While an omelet can be a very quick and easy staple, it can also, in fact, be an exquisitely simple, satisfying meal for any time of day. Julia Child gave the humble omelet eight pages in her book Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and chefs in France are hired on the basis of how well they make an omelet. The idea being that if they can’t make one with flair and expertise, they won’t have skill enough to make anything else!
ingredients
Tomato-Saffron Layer
Tapenade Layer
Herb Layer and Assembly
directions
To make the tomato-saffron mixture, chop the tomatoes once they are cool enough to handle. Heat a drizzle of oil in a pan and cook the tomatoes with the saffron for 2 minutes. Leave to cool, then blend with the beaten eggs and seasoning.
For the tapanade layer, simply blend the tapenade with the beaten eggs.
Then make the herb layer. Chop the herbs and chives, mix into the eggs and add seasoning.
When your three mixtures are ready, heat a small non-stick frying pan (approx. 8-inch). When hot, add a little olive oil and fry a thin layer of the tomato-saffron mixture on just one side until it has set. Set aside on a plate, add a little more olive oil to the pan and repeat with the tapenade mixture. When it’s done, remove it from the pan and place it on top of the tomato-saffron omelet. Repeat with a touch more oil and the herb mixture and place this omelet on top of the other layers.
Start again with the tomato-saffron mixture and repeat until you have no more mixture left. Cover the layered omelet with parch- ment paper and weigh it down with a plate and a heavy object on top, such as a couple of cans. Leave to cool in the fridge over- night, then slice off the edges to neaten it up and cut into cubes or rectangles. Lovely with a salad, and perfect food for when you’re on the go.