super sweet as I usually douse them with maple syrup. Cook as above, although this time I highly recommend the butter and there's no need to wipe out excess. Yum. Keep warm in the oven as before and then devour. Usually half a batch feeds me well. I'm not sure why, but I can eat a lot less of these.
So there you have it. With this simple recipe, I can easily feed myself three to four days a week. I would, too, if Jenn didn't insist on "vegetables"...
There is one more hint that I should pass along. As with crepes, the heat management of the pan along with the exact amount of batter added to the pan is fairly important, and you might find that your first try or two every batch is a little off. Either throw it out and keep going (the pan is usually better on the second try) or "dispose" of it, like I do (use your imagination....chomp chomp....).
For those of you that know me well, you know that I'm a sucker for pancakes. The problem is that I'm very particular with my pancakes. I need a recipe that is super easy as pancakes are usually my default meal when I don't really feel like cooking, and my comfort food when I've had a crappy day. The pancakes above are probably my favourite, but I do, now and then, appreciate the textural differences to be found in a standard pancake. The problem is, I haven't really found the prefect recipe. I have one that taste great but are so soft, they disintegrate at the mere mention of syrup. I also have ones that are tasty and texturally well-meaning, but they take so long to prepare, I never make them. I would like to ask my humble audience to give me their favourite pancake recipe. I'll try it, and I promise not to mention them if I really hated them, although I might privately give you some constructive advice. Also, I'd love to hear back about the recipe you'll always carry around in your head. They're usually super simple and super tasty. Chili? Soup? Bathtub Gin? I'll try them all.
So, for another week at the keyboard, I think I've sufficiently educated the masses. Time to flip.
Don't Eat Bad Food.
I figure I'll start off with the basic recipe:
2 cups flour
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup water
pinch salt
Combine and whisk thouroughly (we want some gluten here) and then let sit for a least an hour. Overnight is better.
What is it? Well, it's the start of what is probably my all time favourite Swiss dish: Swiss omelets. A far cry from the heavy, over burdened monsters of the American diner, these omelets are more akin to a french crepe, although they are a little thicker and always unsweetened. Made like a crepe, they're filled with slices of Lioner (pronounced like the French city, not the king cat) sausage (or more authethenically, fleischkase, or "meat cheese") or jam. The sausage is my favourite (surprise, surprise...).
Cooking them couldn't be easier. Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat and when hot, lightly oil the pan, wiping away some of the excess with a paper towel (you could also use butter here if you don't mind the extra calories and saturated fat, and appreciate the improved flavour that butter brings to the party). Pour in slightly less than one ladle-full of batter and tilt the pan back and forth to insure the omelet is distributed over the pan and even. Cook until the upper side of the omelet is matte and the bottom is beginning to brown. Flip. While quickly cooking the second side lay three piece of sausage along the centreline of the omelet. Once the second side has developed a few brown spots, roll the omelet in thirds, by first folding one third over onto the sausage and then folding the sausage filled part onto the remaining third (believe me, this is the easiest, I tried them all...). Keep the omelets warm in the oven until the rest are made. Delicious.
I usually make a single batch for myself (hey, my uncle can eat like 15!), but for normal people, you should be easily able to feed two.
You should feel privileged. This recipe took me a few years to prefect, and I'm anxiously awaiting my opportunity to demonstrate my omelet prowess to my three chef uncles in Switzerland. One quick hint: sometimes the stores sell "veal lioner" in addition to the plain stuff. Don't buy this; I find that it has a weird aftertaste.
I feel that I must warn you. Not everyone likes the deli-meat filled omelet (I know Jenn doesn't, more for me...). In that case, you can fill them with jam. Any type of jam will do, so choose your favourite. I like strawberry. Just put a little bit in place of the sausage. Be a little more careful when flipping as warm jam gets a little runny.
Now, for those of you that think this Swiss omlete stuff might be just a little too much, there is a really simple modification to make to this recipe that brings it back to breakfast (or dinner if you're me), something that I affectionately called "rubber pancakes" as a child. They're a sweetened version of the above omelet, and they're my favourite type of "pancake", although again, they're more like a thick crepe.
Prepare the batter as above adding approximately 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. You can play around with these amounts to your taste. I don't like the pancake super sweet as I usually douse them with maple syrup. Cook as above, although this time I highly recommend the butter and there's no need to wipe out excess. Yum. Keep warm in the oven as before and then devour. Usually half a batch feeds me well. I'm not sure why, but I can eat a lot less of these.
So there you have it. With this simple recipe, I can easily feed myself three to four days a week. I would, too, if Jenn didn't insist on "vegetables"...
There is one more hint that I should pass along. As with crepes, the heat management of the pan along with the exact amount of batter added to the pan is fairly important, and you might find that your first try or two every batch is a little off. Either throw it out and keep going (the pan is usually better on the second try) or "dispose" of it, like I do (use your imagination....chomp chomp....).
For those of you that know me well, you know that I'm a sucker for pancakes. The problem is that I'm very particular with my pancakes. I need a recipe that is super easy as pancakes are usually my default meal when I don't really feel like cooking, and my comfort food when I've had a crappy day. The pancakes above are probably my favourite, but I do, now and then, appreciate the textural differences to be found in a standard pancake. The problem is, I haven't really found the prefect recipe. I have one that taste great but are so soft, they disintegrate at the mere mention of syrup. I also have ones that are tasty and texturally well-meaning, but they take so long to prepare, I never make them. I would like to ask my humble audience to give me their favourite pancake recipe. I'll try it, and I promise not to mention them if I really hated them, although I might privately give you some constructive advice. Also, I'd love to hear back about the recipe you'll always carry around in your head. They're usually super simple and super tasty. Chili? Soup? Bathtub Gin? I'll try them all.
So, for another week at the keyboard, I think I've sufficiently educated the masses. Time to flip.
Don't Eat Bad Food.
Your great grandma would be proud. She is the one who made Omelletten for us five kids all the time. This was her recepie. She had to use 1Kg of flour to make enough for all of us. Most of them went to your uncle. But all of us could eat up to five at one sitting with a green salad as that required veggie.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mom!
ReplyDelete