Cooking a Baroque Omelette

For lunch I tried a Baroque period recipe for mini-omelettes.

Michael Barczyk published the German-language book Essen und Trinken Im Barock ("Eating and Drinking in the Baroque Period") in 1981. It concentrates especially on Upper Swabia, a region in eastern Germany, and gives a cross-section of the food eaten by the social classes of the time.

"Colourful fowl" (1882)
by Carl Jutz
Found on Wikimedia Commons

His Eierflädlein recipe was presumably cooked for the middle class, as eggs were a precious commodity. I served them with a spinach soup.

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Eierflädlein (adapted, makes 4 mini-omelettes)

1 level teaspoon flour

4 eggs

2 teaspoons milk

Butter for frying

1. Beat together the ingredients.
2. Melt butter in a pan until it sizzles. Pour in 1 ladleful of the egg mixture.
3. Fry until the omelette is almost set.
4. Roll it up and transfer to a serving plate, and repeat with the next ladleful.

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"Eat these every day"
American World-War-II-era poster from the Work Projects Administration  (1941-1943)
Found on Wikimedia Commons

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Environmental impact of eggs

Eggs have a lower CO2 equivalent footprint than white or red meat. However, a 2014 article in the journal Poultry Science notes that the chicken feed required for egg production is still resource-intensive:

Eggs represent a relatively low-carbon supply of animal protein, but their production is heavily dependent on cereals and soy
— Taylor, R C et al. “The greenhouse emissions footprint of free-range eggs.” Poultry Science vol. 93,1 (2014): 231-7. doi:10.3382/ps.2013-03489

During World War II, fresh eggs were rationed in the United Kingdom: 1 egg per person per week with exceptions for children, pregnant women, and some invalids. It was more common to consume them dried, powdered, and imported from the United States.

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Sources

"Rationing in the United Kingdom" [Wikipedia]

"The Supersizers Go...Wartime" BBC: 2008