This is a sponsored post, which means Roth sent me complimentary cheese to work with and also paid me to develop a recipe and share it here. These types of sponsorships allow me to continue to work via the blog as a free avenue for sharing recipes and ideas with readers.
I used to love going out for weekend brunch before I was kicking ass in my own kitchen. I am sad to report that the joy of brunching is mostly gone now, since, with the exception of a few brunch places, unique menus and vibes we enjoy, I’d rather stay home and save my money since nearly all the fancy brunch stuff I see out in restaurants are all things I think I can make better at home. Breakfasts were my gateway into the kitchen, and noted as such in my ‘get hip to the kitchen methodoloy’ mentioned in both books. I’m happy to report that I’ve really upped my game with practice over the years. And, yes, we certainly reallocate that brunch money to our periodic dinners out or other fun things.
In partnership with Roth Cheese, I’m sharing my omelette methodology, which is more methodology than straight-up recipe. It’s flexible. You can make only 2 egg omelettes, or egg-white only if you wish. You can skip the milk if you can’t drink it. The places you might go wrong are in an insufficiently hot and/or greased skillet, or by trying to use the wrong size pan, hesitating with an unconfident flip or having the wrong spatula for the job. Despite these potentially problematic areas, I think you’ll emerge triumphant in this endeavor. Eggs are forgiving and even if it looks rough the first couple times you make it, it will still taste delicious.
This is one (rare for me) recipe where having your mise en place (a.k.a. all your ducks in a row and ready to go) is absolutely necessary. No one wants kitchen stress on Sunday Funday weekend brunch.
Roth Grand Cru is this Wisconsin cheesemaker’s flagship and award-winning cheese. The Grand Cru is an Alpine-style cheese, which means Roth follows Swiss tradition and crafting, but uses Wisconsin dairy. When this style of cheese is made in Switzerland, it is called Gruyere, and the name remains regionally specific and tied to Switzerland dairying, like with champagne and other things that got their names from the region in which they started. I’ll be featuring another recipe later in the month to highlight Roth’s Grand Cru Reserve, which is aged for 6+ months.
Pork belly, spinach and Alpine-style cheese omelette recipe
Yields 2 omelettes
1. Start by searing your pork belly. I bought a nearly 1lb slab of uncured pork belly from our local butcher shop, depending on how much you’d like to serve/eat, 1/4- to 1/2-lb piece of pork belly will suffice for 2 people. For those of you not already in the charcuterie loop, pork belly is bacon’s starting point. The belly is cured with salt, aged, usually smoked, then sliced up thinly and fried up as bacon.
Sear by heating 1 Tbs olive oil in a pan (preferably cast iron), liberally salt and crack fresh pepper over the bottom of your slab and place it into the hot oil. Salt and pepper the top while the bottom cooks. Cook both sides until browned, remove pan from heat and place pork belly onto a cutting board. The pork belly is not cooked through at this point, but you’ll slice off sections to individually pan fry while your omelettes cook.
2. Pour off most of the fat from frying the pork belly and reserve it for cooking your omelettes. Use the remaining fat in the pan to quickly sauté a 2 cups spinach or other roughly chopped greens. When just wilted, remove from heat, add salt and pepper to taste. Cover pan and set aside for filling your omelette.
3. Shred your cheese so you end up with 1 to 1-1/2 cups of shredded cheese. The Roth Grand Cru Original is a great fit for omelettes because it melts beautifully and adds perfect mellow, but flavorful notes to the tastes at hand.
4. Combine your first omelette batter by whisking together well 3 eggs, a splash of milk or cream, and salt & pepper to taste.
5. Heat 2 tsp reserved pork belly grease (or any oil, butter or fat of choice) in a 6-8” skillet. When thoroughly hot, pour egg batter into the pan.
6. While this cooks, remove greens from the pan and set aside on a small plate or bowl. Slice off 1/4 or 1/2”-thick pieces of pork belly and fry them evenly on both sides in the greens pan. Place finished pork belly on greens plate.
7. Depending on the size skillet you’re using, you may need to allow the remaining egg batter liquid to pour off and seep underneath the now fully cooked underside of the omelette. To do this, gently pull the edge of the omelette away from the pan, tilt carefully and allow the liquid to flow around and under the spot you’re pulling away. Allow that drained liquid to cook, then flip the omelette over in the pan with either a spatula or a deft plate slide and flip maneuver (slide the cooked side of your omelette onto a plate, flip the entire plate over so the uncooked side lands in the hot pan).
8. While it’s in the pan, start filling the omelette with your prepared pork belly, spinach and cheese. If desired, cut up the cooked pork belly into fine shreds or bite-sized pieces. Otherwise, serve in small slabs and serve the omelette with a knife. Fold over as you’re removing the omelette from the pan. Sprinkle the top with cheese and place in a 275-degree oven to keep warm (and fully melt cheese) while you prepare the other omelette(s) in the same fashion.
