I like to cook (a lot). I'm kind of ridiculous at it.. I follow recipes.. kind of.. and more often then not though, I just fake it. I like spices, I like flavorful things! It's weird to me when I go to other people's homes and they don't have some spices.. Come on, people! Your mouth is missing out! A lot of the time I make up recipes as I go, and I was pretty excited about the one I made up this morning, so I thought I'd (try to) share it. This is going to be kind of free form.. so, go with your imagination!
This summer I've been buying "produce baskets" at a local grocery store. It's FINALLY some nice, cheap, fresh produce and most of the stuff comes from around Auburn or at least the state. (And sometimes they'll slip in extras from elsewhere like bananas lol). For $25 bucks I get an awesome basket of produce that gets me through the week. So this summer I've really only been eating fruit and vegetables and I seem to never eat the exact same thing twice (not counting leftovers and late dinners after thesis writing) and I've been trying tons of new recipes (and making up my own).
I had some red potatoes that I needed to use and I'm tired of eating roasted things so I wanted to try my hand at a Spanish Omelette. I hated most of the recipes I saw and just decided to kind of try my own thing.
When I first imagined a Spanish omelette, I was thinking about the (kind of) crispy fried potatoes my mom used to make when I was kid and I thought.. Yum, an awesome omelette, with kind of crispy potatoes, and boat loads of onion - I'm in!
A real Spanish omelette was not meant to be.
Basically, When it came to flipping it over to cook the top... I freaked and instead just went and scrambled it all together. I don't have a "final" picture of the scrambled mess.. But I'll say this.. it was good! I was pleasantly surprised. I will say, the next time I make it, I'd add some more veggies.. maybe some red and green pepper? a bit of shredded carrot or zucchini? (Like I said, use your imagination!)
So, finally the recipe:
You need:
3 tablespoons of olive oil (or butter. Whichever flavor you prefer)
2-3 red potatoes (if they're on the small side use 3)
1/2 an onion (I used vidalia, but any white or yellow onion would do)
4 eggs
pepper
salt
herbs (I personally used a dash of Thyme and a dash of dill, but use whatever you'd like. Fresh is always delicious, but dried is fine. Parsley might be nice too, or chives)
1/2 to 1 cup of cheese (I personally used a mix of cheddar and pepper jack. And you can really just use however much cheese you like.) (Cabot's is the BEST and it's lactose free!)
extra veggies (I'd say a half cup. Personally, I think some red and/or green pepper would be delish! Some julienned zucchini might be good too, or maybe some shredded carrot.)
First, heat your oil in a deep skillet (make sure it's oven proof if you decide to broil your omelette at the end!) at medium heat.
Slice your potatoes into thin slices (1/8in I'd say). (I personally cut the potatoes in half and then thinly sliced them.) You CAN peel your potatoes if you'd like, I used Red, but Yukon Golds would also be fine. I didn't peel mine because the bulk of the "good stuff" (vitamins and such) that potatoes hold are housed in their skin. Getting rid of the skin takes that away, so I typically leave it on and since red's and gold's have such thin skins you don't really notice it.
Next slice your onions. "julienned" junks are good (see my picture for an idea).
(Please note that if you make this you won't have as much onion.. I LOVE onions and used a whole one.. if you also love onions, I suggest using a whole!)
Then drop the potatoes and onions into the skillet with a bit of salt and pepper (might I suggest using some seasoning salt in place of regular) and cook them, stirring occasionally for about 15 minutes. You'll know they're ready when you can easily break a potato apart with your stirring apparatus.
While the potatoes are cooking break your eggs into a separate bowl and whisk until a little frothy. Add your cheese (freshly grated is always best) and your herbs, add a bit of pepper (however much you like) and whisk to incorporate the cheese and herbs into the eggs.
Once your potatoes are done pour the egg mixture over the potatoes and onion (if there seems to be a lot of extra oil in the pan you may want to drain a bit off). Make sure you spread the egg mixture over the potatoes so they'll be incorporated together fairly well.
Don't be alarmed by that bright yellow color.. it's just the way my oven light hit the eggs. No crazy processed stuff here ;)
As it cooks, press the eggs down on the side to help form your omelette. Once the bottom is set and the top is still a little runny. - This is where I got scared... I "flipped" personally and just scrambled it from here and just made sure the eggs were done. What you should do is try and actually flip your omelette. When the bottom is set, and the top is still a little runny you'll want to grab a plate (a large plate, that covers your whole skillet) and over the sink, flip your omelette on to it, and then slide it back into the pan. (The runny side should be facing down now) and let it finish cooking. A lot of people mentioned putting it under the broiler at this point so the top won't get cold.. your pan will be warm enough to finish the bottom and the top will be kept warm. For this, you'll want to put your oven on broil and slide the whole pan in (MAKE SURE YOUR PAN IS OVER PROOF!) and leave it about 5 minutes.. but make sure you're checking it constantly!!Let me know if you tried it! I personally loved it scrambled, I ate it for breakfast and lunch and still have leftovers. I put a little salsa with it and it was yummy. But you could add anything to your plate.. maybe some hot sauce, sour cream, red pepper flakes, jalapeños? Again, it's whatever you feel. Flip it if you want, or scramble it, whatever! Just let me know if you liked it :)And, if you'd like a legit Spanish Omelette recipe try here: http://www.cookuk.co.uk/eggs/spanish-omelette-recipe.htm
