Chapter 41
6 eggs 3/4 c. milk 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 2 Tb. b.u.t.ter
Beat the eggs slightly, and to them add the milk and seasonings. Melt the b.u.t.ter in a frying pan and, when the b.u.t.ter is hot, pour the egg mixture into it. As the eggs begin to thicken, stir them up from the bottom of the pan and continue to stir them until the entire ma.s.s has thickened slightly. Before the eggs are entirely cooked, remove them from the pan. Bacon and ham fat may be used instead of b.u.t.ter, and they are strongly recommended if they can be secured, for they lend an excellent flavor to scrambled eggs.
55. SCRAMBLED EGGS WITH TOMATO.--The addition of tomato to scrambled eggs lends an unusual flavor as well as a little variety to the dish.
The same conditions apply to the cooking of scrambled eggs with tomato as apply to plain scrambled eggs; namely, that too long cooking ruins them. The onion included in the recipe here given may be omitted from the dish if it is not desirable. The fat to be used may be in the form of b.u.t.ter, although bacon or ham fat may be subst.i.tuted to give an agreeable flavor.
SCRAMBLED EGGS WITH TOMATO (Sufficient to Serve Six)
3 Tb. fat 1 slice onion 1 c. stewed tomatoes 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 6 eggs
Put the fat into a frying pan, and when this grease is hot add the slice of onion and fry it until it is brown. Remove the onion from the fat, and add the stewed tomatoes, salt, and pepper. Then beat the eggs slightly and add them to the hot tomato. Stir the mixture slowly from the bottom of the pan until it is slightly thickened. Remove from the pan and serve hot.
56. SCRAMBLED EGGS ON TOAST.--The addition of cheese to eggs, as in the accompanying recipe, makes a dish that is very high in protein and usually pleasing in flavor. So as not to overcook the eggs in this dish, they should be cooked only slightly in the pan, because they receive additional cooking when the dish is placed in the oven to melt the cheese. Browning the cheese slightly on top makes a very attractive dish, especially when garnished with parsley.
SCRAMBLED EGGS ON TOAST (Sufficient to Serve Six)
6 eggs 3/4 c. milk 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 2 Tb. fat 1/2 c. grated cheese 6 slices of toast
Beat the eggs slightly, and to them add the milk, salt, and pepper. Melt the fat in a frying pan, and when it is hot add the egg mixture. Stir the mixture as it cooks until it has thickened slightly; then pour it over the slices of toast placed in a shallow pan. Sprinkle the grated cheese over the top, and place under a lighted broiler or in a very hot oven until the cheese melts. Remove to a platter garnish with parsley, and serve.
57. SCRAMBLED EGGS WITH HAM.--The accompanying recipe affords an excellent way in which to use up the little sc.r.a.ps of ham that may be cut from the bone when it is impossible to cut enough nice looking pieces to serve as a cold dish. Eggs prepared in this way will be found very tasty and will take the place of a meat dish for luncheon or supper.
SCRAMBLED EGGS WITH HAM (Sufficient to Serve Six)
6 eggs 1 c. milk 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 1 c. chopped cooked ham 2 Tb. fat
Beat the eggs slightly, and to them add the milk, salt, pepper, and ham.
Melt the fat in a frying pan and scramble the mixture as directed in Art. 54 until it is slightly thickened. Remove from the stove and serve at once. If desired, this dish may be served on toast. Other left-over meat, such as roast beef or pork, may be used in place of ham, but such meats do not make so tasty a dish, the flavor of ham in such a combination being more desirable. 58. PLAIN OMELET.--The simplest type of omelet, which is known as plain omelet, does not differ materially from scrambled eggs, except that the whole is collected in a ma.s.s in an omelet shape. No difficulty will be experienced in making such an omelet if the directions in the recipe here given are followed explicitly. To make this dish more attractive, some food of a contrasting color, such as jelly or tomatoes, may be used for garnis.h.i.+ng.
PLAIN OMELET (Sufficient to Serve Six)
6 eggs 6 Tb. water 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 3 Tb. fat
Beat the eggs, and to them add the water, salt, and pepper. Heat the fat in an omelet pan or a small frying pan, and when it is hot add the egg mixture. When the egg on the bottom of the pan has thickened, tip the pan and draw the thickened portion toward the handle with the end of a knife, allowing the uncooked egg to run
[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 13]
59. PUFF OMELET.--Many housewives consider it to be a very difficult thing to make a puff omelet successfully; but such need not be the case if fresh eggs are used and the usual amount of care is taken in its preparation. The whites of the eggs must not be over-beaten, as too much beating will cause the loss of air and will not permit the omelet to become sufficiently light. Another precaution is that the mixture should not be overcooked, for the application of heat after it has been sufficiently cooked will cause it to shrink. How a puff omelet made according to the recipe here given should look, is shown in Fig. 13.
This is a very pleasing dish and never fails to appeal to those persons who are fond of eggs.
PUFF OMELET (Sufficient to Serve Six)
2 Tb. bread crumbs 4 Tb. milk 4 eggs 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 3 Tb. fat
Soak the bread crumbs in the milk. Separate the yolks and whites of the eggs. Beat the egg yolks and add them to the crumbs and milk. Add the salt and pepper. Beat the egg whites until stiff and fold them carefully into the yolk mixture. Heat the fat in an omelet pan or a frying pan, and when it is hot pour the mixture into it. Cook over a very slow fire, being careful not to burn the mixture, until a knife can be slipped under and the whole mixture raised. By this time the top should be quite puffed up. Place the pan in a hot oven, where the omelet should puff still more, and cook until it is no longer raw. With a knife, score across through the center on a straight line with the handle. Then carefully fold the omelet double, roll it out on a hot platter or plate, as shown in Fig. 14, garnish with parsley, and serve at once. If an omelet of this kind stands for any length of time after it is served, it will shrink and be much less appetizing.
[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 14]
60. CHEESE OMELET.--If an additional amount of protein in the form of casein is desired in an omelet, the accompanying recipe for cheese omelet should be tried. The addition of cheese makes this dish even a better meat subst.i.tute than either the plain or the puff omelet.
Likewise, the cheese adds flavor, which may be increased if desired by the addition of more cheese than the recipe calls for. Although this recipe mentions b.u.t.ter, fat other than b.u.t.ter may be used.
CHEESE OMELET (Sufficient to Serve Six)
1/2 c. grated cheese 2 Tb. bread crumbs 4 Tb. milk 4 eggs 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 3 Tb. b.u.t.ter
Mix the grated cheese with the bread crumbs, milk, egg yolks, salt, and pepper. Beat the egg whites until they are stiff and fold them into the other ingredients. To cook the omelet, proceed according to the directions given for making puff omelet in Art. 59.
61. TOMATO OMELET.--The addition of tomatoes to an omelet makes an attractive dish as far as color is concerned, and, at the same time, it gives variety by improving the flavor. Such an omelet is also less concentrated than a plain omelet, for the tomatoes provide bulk and additional water is added. While in a way these lower the food value of the dish, the loss is more than made up by the qualities that are added.
TOMATO OMELET (Sufficient to Serve Six)
6 eggs 1/2 c. milk 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 3 Tb. fat 2 medium-sized ripe tomatoes
Beat the eggs, and to them add the milk, salt, and pepper. Heat the fat in a pan large enough to make the egg mixture 1/2 inch deep when poured into it. Cook slowly until it is well done. Peel and cut the tomatoes into slices 1/3 inch thick. Place the sliced tomatoes on 1/2 of the omelet, sprinkle them with salt and pepper, score the omelet through the center, and fold the other half over the tomatoes. Then slide the omelet on a hot platter, garnish with lettuce or parsley, and serve at once.
62. VARIETY IN OMELETS.--From the recipes given for omelets, it will be noted that this dish may be made plain or may be varied by adding ingredients that provide flavoring or increase the nutritive value. In addition to the suggestions that have been made in these recipes, there is an almost endless number of ways in which omelets may be varied. For instance, left-over bits of any kind of meat, such as a roast, a steak, or chops, from the day before or bits of bacon fried for a previous meal may be chopped fine and utilized for this purpose. Cheese cut fine or grated and mixed with the eggs helps to make a delicious omelet. Bread crumbs, cracker crumbs, rice, riced potatoes, or left-over cereal may be used, as well as mushrooms, chopped or whole, and oysters raw or previously scalloped or fried and then chopped. Bits of fish, such as left-over crab or lobster, will do nicely for increasing variety. Often jelly, jam, and fruit or vegetables are folded inside after the omelet is cooked.
63. STUFFED EGGS.--A highly seasoned cold dish that is delicious for picnics or cold lunches can be made by removing the yolks from hard-cooked eggs, seasoning them, and then stuffing them into the whites, as is explained in the recipe here given. Eggs so prepared also make a desirable high-protein dish for summer weather when meat dishes fail to appeal to the appet.i.te. Wafers or tiny bread-and-b.u.t.ter sandwiches served with stuffed eggs make them more attractive.
STUFFED EGGS (Sufficient to Serve Six)
6 hard-cooked eggs 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 1/8 tsp. paprika 1/2 tsp. mustard 2 Tb. vinegar
Cut the eggs in half, either lengthwise or crosswise. Remove the yolks, mash them, add to them the salt, pepper, paprika, mustard, and vinegar, and mix thoroughly. Fill the egg whites with the yolk mixture. The eggs will be much more appetizing in appearance if the yolk is not packed smoothly back into the white but allowed to stand up roughly. The plate on which the eggs are served should be nicely garnished with lettuce, parsley, or celery leaves.
[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 15]
64. CREAMED EGGS.--If a dish that will serve well for luncheon or a light supper is desired, creamed eggs, as ill.u.s.trated in Fig. 15, will be found very satisfactory, for the cream sauce that is served on them and the toast on which the eggs are placed add carbohydrate to an otherwise high-protein dish. The eggs used in this dish must be hard-cooked in water, so as not to be indigestible. Paprika sprinkled over the top and parsley used as a garnish add colors that make the dish very attractive.
CREAMED EGGS (Sufficient to Serve Six)
1-1/2 c. milk 2 Tb. fat 2 Tb. flour 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. paprika 6 hard-cooked eggs 6 slices of toast
Heat the milk. Put the fat in a saucepan and heat it until it is light brown; then add the flour, salt, and paprika to the melted fat and mix all thoroughly. Pour in the hot milk and stir the mixture constantly until the sauce has become smooth and thick. Cut the hard-cooked eggs into halves while they are hot, and place two halves with the cut sides down on each piece of toast. Pour the white sauce over all, sprinkle with paprika, and serve.
[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 16]
65. Eggs a la Goldenrod.--Closely resembling creamed eggs in composition and food value, but differing from them somewhat in appearance, are eggs a la goldenrod, which are ill.u.s.trated in Fig. 16. This is, perhaps, even a more attractive dish if it is nicely made than creamed eggs, and many persons who do not like hard-cooked eggs find this dish agreeable and are able to digest it.
EGGS a LA GOLDENROD (Sufficient to Serve Six)
2 c. milk 2 Tb. fat 2 Tb. flour 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 4 hard-cooked eggs 6 slices of toast
Heat the milk. Brown the fat in a saucepan, add the flour, salt, and pepper, and mix well. Then add the hot milk and stir until the sauce thickens. Chop the whites of the hard-cooked eggs into small pieces, and mix them with the white sauce. Arrange the toast on a platter and pour the sauce over it. Put the hard-cooked egg yolks through a sieve or a ricer and sprinkle them on top of the white sauce. Serve hot.
66. SCALLOPED EGGS.--A quant.i.ty of carbohydrate is added to eggs when they are scalloped, for the white sauce and the cracker crumbs that are used in this dish supply this food substance. The cold meat that this dish requires and that should be well chopped into small pieces may be left-over from roasted, stewed, or even broiled meat. As this provides an additional amount of protein, the dish on the whole serves as an excellent subst.i.tute for meat with carbohydrate added.
SCALLOPED EGGS (Sufficient to Serve Six)