"Joy of Cooking" Cooking School - Firm Omelet pg 201

One of the things I'd like to devote more time to is learning from and cooking from my cookbook collection. I have quite a few, and within that collection I have some that I'd consider to be "good" cookbooks that every cook should have.

One of those books is Joy of Cooking. It's huge and intimidating and has no pictures. I received this book as a wedding gift from my husband's assistant. I have never cooked from it. We were married over three years ago. I'm trying to right that wrong now, so I asked from friends if they had any suggestions on recipes from Joy of Cooking that I might try.

Turns out, this book is more suited to be used as a reference, or guide, in the kitchen. There are apparently great recipes in the book, however, I learned that more people tend to use this book as a learning tool rather than a recipe book.

I pondered about my cooking style. I like to make things up. I like to try new things. I'd also say I am better at eating food than I am at cooking it. Don't get me wrong, I love to cook. I am an okay cook, though my husband tells people I'm a good cook (maybe just for brownie points?).

I decided I need to learn how to cook BETTER. I learned to cook by watching my dad, and he's a fantastic cook. He taught me a lot of little things, but I never really practiced and became a pro. I can make scrambled eggs pretty well, but I have never mastered the omelet.

That's where Joy of Cooking comes in. Starting on page 200, there is a section devoted to omelets. I learned from reading the little introduction part that a French omelet is rolled or folded and a little more delicate, and a firm omelet is easier for a beginner. I chose the firm omelet, and here's what I did:

First, I gathered all of my ingredients. 2 eggs, 2 Tbsp of heavy cream, 1 Tbsp of butter (1.5 Tbsp is shown), 1/4 tsp of salt, just a little paprika, and the stuff for my filling - chopped mushrooms, scallions, and tomatoes.



Melt 1/4 Tbsp of butter in a pan. When it's hot and melted, add your filling ingredients. I only cooked the scallion and mushrooms, and left the tomatoes as they were. Set aside for now.



Next, beat the eggs in a bowl until well blended. Add the cream, salt, and paprika and beat in.





After that, melt 3/4 Tbsp of butter in a pan and when that's all hot and melted, add the egg mixture. Cook over low heat.





When you see the edges of the egg start to look more cooked, or set, lift them with a spatula and tilt the pan so the uncooked egg on the top can slide under the cooked portion. I had to do this a few times just to get the stuff on the top to get cooked through.



When it's all done, slide it on to a plate, add your filling, and then fold it over.



As you can see, I have some more practicing to do on the firm omelet before I can move on to the French omelet. I need to play around with the flame on my stove to get the right temperature. I'm sure I was cooking with it too high and that's what caused my egg to brown so much.

It did taste good though, so I'm not too disappointed. On my next try, I may use skim milk instead of heavy cream however. Gotta watch those calories ;)