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Thursday, October 27, 2011

Ratatouille Omelet {Food 'n Flix}

"Ratatouille?  It's a peasant dish!"

While the idea of a rat in the kitchen absolutely does make me cringe, I can put aside those feelings (mostly) when watching an animated film.  No really, over and over in my brain I'm asking why they chose a cooking rat.  Duh.  Because that was the perfect play on words for the story.  Yeah, but they're so nasty. Etcetera...etcetera.  That said, Ratatouille is such a fun foodie film.  While there is plenty of food in it to love, I have two favorite scenes.  The first is when Remy (yes, the rat) whips up Linguine (the person, not the noodle) an omelet for breakfast.  There's not many things I love better than an omelet for breakfast.  Omelets are like tacos.  In that you can stuff almost anything inside of them and they will be awesomely delicious.

My second favorite scene is, of course, when Linguine sets the beautiful plate of ratatouille in front of Ego (the food critic...love the name, so fitting...no?).  A stuffy, elite, seemingly lonely food critic, at that.  But with just one bite of this peasant dish, he is back in his mother's warm kitchen.  The tension (and pretension) peels away and joy fills his soul and takes residence in his face and demeanor.  Because really, food is not about the fanciest or most "gourmet" meal, it about the love, the heart, the soul that goes into making it.  This is what truly makes a delicious meal.

In honor of my two favorite scenes from this month's Food 'n Flix pick, I chose to make an omelet stuffed with ratatouille.  While I made a quick version of ratatouille (which doesn't take long at all, by the way), it is also a great way to use up any leftover ratatouille you may have.  While I sauteed mine, it is also great with roasted or grilled vegetables.
Ratatouille Omelet
from the kitchen of girlichef
makes 1 fat omelet

olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tiny onion, chopped
1 small, ripe tomato, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
1 small eggplant
few olives, chopped
fresh basil
fresh thyme
salt & freshly ground black pepper
feta cheese, crumbled

2 eggs, beaten
pat of butter

Begin by slicing the eggplant into ~½" thick rounds.  Set the rounds on paper towels and salt them on both sides.  Let sit for 15-30 minutes.  Wipe off the salt and water, then dice and set aside.
Heat a skillet with about a tablespoon or so olive oil over medium heat.  Add garlic and onions and saute until softened, a couple of minutes.  Add tomato, zucchini, eggplant, and olives and saute for a minute.  Add a big pinch of freshly sliced basil and a big pinch of fresh thyme leaves.  Continue cooking for another minute or two, until everything is just al dente and fragrant.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.  Throw a bit of feta on top of the mixture, but don't toss it until just before you fill your omelet.  This will allow the feta warm up a bit without getting to melty.

Heat an 8" omelet pan (or nonstick skillet) until it is screaming hot.  Quickly throw in a big pat of butter and as soon as it melt, pour in the beaten eggs, swirling the pan and lifting the edges as they cook to let the uncooked egg flow beneath the cooked parts.  This will all happen very quickly.  When there is just a bit of uncooked egg on top, quickly flip the omelet over and turn off the heat.  Pour the ratatouille with feta on top of half of the omelet, and fold the other half over that.  

Slide omelet onto a warm plate.  Enjoy!
Our Food 'n Flix host this month is Beth Anne from The Seventh Level of Boredom.  Tomorrow Monday, October 31 at noon is the last day to send your entries over to her for the Ratatouille roundup!
Food‘nFlix
I am also sharing this post with:
Katherine Martinelle Eggplant Bloghop
Miz- Helen-Badge-ALT5 foodfriday

Would you like to comment?

  1. Yum. Looks delicious.

    I loved that movie. One I can watch over again.

    www.geekettegazette.com
    www.thegirlieblog.com

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  2. It looks sooooooooo delicious!
    And it's big enough for 2 (for me and my other half) - I love it :)

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  3. Do you think it will change a lot the taste if I use egg whites instead of whole eggs?
    Also what about using fat free feta?
    Peace
    Mike

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  4. Oh nuts! First off I lost a week and then I wrongly assumed we had until the 31st for entries. I have my recipe idea and will try to get it made and posted by tomorrow night but it may be a stretch with my day tomorrow. Good intentions, bad follow through! ;-(

    Your omelet looks delicious. ;-)

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  5. @Mike...I think that's all just a matter of personal preference, really. If you like egg white omelets and fat free feta, then go for it.

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  6. I love that scene with the food critic, too! I've never thought to fill an omelet with ratatouille, but yours looks great.

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  7. Brilliant idea! I love this. I have always wanted to make a ratatouille. I wanted to do food 'n flix this month - that is one of my favorite movies. I'll try for next month.

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  8. One of my favorite movies of all time! And I love how you put your spin on it.

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  9. Love this!! Those are two of my favorite scenes as well.

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  10. I grew up on really bad, overcooked ratatouille, so I have to try yours, it sounds like a completely different animal altogether. I love omelets for dinner.

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  11. How can you not love rats in restaurants! When I ate at Chef's de France at Epcot they wheeled around a serving platter with Remy the rat on it. It was so stinking cute! I pretended that he made my food :)

    http://dashandapinch.com/2011/10/disney-restaurant-review-chefs-de-france/

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  12. Oh I so want to sink my teeth into that omelet right now. It has all the makings of deliciousness just the way it is!!!

    Thanks for sharing, Heather!!!

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  13. I'm not ashamed to say I have that movie sitting on the top of my dvd stack. And seriously, that omelette looks amazingly delicious; what a fantastic combination of two already awesome foods.

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  14. I can have this fabulous omelet for my sunday's brunch,yumm yumm..

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  15. That is for sure a fat omelet but a yummy one.

    I love the movie, too.

    Mely

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  16. Aww I love the symbolism! So cute. Remy is the only rat I could every love. Let's be honest.

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  17. Ratatouille never lasts long enough at my house to use in another recipe. But next time I make some, I'm going to force myself to save a little to try this omelet. Looks amazing!!! :)

    And I ♥ Ratatouille the movie. Even if I'm not all that fond of mice and rats. :P

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  18. I love that omelette!! Can't wait to make it, thanks!

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  19. Looks awesome--Just like all your dishes!

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  20. Hi Heather,
    I can almost taste it, I would just love your creation. Your Ratatouille
    Omelet looks awesome! Thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday. Hope you have a great week end and come back soon!
    Miz Helen

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  21. Best. Idea. Ever. And peasant food - bring it on!

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  22. I love Ratatouille. It sounds amazing in an omelet.

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  23. The thyme sound like it would be just the perfect touch.

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  24. Yum, ratatouille and eggs?? Sounds delish. Btw, I only saw part of the movie and yes a rat in the kitchen sounds gross but I used to have pet rats and they were pretty clean! I think they groom themselves like cats, but the movie probably had a street rat so I get your cringe reaction.

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  25. Yummm I haven't had ratatouille- since I didn't know what was in it.  But now that I'm looking I see that it almost every ingredient is something I LOVE!!!!  Can't wait to try some!

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