SPECIALTY OMELET

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 red or green bell pepper, diced*
1/2 onion, chopped
15 large black olives, sliced
6 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon garlic salt and pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon parsley
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
toast and bacon or sausage (for serving)

In a large nonstick skillet, saute the pepper, onion, and olives in olive oil until tender over medium-high heat, about 2 minutes. Remove the vegetables from the skillet and set aside in a bowl.

Mix the eggs, milk, and spices in another bowl. Pour this mixture into the heated skillet. When the egg begins to solidify around the outer edges, lift its edges and tilt pan to allow uncooked egg mixture to slide from top of the omelet to underneath. Continue cooking.

Sprinkle vegetables and cheese over the top of the cooking egg mixture. When the top of omelet appears moist and not wet, lift one side of the omelet with a wide spatula and fold it over onto the opposite edge. Cook one more minute, covered. Remove from heat.

Serve with toast and bacon or sausage.

*Filling for an omelet is entirely a matter of personal taste. Possible fillings include cooked sausage, sauteed mushrooms, chopped tomatoes, shredded Monterey Jack cheese, green onions, fresh chives, broccoli, and cauliflower.

Makes 3 to 4 servings
From the Hardcover edition.
Excerpted from The Book Lover's Cookbook by Shaunda Kennedy Wenger and Janet Kay Jensen
Copyright © 2003 by Shaunda Kennedy Wenger Janet Kay Jensen. Excerpted by permission of Ballantine Books, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.