Are you old enough to remember the Dinah Shore Show?  “See the USA in your Chev-roh-lay”?  I not only remember Dinah, I met her on three different occasions when I cooked omelets on her star-studded television show, circa 1978.  Do you remember the people whose names I’m going drop here? 

     There’s Lucille Ball and her then husband, Gary Morton.  And Jimmy Stewart.  And Steve Laurence and Eydie Gorme.  Stay tuned to hear about Rock Hudson and Angie Dickenson later.

     A friend by the name of Leo Pearlstein, owner of Lee & Associates Public Relations in Los Angeles, worked for the California Egg Commission then.  He made the opportunity for me to appear on the Dinah Shore Show with their galaxy of famous guests to show them all how to make omelets.  After all, I was the world’s fastest omelet maker at that time, too.  Off I flew to LA not nearly expecting who my students would be on the show.   

     Imagine my surprise when I learned that all of the above were there to learn from me.  I was going to become dear friends with the biggest stars of that time!  I naturally thought that we’d be chatting it up, maybe even hugging and cheek-kissing air the way they do on the red carpet.

     When I arrived at the studio, I was whisked away to the set to arrange the burners, pans and food we’d all be using to make our omelets.  Meanwhile, the show was getting underway and things were already going on that the studio audience was gleefully responding to, but I couldn’t see or hear.  Then, suddenly, there they were!  Surrounding me.  Lucille Ball, Gary Morton, Jimmy Stewart, Steve Laurence and Eydie Gorme, and Dinah herself.  There was a lot to do during the brief 10-minute or so segment we had, but we got it done and everyone enjoyed it.

     Then, as suddenly as they appeared, this galaxy of stars disappeared!  No hugs.  No kisses.  No one even put their thumb and pinkie to their face and mouthed “call me”. 

     But the segment was a big hit.  I was invited back later on two occasions.  Once to make a blender breakfast egg drink with Rock Hudson, and again to cook a flaming dessert omelet with Angie Dickenson.  They, too, appeared and disappeared before I knew it.  Hmmm.  They must’ve been scared-off by the afro hair I sported at the time. 

People often ask me how I got started making omelets. I guess it’s all in the family.

Who could imagine having to bring flour tortillas from New York to Mexico City?  Isn’t Mexico the home of the burrito and the flour tortilla it’s wrapped in? 

      I recently went to Mexico to hustle pasteurized egg product to the Mexican foodservice industry.  These are eggs that have been broken out of their shells, mixed together to a smooth, even consistency, pasteurized and packaged in easy-pour quart size containers or 30-lb. bags.  Not only is the product all about food safety, but I think it also performs very well in omelet making, and can be a labor-saver in the foodservice kitchen. 

     To show-off the fine way the product performs I gave omelet making demonstrations in Mexico to two different audiences:  culinary students who’ll be the next generation of  Mexican chefs, and resort chefs and restaurateurs making omelets in their kitchens right now.  The demos were the easy part because not only do I believe so strongly in the product, I can make omelets with confidence.  But not necessarily with Mexican ingredients. 

     First of all, Mexican chefs don’t usually make omelets in a pan.  More often, they make them on a griddle where the egg is allowed to spread out rather than being confined  like it is when cooked in a pan.  The filling is added to the top of the egg like we do, but instead of the omelet being folded in half one time and turned out onto a plate, it’s folded twice into a three-folded, oblong shape and scooped up then placed onto a plate.  I think the one-fold is better because the result is a thicker, heartier egg package for the filling, and it’s nicer looking.  Plus, it’s the way the French do it and, after all, they invented it!

     I was able to garner big audiences because, first of all, being in the Guinness Record Book is just plain quirky, and secondly, because professionals like to learn from other professionals.  I promised to show the chefs and students how I make an omelet in forty seconds along with my repertoire of different omelets that appeal to my American audiences.  That included one of my favorite spins on an omelet, the omelet wrap or burrito. 

     ? Que es a burrito??!!

     Well…I learned that a burrito – like chop suey – is strictly an American invention!  Mexicans don’t roll things in tortillas, they fold them.  Their tortillas aren’t 10-inches or more in diameter because they don’t need to be. They’re more like 6-inches.  And, they’re not sold already toasted and ready to go, they’re sold in their raw state and have to be baked in an oven prior to use.  Happily, I was told this before going to Mexico.  Because I wanted to demonstrate how Americans do omelets in flour tortillas, I snuck a few packages in my suitcase and was able to show them off to my audiences.  In fact, I didn’t just bring plain American flour tortillas, I brought tortillas made with sun-dried tomatoes, basil and spinach.  Guess what.  They stole the show.

     Having to bring tortillas from New York to Mexico?  Who’d’ve thunk it?

When I recently gave an omelet making demonstration in the test kitchens of Everyday with Rachael Ray magazine, one of the staff members suggested I try adding basil pesto to my egg batter, then filling the omelet with goat cheese and bacon. The omelet was so delicious that I added it to my repertoire of omelets that I cook for my demonstrations. But I didn’t want to actually make pesto, so while in Des Moines this summer for the Iowa State Fair, I set to find prepared pesto to use in the demo. “Pesto??”

Off I went from supermarket to supermarket (there were no “gourmet” type stores) looking for pesto. In every store when I asked where I could find pesto, I got the same blank look from everyone from the store manager to the people stocking the shelves. What’s pesto?

After several tries at several markets, I stumbled on some prepared pesto on my own. I wasn’t looking for it. I was at the dairy case in a Dahl’s market actually looking for the goat cheese I’d need (figuring the pesto fairy would deliver somewhere along the line), and there it was! Everyone had been looking on shelves for a jar or bottle of pesto when all the while it was fresh in the dairy case along with other fresh pasta sauces.

If you want to try a different spin on an otherwise ordinary omelet, whip a tablespoon of pesto sauce in with your egg batter for your omelet. Then fill it with goat cheese and bacon. Or, try mozzarella. It’s terrific!

Don’t get me wrong - I love Des Moines. It wasn’t so much that nobody there seemed to know where the pesto was, it just surprised me that nobody seemed to know WHAT pesto was.

This past summer, my son Michael, his wife Susan and my three grandchildren, ages 5, 7 and 10, drove the 3 hours or so from Minneapolis (where they live) to Des Moines to visit me at the Iowa State Fair. They came to one of my omelet demonstration programs and cheered me when it ended. Then we went for a lunch of corn dogs and tenderloins. After I ate a half-pound deep fried pork tenderloin sandwich (which left a film of the oil it was fried in all over the inside of my mouth), I took my grandchildren to the Midway to ride the rides.

It was close to a hundred degrees on the Midway, and the sun was baking everything in sight. Including me.

I remember spending $40 or $50 on ride tickets. We hit the kiddie rides with a vengeance. On one of the rides that simply swung back and forth, the kiddies were screaming with glee. I, on the other hand, started feeling woozy. And woozier and woozier. Before long, I started belching up fried tenderloin but was careful not to let anyone know. Then I started perspiring like crazy. Then I thought I was going to faint. The kiddies kept screaming with glee. It was when I bent over to put my head between my knees that the ride operator looked at me funny and decided to stop the ride.

There I was being helped off the ride with twenty or more kiddies glaring at me because I was responsible for ending their ride too soon. Even worse, my son and daughter-in-law thought it prudent for us to go back to my hotel so I could lie down. So we left the Midway with fistfuls of un-spent ride tickets. And that sat less well with my grandchildren than the tenderloin sandwich sat with me.

For 40 years I’ve been working for the American Egg Board, traveling across the country (and the world) showing people how to make omelets and other egg dishes. My love of eggs has even gotten me on television shows including “Oprah,” “Good Morning America” and “Roker on the Road.”I started this blog (I can’t believe I’m blogging!) to share my stories from the road, tips for cooking with eggs and of course, some of my favorite recipes!Take a look at my first video entry to learn a little bit more about me!Here are some additional egg-citing tidbits about me:

• I currently live in New York City but grew up on the south side of Chicago
• I have 2 children and 5 grandchildren…
• My favorite television show is Top Chef
• My favorite movie is – well, it’s a tie! Without a doubt, I can’t pass up an opportunity to watch “The Blues Brothers” or “Caddyshack”