Southern California Cooking from the Cottage (5 page)
CALIFORNIA OMELETTE
G
uacamole is a wonderful addition to any breakfast, especially a California Omelette. The cheese and sour cream give it a south-of-the-border flavor, but the bacon reminds us that it's red, white, and blue.
4 slices bacon
1 tablespoon butter
6 eggs, beaten
4 tablespoons guacamole
½ cup shredded Jack cheese
2 tablespoons sour cream
Cook the bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat until crispy. In a small sauté pan melt the butter over medium heat. Add half the eggs into the pan and swirl so they coat the bottom. Gently pull the eggs away from the sides of the pan to prevent sticking and so that more of the eggs can cook. When the bottom of the eggs are set, carefully flip the omelette over with a spatula and cook the other side. When done, slide the shell onto a plate. Add 2 slices cooked bacon, 2 tablespoons guacamole, and ¼ cup cheese. Fold the omelette over so the cheese begins to melt. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream. Repeat the procedure for the second omelette. Serve with fresh fruit and Cottage Breakfast Potatoes (page 18).
MAKES 2 SERVINGS
CHICKEN, MUSHROOM, BRIE, &
SUN-DRIED TOMATO OMELETTE
T
his is a Mediterranean-flavored omelette with Brie and sun-dried tomatoes. It is especially good served with a glass of fresh tangerine juice on a warm summer day.
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon butter
½ cup chopped grilled chicken
½ cup mushrooms
6 eggs, beaten
4 ounces chopped Brie
½ avocado, sliced
2 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes
In a small sauté pan, melt 1 teaspoon of the butter over medium heat. Add the chicken and mushrooms and sauté until the mushrooms are soft and the chicken is heated through. Make 2 omelette shells by melting the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium heat. Pour half the eggs into the pan and swirl so that they coat the bottom. Gently pull the eggs away from the side of the pan to prevent sticking and so that more of the eggs can cook. When the bottom of the eggs are set, carefully flip the omelette over with a spatula and cook the other side. Repeat with the remaining eggs. Microwave the Brie until soft and starting to melt, about 20 seconds. Stuff each omelette shell with half the chicken mixture and half the Brie. Fold each omelette over and garnish with the avocado slices and sun-dried tomatoes.
MAKES 2 SERVINGS
“CASUAL & CLASSY”
(JOHN AND LAURA WOLFE)
I
am a laid-back Southern California surfer,” John Wolfe says. “Laura is a button-down New Englander. As I see it, that combination is what the Cottage is all about: casual and classy.”
The couple who made the Cottage the casual, classy restaurant it is today had a far from promising start with it. In 1991 when they heard about a bungalow café in La Jolla that might be up for sale, they were eager to check it out. The Wolfes had been looking for just such a business opportunity. “We walked in and sat at a table for fifteen minutes,” Laura recalls. “No one waited on us, so finally we got up and left.”
Nevertheless, they knew enough about the restaurant business to see the Cottage as a promising opportunity. John had been an executive with Chart House restaurants, on and off, since 1977. “I was always taking surfing trips,” he says. “For months at a time. I would quit, come back, get demoted and promoted. I was a sort of restaurant SWAT-team guy. They called me in if a restaurant needed reconfiguring.”
From the time he was young, John knew what he wanted to do. He explains: “When you grow up in Southern California and are a surfer, you want to be in the restaurant business. You can work at night and surf all day. That's one reason I kept coming back to the Chart House. All their restaurants had showers to get the sand off after surfing.”
John met Laura when he hired her out of the hotel/restaurant program at the University of Massachusetts. As soon as he hired her, however, he left the company to go on a nine-month surfing safari around the world. They met again on the beach. “Our first date was auspicious,” she says. “John took me to a breakfast restaurant. I had eggs Sardou.”
The Wolfes were entrepreneurs who wanted a restaurant that they could create to fit their own tastes and standards. John was delighted to hear about the Cottage because he knew that a location in La Jolla would provide him great opportunities for surfing. But the Cottage as they found itâand ultimately bought itâneeded work.
“It was run-down,” Laura says. “It was feminine pink, old Victorian, cutesy décor. A sort of ladies' tea room with plastic tablecloths.”
“It had a reputation for good food but inconsistent service,” John adds. “It was a basic breakfast-and-lunch coffee shop known for good pastries. There were customers, but there was no management presence on the floor.”
“When we got here, every regular customer told us, âDon't change a thing!'” Laura says. “And the truth is that we couldn't afford to do anything dramatic at first. Gradually, though, we did start making changesâto the restaurant and to the menu. We replaced the plastic sugar baskets with wicker. We thought of our incredible patio and how much the La Jolla sun was something we wanted to celebrate, so we changed our logo and our graphics to reflect the fresh, outdoors character that we wanted this restaurant to have. We
paid
food critics to eat here and tell us what they thought worked and what did not.”
What the Wolfes were in fact doing was reconceiving the Cottage as a uniquely Southern California restaurant, a place that could be nowhere other than where it is. Having grown up in the area, John has a specific sense of local character, describing La Jolla as an ocean community but not a beach town. By that, he is alluding to the conspicuous lack of honkytonk attractions along the shoreline. Clearly, the population reveres its link with Pacific waters. Nowhere is that respectful attitude more apparent than Seal Rock, formally known as Seal Rock Marine Mammal Reserve, where seals “haul out” to bask in the sun on rocks and sand. La Jollans and visitors stand on the sea wall gazing at this serene natural sight, most people speaking in hushed tones so as not to disturb the snoozing fin-foots. Curiously, Pacific harbor seals are most often extremely reserved of any human contact; here in La Jolla, they make an exception and sun themselves in full view, apparently feeling more safe and secure than they do anywhere else.
When John Wolfe took us on a tour of the coastline between the Caves, the Cove, and Seal Rock he identified every place known to beachcombers, snorkelers, and surfers not only by name but by the kind of waves that are known to break there. “This is one of the top surf spots in the world,” he said as we looked down at the dramatic piece of coastline known as Windansea. Pointing to a thatched-roof hut on the sand there, he said, “Any surfer anywhere in the world could see a picture of that hut or these waves and know exactly where it is.”
We would say something similar about the restaurant John and Laura Wolfe have created: Any eater could see a picture of the Cottage (or better yet, tuck into a Cottage meal!) and know exactly where it is. Their restaurant is the heart and soul of La Jolla, California.
COVE OMELETTE
O
ur Cove Omelette is a vegetarian's delight. Its flavors are enhanced by Gruyere cheese and hollandaise sauce drizzled on top. It is an alternative to the more traditional vegetarian omelettes that are made with broccoli and peppers.
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup diced portobello mushrooms
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups fresh spinach
½ cup diced Roma tomatoes
1 tablespoon butter
6 eggs, beaten
½ cup diced ham, heated
4 ounces Gruyere cheese
¼ cup Hollandaise Sauce (page 124)
In a sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, garlic, spinach, and tomatoes and cook until the vegetables are soft. For each serving, make an omelette shell by melting the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Pour half the eggs into the pan and swirl so that they coat the bottom. Gently pull the eggs away from the side of the pan to prevent sticking and so that more of the eggs can cook. When the bottom of the eggs are set, carefully flip the omelette with a spatula and cook the other side. Repeat with the remaining eggs. Stuff each omelette with ¼ cup of the ham and 2 ounces of the cheese. Add 2 tablespoons of the vegetable mixture and fold the omelette over. Top with 2 tablespoons of the hollandaise sauce and the remaining vegetable mixture. Serve with fresh fruit and Cottage Breakfast Potatoes (page 18).
MAKES 2 SERVINGS
MAMMOTH MOUNTAIN OMELETTE
A
light touch of balsamic vinegar added to the vegetables sets this omelette apart and gives it an upscale taste that sings.
2 slices of your favorite ham
1½ tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon minced garlic
1 cup cleaned and chopped baby spinach
½ cup sliced mushrooms
½ cup chopped Roma tomatoes
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon butter
6 eggs, well beaten
½ cup grated Swiss cheese
½ cup Hollandaise Sauce (page 124)
Slice the ham into ¼-inch-thick strips. Heat the olive oil in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Add the ham, garlic, spinach, mushrooms, and tomatoes and cook until the mushrooms are soft. Add the balsamic vinegar and sauté for 1 minute. Set aside and keep warm. In the same fry pan, on high heat, make two omelette shells by melting the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Pour half the eggs into the pan and swirl so that they coat the bottom. Gently pull the eggs away from the side of the pan to prevent sticking and so that more of the eggs can cook. When the bottom of the eggs are set, carefully flip the omelette with a spatula and cook the other side. Repeat with the remaining eggs. When done, place the omelettes on a plate and immediately stuff each with half the ham mixture. Add half the cheese on top of each and fold the omelettes over to melt the cheese. Pour half the hollandaise sauce over each omelette. Serve with Cottage Breakfast Potatoes (page 18) and English muffins.
MAKES 2 SERVINGS
MASHED POTATO OMELETTE
I
f you are blessed with leftover mashed potatoes and have mashed potato lovers in your family, here is a hearty breakfast that's a crowd pleaser and fairly easy to prepare.
1 cup mashed potatoes
2 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
¼ cup chopped scallions
¼ cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon butter
6 eggs, well beaten
2 tablespoons sour cream
In a small bowl combine the mashed potatoes, bacon, scallions, and cheese. Microwave for 30 seconds or until the cheese starts to melt and the potatoes are warm throughout. Make 2 omelette shells by melting the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Pour half the eggs into the pan and swirl so that they coat the bottom. Gently pull the eggs away from the side of the pan to prevent sticking and so that more of the eggs can cook. When the bottom of the eggs are set, carefully flip the omelette with a spatula and cook the other side. Repeat with the remaining eggs. Spoon half the potato mixture into each omelette shell. Fold the omelettes over. Garnish with sour cream.