Country Omelet | Warm Hearty Breakfast to Jumpstart the Day

I don’t have a list of 2018 resolutions. But I can single out one priority I want to do more often: get a warm hearty breakfast to jumpstart the day, especially in the winter season. A hearty breakfast for me means eggs and potatoes. I adapted Ina Garten’s country French omelet. Made it less French, and more of a kitchen-sink approach.

To add some meaty flavor, Ina uses bacon. To make it easy so that there is no excuse not making the omelet in the morning, substituting cooked or cured meats we have around in the fridge sounds reasonable. Let see, the leftover ham or turkey from the holiday feast would be wonderful. I made a large provision of caramelized onion the other day; that went into this omelet too.

To streamline this recipe, the use of cooked or cured meat like chorizo is a big plus. In the early morning, every minute counts. First, potatoes are parboiled, or pan fried, like the way Ina does in the recipe. That way, all the ingredients would be cooked thoroughly at the same time as the eggs are setting. Generally, most omelets are cooked on the stove, this recipe follows a two-step process. The egg mixture is poured onto the omelet pan at low heat on the stove. The fried potatoes and the cooked bacon, or chorizo, are sprinkled over the eggs. Then the whole pan is placed in a 350°F oven to finish cooking for another 8 minutes.

To lighten the egg mixture somewhat, I used eggs whites in addition to whole eggs. This also fulfills this week challenge at IHCC. The egg whites are leftovers from the holidays baking.

The low-and-slow finishing bake in the oven is a calming morning ritual. It gives you just enough time to get dressed, to make a cup of coffee and to get ready for the most important meal of the day.

Print Recipe

Country Omelet

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon good olive oil
• 3 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces, or chorizo
• 1 cup (1-inch-diced) unpeeled Yukon Gold potatoes or new potatoes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 5 extra-large eggs
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon fresh chopped chives or parsley

Instructions

1

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2

Heat the olive oil in a 10-inch ovenproof omelet pan over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook for 3 to 5 minutes over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is browned but not crisp. Take the bacon out of the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside on a plate.

3

Place the potatoes in the pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Continue to cook over medium-low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until very tender and browned, tossing occasionally to brown evenly. Remove with a slotted spoon to the same plate with the bacon.

4

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, beat the eggs, milk, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper together with a fork. After the potatoes are removed, pour the fat out of the pan and discard. Add the butter, lower the heat to low, and pour the eggs into the hot pan. Sprinkle the bacon, potatoes, and chives evenly over the top and place the pan in the oven for about 8 minutes, just until the eggs are set. Slide onto a plate, divide in half, and serve hot.

Notes

Adapted from Barefoot Contessa website