Brunch for your Valentine

Another Valentine’s Day post because I happen to love Valentine’s Day AND because it provides a good excuse to drink Champagne, eat chocolate, and linger over indulgent meals.

With Valentine’s Day falling on a Monday, it is the perfect time to celebrate twice, once with a leisurely Sunday brunch for your Valentine and again on Monday.

You know a meal is good when you think about it for years. The day after I ran the Bermuda International Marathon in January 2004, I had one of the most memorable omelets that I have ever had at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess. I loved everything about the hotel, especially its beautiful waterfront location and the fact that it is PINK, but the post-marathon omelet sealed the deal.

This omelet had flecks of salty smoked salmon peeking out behind ribbons of melted brie all whipped into fluffy, airy eggs. It was the memory of this omelet that inspired my breakfast the other morning, and it is a recipe that could easily wow your beloved this Sunday morning for brunch.

I started with a few pieces of smoked salmon, chopping it into tiny bits. To the salmon I added some grated Kerrygold cheese left over from the bread I made the other day.

For my own omelet, I used only two eggs, but the recipe is easily doubled or quadrupled for brunch for several people. You can, of course also just use the whites for a lower fat omelet. I like the nutrition that comes from the yolks, so I left them in

To the eggs, which I had whipped with a ball whisk, I added the salmon and cheese, about 1/8 up of skim milk, and a small pat of butter, chopped up into pieces. I heated up a tiny bit more butter in my smallest frying pan; I find it easiest to make a pretty-looking and fully cooked omelet in a smaller pan. When the butter was melted and the pan very hot, I poured the egg mixture in, cranked the heat up as high as it would go, and waited until the top of the omelet started bubbling, then solidified.

To get the omelet out of the pan, I placed a plate over the top of the pan, then held on to the plate and the handle of the pan while flipping the pan over. A piece of the omelet stuck in the pan, but otherwise, it came out without breaking! And I was able to fold it over to showcase the golden brown side. Fancy, isn’t it?! I was kind of excited about how nice my meal was. I added a few scoops of homemade salsa which consisted of Muir Glen fire roasted tomatoes, a bit of red onion, two jalapenos, three cloves of garlic, and a little bit of olive oil.

The combination was excellent, filling, and healthy. Interested in making this for a special Sunday brunch? If I was making a Valentine’s brunch for my husband (which I won’t be doing because I am going away and he is working alllllll weekend), I would pair this with some oven roasted potatoes, maybe something sweet like mini cinnamon rolls, and of course a glass of bubbly, maybe a Billecart Salmon Brut Rose? Then, I would take my time eating, drinking, and relaxing for the rest of the day!

Do you have a really memorable meal that has been on your mind for years like the omelet I had in Bermuda?