Omelette Cake

You can't eat salads all summer long to beat the heat. Well, I guess you can but... At some point you're gonna have to rely on the stove or oven to turn out a dish. But there's nothing saying you can't chill that hot food before you serve it!

This omelette cake recipe came from last month's issue of the fabulous BBC Good Food magazine (recipe also online). Omelette cake is, essentially, alternating layers of omelettes and herbed cream cheese -- an omelette cake!

Omelette cake is pretty enough for a proper brunch party (what tempted us to make the recipe), and is made the day before and chilled overnight (what sealed the deal in our AC-free house).

After following Good Food's recipe exactly for a trial run, we decided to up the herbs, onion, and seasoning. Recipe reflects those changes.

I had the hardest time making photos of our trial run omelette cake look as gorgeous as it tasted, and I did not want to break out the camera for the garnished real deal sitting pretty on a cake stand, lest I look like a freak in front of company, but, trust, it makes a pretty brunch centerpiece.
Omelette Cake
Adapted from BBC Good Food

10 eggs
olive oil for frying
2 small zucchini
4 spring onions, finely chopped
4 roasted red peppers from a jar, drained and finely chopped
1-2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 red chili, de-seeded and finely chopped
10 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
5-6 tablespoons milk, or soy milk
6 tablespoons chives, finely chopped
4 tablespoons chopped basil

• Break five eggs into one bowl, and five eggs into another bowl. Whisk eggs and season with salt and pepper.
• In a pan, saute zucchini and spring onions in 1 tablespoon of oil for 10 minutes, or until softened. Set aside to cool.
• Stir cooled zucchini into one bowl of eggs. Stir roasted peppers, garlic, and chili into the other bowl of eggs.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat. Pour 1/3 of the zucchini mixture into the pan, swirling the pan so the mixture covers the pan. Cook until egg is set and browned underneath, then cover the pan with a plate, and invert the omelette onto the plate. Slide the omelette back into the pan to cook the other side. Place on a plate when done. Repeat with the remaining mix to make two more zucchini omelettes. Make three omelettes in the same way with the red pepper mixture.
• For the filling, beat the cream cheese and milk with an eclectic hand-held mixer until incorporated and smooth. Mix in chives, basil, and salt and pepper to taste.
• To assemble, line a cake pan large enough in diameter to hold the omelettes with plastic wrap. Select the prettiest red pepper omelette, and place in the cake pan with the prettiest side down. Spread with a thin layer of cream cheese filling, then place a zucchini omelette on top. Repeat, alternating the layers, until all omelettes and filling are in the pan, finishing with an omelette.
• Cover and chill for up to 24 hours.
• To serve, invert the omelette cake onto a serving platter, and remove plastic wrap. Garnish top with herbs. Serve cut into wedges.