Attempt #55: Pancetta hash with eggs & apple salad

One of the best thing that I love about Jamie's salad recipes is that you can replace or add new ingredients to them and they still taste wonderful! 

The result:

I replaced pancetta with bacon and watercress with spinach and I added zucchini into the recipe. But with the core or foundation of the salad being bacon, poached eggs and apples...whatever ingredients throw in or replaced will just further enhance the magical combination of this dish. 

Method

Heat a wide frying pan and add a splash of oil. Fry the pancetta, ham and potatoes together for 10–12 minutes, tossing occasionally until the potatoes are cooked, golden and crisp. Divide between 2 plates.

Meanwhile, bring a wide saucepan of water to the boil and add a splash of white wine vinegar. Poach 2 eggs gently in the water for a couple of minutes, until softly set. Remove and place one on each plate of ham and potatoes.

Toss the watercress and sliced apple together and dress with a pinch of salt and pepper, a squeeze of lemon juice and a splash of olive oil. Top the poached eggs with a little pile of salad and serve.

Serves 2

Ingredients

• olive oil
• 6 slices higher-welfare pancetta, cut into wide strips
• 2 slices good-quality ham, torn into pieces
• 500 g potatoes, cubed
• 1 splash white wine vinegar
• 2 very fresh free-range eggs
• 1 large handful watercress
• 1 red apple, very finely sliced
• 1 squeeze lemon juice

Attempt #38: Omelet

Eggs have two advantages over all other foods. First, they are procurable nearly everywhere; second, the most dainty person is sure when eating eggs that they have not been handled.”
extracted from - ‘A Book for A Cook’, The Pillsbury Co. (1905)

Eggs are truly a miracle ingredient. To me eggs are like talented actors – they can play the lead role or the supporting role. And when they do play the supporting role, they are actually the ones who pull the entire show (or dish in this case) together.

This recipe was a hit among my kids. EGGS + CHEESE = HIT WITH KIDS! And it only took 5 minutes prep time! J

 Ingredients

2 large free-range eggs

• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 small knob butter
• 1 small handful Cheddar cheese, grated, optional

Method

Crack the eggs into a mixing bowl with a pinch of salt and pepper. Beat well with a fork.

Put a small frying pan on a low heat and let it get hot. Add a small knob of butter. When the butter has melted and is bubbling, add your eggs and move the pan around to spread them out evenly. When the omelette begins to cook and firm up, but still has a little raw egg on top, sprinkle over the cheese, if using (I sometimes grate mine directly on to the omelette).

Using a spatula, ease around the edges of the omelette, then fold it over in half. When it starts to turn golden brown underneath, remove the pan from the heat and slide the omelette on to a plate.

Attempt #34: Tomato, basil & prosciutto omelette

This turned out really bad. Point in case – photo below shows the result of my attempt with this recipe vs Jamie’s.

 My attempt:

 

Jamie's rendition:

 

Biggest mistake I suspected was that I did not pre-heat my grill to the highest which was 240C. Instead, I was only using at 200C.

Should you want to attempt this, recipe as below:

Ingredients:

• 4 slices quality prosciutto
• 4 large free-range eggs
• 1 handful different coloured small tomatoes, halved and quartered
• 1 small handful fresh basil leaves
• 1 fresh red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped, optional
• olive oil, for drizzling, optional

Method:

Preheat your grill to high. Heat a small, non-stick frying pan until medium hot. Dry fry the prosciutto until crisp. Remove to a plate, keep warm, and put the pan back on the heat.

Meanwhile, whisk the eggs in a small bowl and season with sea salt and pepper. Pour into the hot pan and, using a fork, mix the eggs around to cook a little. Scatter the tomatoes on the top, remove the pan from the heat and place under the hot grill, about 6–7cm away. Continue to cook until the eggs are just cooked and the tomatoes are warmed through.

To serve, place the prosciutto on top, sprinkle over the basil and chilli, if using. Season with black pepper and finish with a drizzle of olive oil, if you like.

Attempt #8: Potato and chorizo omelette with a kinda parsley salad

This is my first time baking eggs!

I have tried scrambling eggs, poaching them, boiled, steamed…but never baked them like a soufflé. And I must say that it is so much easier than trying to poach an egg! (I am still sore that my earlier recipe asking for poached egg turned out to be a disaster).

According to Jamie Oliver, this omelette recipe is supposed to be a cross between a Spanish tortilla and an Italian frittata. It’s Spanish because of the chorizo and potato, but a little Italian too because it is finished off in the oven instead of on the hob.

Result:

 

Overall, interesting and easy recipe to make. It tastes almost like quiche but ‘heavier’ in terms of texture. The added rosemary leaves gives a pungent, spicy taste to the omelette. The rosemary also further enhanced the spiciness of the Spanish chorizo sausages.

Besides, anything with eggs, sausages and potatoes in them, along with onions as a salad dressing - it won’t go really wrong I think. J As Jamie says it, these are 3 ingredients which are usually "all time favourite” 

Recipe: 

- 4 small waxy potatoes, scrubbed and cut into chunks
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 large free-range or organic eggs
• 2 x 60g good-quality Spanish chorizo sausages, cut into 1cm thick slices
• 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves picked
• 2 shallots, peeled and very finely sliced
• juice of 1 lemon
• extra virgin olive oil
• a bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked

Method:

Preheat your oven to full whack, (I PRE-HEAT TO 240C AS THAT IS THE HIGHEST IT COULD GO FOR MY OVEN) or get your grill nice and hot. Put the potatoes into a saucepan of boiling salted water and simmer them until cooked, then drain in a colander and leave them to steam dry. Beat the eggs with a fork in a large mixing bowl, season well with salt and pepper, and put to one side.

Heat a 20cm non-stick, ovenproof frying pan. Add the chorizo slices and the potato chunks. The chorizo will start to sizzle, releasing all its tasty oils and spices. After a couple of minutes, when everything’s lightly golden and crisp, remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and put to one side. Sprinkle the rosemary leaves into the hot fat. As soon as they hit the pan, they’ll start to crisp up. Pour the beaten eggs on top immediately, adding the potatoes and chorizo and spreading everything out evenly. Place the whole pan in the preheated oven or under the grill until the omelette is golden brown on top and just cooked through in the middle.

While the omelette is cooking, put the shallots into a bowl with the lemon juice, some salt and pepper and a glug of extra virgin olive oil. Toss and pinch the shallots with your fingertips to soften them slightly, then mix in the parsley leaves. Serve a little on top of the omelette and tuck in!

Jamie Oliver's Rendition of the Omellete: