Cheese Omelet - nice and simple Monday February 18th 2013

Sometimes you just want something really quick and simple, not complicated, not fancy, just getting something tasty on the plate.

I have also been trying hard to finish up lots of bits and pieces in the fridge. I ALWAYS buy too much, so spend the main part of the week thinking of ways to eat stuff up. At the moment, I have too much cheese. I mean like FAR too much cheese. I tried a tartiflette before to try to reduce the cheese mountain and this really didn't go down well with OH or me. I don't like rich it would seem these days.

But I haven't had a cheese omelette for ages! and I have just bought a spanking new omelette pan, so there we are...

I like the cheese grated into the omelette rather than just sitting in a melty sticky wodge inside, it toasts slightly on the outside of the omelette and gives a lovely flavour. And I like to make individual omelettes rather than one big one, so I plate up the salad (just tomatoes and cucumber which was what was in the fridge....) and then serve each omelette as they are done, rather like pancakes on Pancake Day.

For each omelette I use 3 eggs, lightly beaten, a splash of water, salt pepper and a nice handful of grated cheese. Cheddar this time, but honestly, whatever you have hanging around will do fine. Soft cheeses I would cube rather then try to grate, but I would still add them to the eggs in the beginning.

A nice hot pan, a good teaspoonful of unsalted butter, swirl it round, and tip your eggs in. Keep the heat up high, and leave the eggs alone for a second or two until you see the edge just start to stiffen. Then take your fork, and pull the eggs from the outside to the middle, giving the pan a shake to spread the unbeaten egg about. Keep doing that until you have no obviously liquid egg left.  If you are making a filled omelette or like more cheese in the middle, now is the time to add your extras - fried mushrooms, chopped and fried peppers and onions, bits of bacon - these are all things I like.  But today we are staying with virgin cheese..

Now flip one third into the middle. turn that to the other edge, so you have a little bolster in the pan. The underside should be nice and golden and full of ridges.  Flip that on to your plate and there you have it.. a perfect cheese omelette. Takes about 3 or 4 minutes to cook, don't try to do it in under 30 seconds like Saturday Kitchen......