An Egg-cellent Idea

A few weeks ago, leading up to my family’s annual get-together weekend, my aunt suggested a clever breakfast idea for Saturday brunch: Omelette in a Bag! While I admit it sounded a little odd at first, it turned out to be a fun, crowd-pleasing alternative to the usual humdrum scrambled eggs-for-a-crowd that we’ve grown accustomed to serving (which quickly end up a cold, goopy mess in a metal pan).

Omelette in a Bag is achieved in just a few simple steps:

1. Dice an assortment of omelette fillings — we used onion, red pepper, tomato, mushrooms, cooked ham and grated cheddar — and place each in a small bowl. Stick a spoon in each bowl and line the bowls up near your omelette station. You can also have seasonings on hand: salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, etc. Whatever floats your boat.

Ladies chopping...

Ladies chopping...

2. Guests then write their names on medium-size ziploc freezer bags in pen or permanent marker and head for the omelette fillings line, where they scoop their favourite ingredients into their bag, creating their own personalized omelette.
3. At this point, you may want to designate an official egg breaker, someone who will crack two eggs into each person’s bag, as this is a little tricky to do while holding your own bag.
4. Once the eggs have been added to the bag, zip it closed, squeezing out as much air as possible, and start squishing! Mix the eggs and fillings together well.
Squishing our eggs

Squishing our eggs

5. Next, drop the bags into a large pot of boiling water (a stockpot works well), taking care not to overload the pot, as this will slow down cooking time. Boil for 10-12 minutes.

6. Remove the bags with tongs, calling out the names of the lucky eaters to come and claim their designer omelettes. Unzip the bag; the omelette will slide easily onto your plate. Enjoy!

A good time was had by all! This worked well for a crowd (we were 25 people) and would be great on a camping trip — no greasy pan to wash! Which brings me to another point: these eggs are extra-healthy. No need for butter or oil during cooking.

While I concede my family is easily amused, waiting to hear my name be called as the cooked omelettes emerged from the pot was great fun! It was like winning a fabulous door prize, only better, cause it was edible. This is one recipe that is bound to become tradition in my family. I hope yours enjoys it as much as we did — and has as much fun!

Ready for the pot

Left: Eggs, before fillings; right: Ready for the pot

Attempting Risotto

Risotto is one of those exotic dishes that I’ve always thoroughly enjoyed in a restaurant, but never dreamed of attempting at home, that is, until I met My Significant Other (henceforth known as MSO). After wolfing down a particularly delicious bowl of the creamy goodness at a local Italian resto, he turned to me and asked, “Why don’t we make this at home?”

 

Hmmm…good question. Why don’t we? I couldn’t think of any good reason not to, so a few weeks later, armed with the requisite Arborio rice and a yummy-sounding recipe, we invited a few friends over for dinner and decided to give it a shot.

 

The verdict: Our Gourmet Mushroom Risotto was perfectly scrumptious! Yes, it was a lot of work… MSO stood at the stove patiently stirring the rice for a good 30 minutes straight while I added first the white wine and then the chicken broth in ½-cup increments till completely absorbed. We finished it off with sauteed button and Portobello mushrooms, parmesan cheese and a big chunk of butter and served it alongside steamed asparagus and pan-seared veal with a white wine and mushroom cream sauce. Our guests devoured it and we’re looking forward to trying a new version of this divine dish very soon.

 

We did make a few adjustments, based on user reviews on the web site. We used about half the amount of mushrooms, and a finely chopped medium-sized white onion instead of the shallots (as I can never seem to find shallots). Also, go light on the salt, as the Parmesan cheese is quite salty all on its own.

 

Don’t be intimidated! Give it a try. You’ll be impressed with the results; we certainly were.