HELOISE: Omelet in a bag? It’s fast and easy

Dear Heloise: Here’s how to make omelets in plastic zippered bags. This works great! It’s good for when all your family is together. The best part is that no one has to wait for a special breakfast. Have guests write their name on a quart-size plastic freezer bag with permanent marker.

Crack two eggs into the bag (not more than two); shake to combine them. Put out a variety of ingredients such as: cheeses, ham, onion, green pepper, tomato, hash browns, salsa, etc. Each guest adds prepared ingredients of choice to his or her bag and shakes. Make sure to get the air out of the bag and close it. Place the bags in rolling, boiling water for exactly 13 minutes. You usually cook six to eight bags in a large pot.

Open the bags, and the mixture will roll out easily. Be prepared for everyone to be amazed. Nice to serve with fresh fruit and coffee cake; everyone gets involved in the process, and it’s a great conversation piece.

Imagine having these ready the night before and putting the bag in boiling water while you get ready! And in 13 minutes, you get a nice breakfast, and it’s quick! Try it, it really works!

A Reader, via e-mail

Wow! I thought this was a little wacky, but I tested it several times and love it! The dish turns out more like scrambled eggs with “the fixins.” Be sure to use a sturdy freezer plastic bag, and the timing may vary, so watch the pot!

Heloise

Dear Heloise: My mom used to make for us kids minipizzas with English muffins. She would toast them first, then add a healthy spread of tomato paste (sprinkled with oregano and garlic powder), browned, chopped meat and mozzarella or Muenster cheese. She browned them under the broiler until the cheese melted. Your imagination can make any variation, including using leftovers for a unique minipizza experience.

Dee in Florida

Dear Heloise: I had purchased a bakery birthday cake and wanted to display it on a glass-pedestal cake plate. The bakery cake plate was plastic. To keep it from slipping, I cut a shape of the plate from rubber shelf lining, put that on the pedestal and placed the cake on it. The cake looked nice on the pedestal, and there was no slipping.

Susan from South Dakota

Dear Heloise: For many years, I have used dry gelatin (regular or sugar-free) to sprinkle on top of cookies before baking. You can use any flavor you want.

Sandra, via e-mail

Heloise

Dear Heloise: My husband and I have a hint for you. To keep coffee from leaking through the kitchen garbage bag, we put the used filter and grinds inside the plastic wrapper from the morning newspaper.

Renee and Kevin from Texas

Send a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000, fax it to 210-HELOISE or e-mail it to Heloise@Heloise.com.

King Features Syndicate