Double Take: Ham-and-Cheese Omelets

I picked out this recipe for one simple reason: I wanted something other than bacon and eggs for breakfast on Saturday mornings. Apparently, I was more than willing to replace bacon and eggs with ham and eggs.

I went to gather the ingredients. After looking through the list, I knew locating havarti cheese might be problematic. That is one is difficult to find around here, and I’ve never seen it in block form. However, we do have butter cheese here and the cookbook described havarti as buttery, so I decided that would be a simple sub. But when I got to the store, I actually found havarti. I was so excited to find it that I didn’t look at the package closely or check the expiration date. Oops.

I set out my ingredients the next morning. Our plans for canoeing that day had been cancelled because the river was so high, so we opted to go visit the castles we would have looked at from the river instead. It was raining when we got moving that morning, so it looked like we wouldn’t even get to go hiking either. I gathered my ingredients that morning and decided first things first: grate the cheese. The swiss grated, I turned to the havarti. I opened the package and was hit with a foul smell. I closely inspected the cheese: it was slimy. Into the trash went the havarti. Swiss only it was.

Gently simmering eggs.

Ham-and-Cheese Omelets

adapted from the all-new Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook, original recipe also available here.

6 large eggs

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

2 tsp butter

1 cup chopped ham

1 cup grated swiss

Heat a heavy nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add the ham and sauté until browned on all sides. Remove from pan and set aside.

Whisk together first four ingredients. Melt half of the butter in the skillet, rotating pan to distribute the butter evenly. Add half of the egg mixture to the skillet and cook. When the egg is almost set, add half of the ham and cheese to one half of the omelet. When the cheese is melted and the eggs are cooked to your desired doneness, slide the omelet onto a plate, flipping the pan up to fold it over once half of your omelet is on the plate.

Repeat process with remaining butter, eggs, and filling.

Serve immediately. 

Yummy ham with a bit too much swiss.

THOUGHTS:

Don't make a swiss only omelet. I think this omelet would be greatly improved with the addition of havarti to cut the swiss. Hubby ate less than half of his before he was full. I thought he was a wimp until I sat down to eat my omelet and wasn't able to eat more than him. I think two eggs each in the future will be the way to go. Or maybe five for two people. 

VERDICT:

Wow-that-was-a-lot-of-food-and-I'd-rather-have-my-eggs-scrambled-than-in-omelet-form: 1 vote

Wow-that-was-a-lot-of-food-and-I'll-add-mushrooms-and-havarti-next-time: 1 vote

For Tabitha's take on Ham-and-Cheese Omelets, head on over to Double the Garlic! 

That's a big omelet! (And yes, I realize I probably overcooked it too)