Would You Make Breakfast? Egg & Egg White Omelet Filled with Cottage Cheese on Whole Wheat Toast

 Tired of the same old, same old breakfast?  This little omelet (I cut it so you could see the filling...) sitting on a piece of whole wheat toast is so fast and so luscious.  Not only is it quick and nutritious (made with one egg and one egg white), it'll hold you until early afternoon.  No elevenses (tea and cookies in the UK) needed.   Serve it up with a few slices of great August tomatoes for breakfast, lunch, or dinner!   Try this:

Veggie Pizza without the Pizza

Vegetables are maybe the thing about which most people are picky. Good pun, huh?  And if you're wondering why, it's because each little green or orange or yellow thing on the plate recalls some horror of a kitchen table nightmare ("My mother forced me to eat green beans at Thanksgiving.) or a tasteless memory of "the only vegetable my father cooked my whole life and he cooked it to death."  Thank God we've all grown up and gotten over all those things, right?  Oh.

But don't think you must choose between broccoli, green beans, and squash simply because you're the only one at the stove.  Choose several.  Cook them all together.  You then needn't worry about spoilage and you have a lip-smacking side (or main) to boot.  To boot now has a different meaning, doesn't it?

This particular melange of veg tastes, to me, like veggie pizza without the crust.  You can add a few shreds of mozzerella or shards of Parmesan if you like, but it doesn't need it.  And, as always in my house (and maybe yours), leftover this makes an omelet filling about which you've always dreamed:

I added a few leaves of spinach.

Vegetable Sauté (that tastes like Veggie Pizza)

• 1T olive oil

  • 1/2 tsp Herbes de Provence*

    • 1/4 t ea kosher salt and ground mixed peppercorns

• 2 small zucchini, sliced

• 8 oz sliced button mushrooms

• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced

• 1/2 small onion, sliced as thinly as possible

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced

• Pinch of crushed red pepper

• 8 cherry tomatoes, cut in half

• 2T chopped fresh parsley

• 2T minced, pitted kalamata olives

  • Optional:  2T grated mozzerella or Parmesan cheese

*can sub a mix of dried basil, oregano, crushed rosemary, etc

1.  In a medium-large skillet, heat the oil, salt and pepper and herbes de Provence over medium-high heat for a minute or so.
2.  Add zucchini, mushrooms, bell pepper, and onion.   Cook, stirring for 3-4 minutes; add garlic and cook another 1-2 minutes until vegetables are all softened.  Dust with crushed red pepper.
3.  Stir in cut cherry tomatoes.
4.  Plate and garnish with parsley, olives,  and cheese if you choose.  

Serves 1 as a main dish or 2 as a side dish

Have fun cooking and taking care of yourself,
Alyce

An Omelet and a Glass of Wine

..is a fine book by famed writer, Elizabeth David.  I wish I'd coined the phrase, but, alas, I just eat the meal regularly.  Add sauteed spinach, a piece of whole-grain toast (I often skip this or have half) and you have a meal.  (Photos below.) This particular omelet is a cheese one, but you can make whatever kind of omelet you like.  I'll give some tips about that at the bottom under "Solo Cook's Notes."  If you'd like to see another, more classic omelet prep, watch this Julia Child video et voila!

Or watch Jacques Pepin make an omelet here.   Choose your method!

A great Judith Jones omelet post, with lots of pics from her kitchen, is here.

No, I'm not pedaling books, but I've read Elizabeth David (and others-- Jacques Pepin or MFK Fisher for example) for years.   If you like yummy prose as well as yummy food, try books by  these writers who knew from words and knew from food. 

My Little Omelet Info and Primer:
Omelets are  notorious for using up leftovers...that bit of broccoli left from last night, that last tablespoon of chopped onion or green pepper, that bit of hard cheese you didn't wrap well.  Here are a few tips:

• Best quality cage-free eggs.  (or from a local farmer)
• Don't overbeat your eggs.  30 whips with a big whisk is plenty for two eggs. 
• Buy a heavy-duty, 8", nonstick pan (or stainless steel if you like that) and you'll have it for a long time.  I like Scanpan for more expensive pans and Pampered Chef for a good cheapie. 
• Don't be afraid to crank that heat up a little to really get the butter really hot.  But don't dare walk away either.  Turn off your cell phone.
• You must have everything you need ready before you heat the pan, because after that, your eyes and your hands must attend the omelet.  Set table and get your drink first.
• Do not make an omelet without butter unless you are allergic to it, are vegan or have a health problem that requires you to use oil.  Omelets are made with butter period. 
• As the eggs begin to cook, gently stir them to allow uncooked eggs into the bottom of the hot pan.
• If you want to cook more than one omelet, heat the oven to 200 and let one omelet rest there while you cook the other.   Move on to a frittata if you have several people.
• Be brave, cook your omelet and enjoy it!  However it turns out, you'll eat it and be glad. 
• Note: For South Beach Option, skip toast

Omelets are great for solo cooks.