CREAM CHEESE & CHIVE OMELET
The first bite of creamy filling lets you know this isn’t any ordinary omelet. If you make it once, I suspect you’ll be fixing it often.
—Anne Troise, Manalapan, NJ
Start to Finish: 15 min. • Makes: 2 servings
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons minced chives
2 tablespoons water
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 ounces cream cheese, cubed
Salsa
1. In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Whisk the eggs, chives, water, salt and pepper. Add egg mixture to skillet (mixture should set immediately at edges).
2. As eggs set, push cooked edges toward the center, letting uncooked portion flow underneath. When the eggs are set, sprinkle cream cheese on one side; fold other side over filling. Slide omelet onto a plate; cut in half. Serve with salsa.
HOW TO CRACK AN EGG ON THE COUNTERTOP
• Imagine the egg is standing upright. The middle or equator of the egg, where it might wear a belt, is its weakest point. Target this area when cracking. Gently but firmly grasp the egg. Rap it against the countertop so its equator lands squarely against the surface. Be calm and confident. It’s better to give it one sharp tap than several gentle, tentative ones. Cracking an egg too hard can crush the shell, making it nearly inevitable you’ll wind up with tiny shell fragments. Not fun.
• Once the shell breaks, work the opening to release the egg. Use your thumbs to press slightly inward and separate the shell, then pour the contents of the shell into a bowl.
WHY NOT CRACK EGGS ON THE RIM OF A BOWL?
Most of us instinctively crack eggs on the rim of a bowl. However, this method increases the risk of shell fragments falling in. It makes sense: If you crack an egg right over the bowl and the shell shatters—as they sometimes do—the pieces will fall in. Cracking eggs on a flat surface, such as a countertop, keeps the membrane intact and helps hold the small shell pieces in place while the egg falls into the bowl.
TEST KITCHEN TIP
Did you drop eggshell into your mixture by accident? Fish out the fragments with one of the shell halves instead of your finger—shell tends to stick to shell.