Vegan omelette (with wildcrafted cattails)
By Sari Huhtala
This vegan omelette has become one of my outdoor campfire food favourites. And, if you’re into wildcrafting, adding a chopped cattail to the fold makes it that much more adventurous. No eggs, means no need for refrigeration – a bonus if you’re camping. It’s more than just a breakfast idea – nutritionally it’s perfect for lunch or dinner as well.
If inflammatory conditions are a concern, consider swapping from eggs to chickpea flour. Omega-6 fatty acids found in eggs may contribute to inflammation. The yolks also contain arachidonic acid, and produce prostaglandins, which may trigger inflammation in the body, according to an online study through the National Institutes of Health.
Chickpea flour power
Chickpea flour packs a potent punch nutritionally compared to eggs. One hundred grams of eggs has only 13 grams of protein, while 100 grams of chickpea flour has 22 grams of protein, and 41 per cent of daily magnesium and 27 per cent of daily iron needs compared to only two per cent of magnesium and six per cent of daily iron recommendations in eggs.
Serve up this omelette for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It’s great hot or cold, and what’s more, it also makes great camping/backpacking food fare since it doesn’t spoil and is easy to make.
Dehydrate veggies for camping.
Vegan omelette
- 11/2 cups of chickpea flour
- 1 cup of water
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Herbs and spices as desired (fresh oregano, thyme and parsley add a nice touch)
- Veggies of choice
- 1 – 2 tbsp of olive oil for frying
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Mix chickpea flour, salt, seasoning of choice (oregano, basil, marjoram add a nice flavour to the ‘egg’ but feel free to experiment with whatever spices you like) in a bowl. Add water and stir until smooth. Add olive oil and mix well. Add more water if necessary. Set aside. Chop veggies of choice – onions, mushrooms, red and green peppers, and finely diced carrots, along with chopped spinach or arugula make a great omelette combo. Add cattails too.
Lightly pan-fry veggies in a cast iron pan (or any oven-proof frying pan) in olive oil till tender. Drizzle a touch more olive oil into pan then pour the chickpea flour batter on top, spreading it across the veggies, but not stirring the veggies into the ‘egg.’
Pan fry for about 10 minutes on medium low, then cut the omelette into quarters and flip each quarter individually to pan fry the opposite side. Serve directly from pan. Alternatively, if using a cast iron pan, place omelette into the oven for about 10-15 minutes to bake the top, then flip onto a plate for serving.
Wondering how to harvest cattails? The white lower part of the cattail stalk, that looks like a leek and has a taste resembling a cucumber, is the part I like to add into the omelette. Simply pull back the thicker, green leaves at the bottom of the cattail, and pinch the white stem and pull upwards to release the stalk. Cut up the white part into small pieces and add to stir fries and omelettes, or eat raw.
The shoots are a source of magnesium, calcium and potassium, among other minerals.
Sari Huhtala is the publisher and editor of Alive and Fit Magazine. She has over 25 years experience in journalism. She is a mother of 3 adult children. She has spent over 20 years navigating a healthy path for her family, one health hack at a time, as a single mom feeding her kids healthy on a shoestring budget. She also has over 15 years experience as a certified fitness specialist and personal trainer, 10 years experience as a reiki practitioner; she studied Shamanism and is currently completing yoga teacher training certification.
