Fried Green Tomatoes and Parmesan Omelet

I wanted to write about fried green tomatoes. I wanted to write about the glory of using the heat of a fry pan and some oil to turn a hard, green, unripe market tomato into something completely unlike itself. Worked up the words to describe the process of finding ripeness and a hint of sweetness from the hard, unready-for-a-sandwich tomato. I thought about the simple recipe of tomatoes dusted with cornmeal and how they came to life with both crunch from the fried cornmeal and juicy goodness from the heat-induced ripeness. I wanted to talk about the juice of the tomato that ran down my chin when I bit into the fried wheel of goodness.

I planned on writing about the revelation of paring this classic southern dish with a simple omelet made with nothing more than eggs, grated Parmesan, salt and pepper.

But then, I spoke with my landlord. After years of planning and making ready for the big step of becoming a dog owner, my husband and I began the paperwork for adopting a pet. Even though the owner of the building (our landlord’s mother) said yes over a year ago, our current landlord wasn’t so sure.

But…

She says she’ll think about it.

So I say I’ll just sit here with my heart broken until she decides.

Fried Green Tomatoes and Parmesan Omelet
makes 2 servings

For FRIED GREEN TOMATOES:
One firm green tomato. Slice into 1/2 inch rounds
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup olive oil
kosher salt

Sprinkle green tomato with salt on each side. Let sweat for a few minutes. Meanwhile, pour cornmeal onto a plate. When the tomatoes have sweated a bit, place the tomato slices (one at a time) onto the corn meal. Coat the slices with corn meal. Repeat until all tomatoes are ‘breaded’.

Heat pan over medium temperature. Add enough olive oil to give a good layer of oil to cook in. Saute tomatoes until each side becomes a golden color.

Plate and keep warm under a tent of tinfoil in a warm oven.

Meanwhile…

for PARMESAN OMELET
6 eggs (2 eggs and 4 egg whites) *or use the whole eggs if you’re not concerned about too much cholesterol
splash of milk or half/half
half a cup freshly grated Italian Parmesan
salt and pepper

Whisk the eggs and a splash of milk (about 3 minutes) or until light and bubbly. Heat pan over a medium flame. Coat pan with a thin layer of oil. Add egg mixture when pan is good and hot. Use a wooden spoon to move egg mixture around in pan. After 3-4 minutes, when the egg mixture begins to firm up with cooking, add parmesan cheese. Turn on broiler to let heat up. When omelet is mostly cooked and just a little runny on top, put under broiler. The top should cook quickly and puff up under the heat.

Serve immediately.