RECIPES FROM 1979
Omelette Alsterblick
A banana, chocolate and flaming-rum omelette.
SURPRISINGLY GOOD
15 MINS
MAKES 1
ABOUT THE RECIPE
Omelette Alsterblick is one of the more extraordinary recipes in my 1979 Ward W9 community cookbook: three eggs folded around warm banana, honey, orange juice and grated chocolate, then finished at the table with warmed rum. I made it exactly as written to find out whether those flavours genuinely belong together.
THE ORIGINAL RECIPE
THE MODERN CONVERSION
From 1979 to today’s kitchen.
The original recipe, reworked with clearer measurements, modern steps and everything you need to make it now.
Ingredients
3 large eggs
2 medium bananas, peeled and cut into medium slices
1 tbsp grated dark chocolate
½ tbsp honey
1 tsp orange juice
1–1½ tbsp butter
Sugar, for sprinkling
10 ml dark rum
Method
1.
Whisk the eggs in a small bowl until well combined.
2.
Melt a tablespoon of butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the sliced bananas and cook briefly, turning gently, until warmed through and lightly caramelised. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
3.
Add the remaining butter to the pan. Pour in the eggs and cook over medium heat, until the omelette is just set.
4.
Pile the warm banana slices on one half of the omelette. Drizzle over the honey and orange juice, then sprinkle with the grated chocolate.
5.
Fold the omelette over the filling and carefully transfer to a warm serving plate. Sprinkle lightly with sugar.
6.
Gently warm the dark rum. Pour it over the omelette and carefully ignite with a long lighter. Allow the flame to extinguish completely before eating.
Safety note: Flambéing involves an open flame. Keep your face, hair and clothing well back, keep the dish away from anything flammable, and never pour alcohol directly from the bottle near a flame. If you are not confident flambéing, skip this step.
THE TASTE TEST
So, was it worth making again?
The honest verdict after cooking from the 1979 page.
I have to admit, I was dreading tasting this. Banana, chocolate and honey sounded perfectly lovely. Banana, chocolate and honey inside an egg omelette? Much less so. But somehow, it was actually yummy.
I even tried the filling separately to see if that was what I liked, but no. It was better all together. It tasted a little like a warm banana crêpe, just with egg underneath. Strange, but I immediately wanted another bite. I wouldn’t go out of my way to make it again, but if someone made one for me? I’d happily eat it.
SAMANTHA'S NOTES
Trust the banana
Keep it chunky
Flambé with caution
Two bananas looks like an enormous amount when you pile them onto the omelette, but it works..
Slice the bananas into medium rounds. You want them warmed and slightly caramelised while still holding their shape.
The flambé is the grand finale, although rum does not always perform on cue. Dramatic flames are a bonus, not a requirement.
KEEP COOKING
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