First of all, in the bigger picture, I realized that this year's Thanksgiving is the first of many to break tradition. My family has always gotten together as one big group, at my parents' house, for Thanksgiving and Christmas. We eat too much, drink too much, talk too loud, enjoy being together, etc., and we have always done it all together and in the same place. Now, with the three sons all scattered around the Midwest with our own families and children, the family is increasingly hard to get all together. Not to say we won't all be together, but, in summary, it's less "The Family Stone" than it has been in the past.
But, this isn't a sob story about that; change is good, and with my Midwestern roots sunk deep into the family tree soil, I know that we'll always find the time to get together. This is about an omelet.
A number of years ago, on a whim, I woke up after a food coma induced Thanksgiving sleep and threw every leftover I could find into an omelet. It was AMAZING. Don't judge me; just try it. If you've never had an omelet with green bean casserole in the middle, you don't know what you're missing.
Over the past few years I've been perfecting the breakfast straight from heaven. Of course the omelet must contain green bean casserole. You have to have cheesy potato casserole, and it absolutely has to be a good recipe made with about 3 lb. of butter, sour cream, and corn flakes on top. Stuffing, of course, but it's a bonus if it's homemade and includes sausage. A few years ago my Dad started having the turkey smoked - definite bonus points in omelet land. Just a touch of gravy to finish it off and a side of sweet potatoes, and you're looking at the finest breakfast ever put on a plate. The trick is to not overload your omelet, and this is can be difficult given the deliciousness of the stuff you're working with, but trust me, three eggs can only wrap around so much food.
This year, like I said, the whole family isn't getting together for the big, traditional dinner. We're getting together afterward to spend time together elsewhere, and this has me worried. You see, I'll be the only one (with my kids) eating Thanksgiving dinner at my parents' house. But, they are on a no-carb, anti-cancer, Paleo-style diet. And, without the whole crowd to cook for, I'm in serious jeopardy of missing out on some key ingredients to this heavenly breakfast that comes but once a year. I've got one week to figure out my plan for avoiding missing the Black Friday Omelet.
I'm writing this, however, to spread the word. If I miss out on my favorite meal of the year, the least I can do is share my knowledge with others in hopes that the Black Friday Omelet brings you as much happiness as it has me. I may just miss my omelet this Friday, but to paraphrase Abraham Lincoln from 150 years ago, "Now we are engaged in a great food war, testing whether this omelet, or any omelet so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure." I trust in you to make it endure.
Do yourself a favor, and give yourself the gift of a Black Friday Omelet to kick off the holiday season of gluttony the right way.
This post is parallel posted with my other blog on http://jtknull.blogspot.com.