Artist’s Palate: Ed Ruscha’s cactus omelette
You can never be sure when you ask Ed Ruscha about his favourite foods if he means to eat them or work with them. In his 1970 print series News, Mews, Pews, Stews, Dues, he used cherry pie filling and chocolate syrup in place of inks, his 1969 portfolio Stains featured egg yolk and red wine, and his famous Hollywood sign screen print saw beluga caviar being painstakingly pushed through a silkscreen. In fact, he has given us a recipe with the kind of strong SoCal resonance you would expect from the artist who produced Every Building on the Sunset Strip. His work is imbued with the landscape of his adopted state and so, it appears, is his culinary repertoire. Bet they don’t eat a lot of nopales – the edible, fleshy pads of the nopal cactus – in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska.
Utensils
Omelette pan or similar type pan with rounded bottom
Mixing bowl
Wire whisk or fork
Ingredients
Salt
Pepper
2 tbsp small curd cottage cheese
2 eggs from any farm
2 tbsp diced celery
3 tbsp diced cactus (Nopalitos, usually sold in jars in jars in international food section of grocery)
1 tbsp sweet butter
Instructions
Break eggs into bowl. Slightly under-mix with whisk or fork. Heat butter until it bubbles and begins to turn brown. Add eggs and let them sit in the pan until bottom begins to harden. At this point, lift the edges ever so slightly, so that the runny top layer can slip under on all sides.
As soon as this sets, but while the top is still moist, add the salt, pepper and cottage cheese in a line down the centre, as you will be golding the omelette in half. Sprinkle the celery on top of the cottage cheese, followed be the Nopalitos. Fold the empty side over so that it produces a half circle. Let the omelette set for about one minute over low heat. Roll omelette out of pan and onto plate.
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
2025 getaways: where Wallpaper* editors will be travelling to this year
From the Japanese art islands of Naoshima and Teshima to the Malaysian tropical paradise of Langkawi, here’s where Wallpaper* editors plan to travel to in 2025
By Sofia de la Cruz Published
-
These eight on-the-rise fashion designers are set to define 2025
Wallpaper* looks ahead to a new vanguard of designers set to shift the fashion needle in 2025, each chosen for the way they are not just shaping how to dress, but how to be
By Orla Brennan Published
-
Year in review: top 10 culture fixes of 2024, as chosen by art & culture editor Hannah Silver
It's been a bumper year on the Wallpaper* culture desk – here are some of the highlights, as reported in 10 culture stories, from body horror to the Blitz club revisited
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Artist’s Palate: Cerith Wyn Evans’ recipe for Laverbread
Deep-dive into Cerith Wyn Evans’ gleaming, gelatinous recipe for Laverbread, as seen in this month’s Artist’s Palate feature, a Wallpaper* homage to our favourite contemporary art
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith Last updated
-
Helen Pashgian’s recipe for summer corn
Try Light and Space artist Helen Pashgian’s characteristically precise recipe for ‘summer corn’, as seen in this month’s Artist’s Palate feature, a Wallpaper* homage to our favourite contemporary art
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith Last updated
-
Artist’s Palate: Dolce & Gabbana’s pasta alla Norma
‘We like the simplest recipes of the Sicilian tradition,’ say designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana of their choice of pasta alla Norma for this month’s Artist’s Palate. Here, the recipe to make the definitively Italian dish yourself
By TF Chan Last updated
-
Artist’s Palate: Cooking Sections’ ‘Back to Earth’ tomatoes on toast
Enjoy Cooking Sections’ tomatoes on toast (pictured with a Seaweed Seeper), which is served at The Magazine alongside chickpea tabbouleh, and rhurbarb and quinoa cake. As seen in this month’s Artist’s Palate feature, a Wallpaper* homage to our favourite contemporary art
By TF Chan Last updated
-
Artist’s Palate: Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster’s recipe for omelette aux frites
Travel to a new dimension with Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster’s recipe for omelette aux frites. As seen in this month’s Artist’s Palate feature, a Wallpaper* homage to our favourite contemporary art
By Harriet Lloyd Smith Last updated
-
Artist’s Palate: Shilpa Gupta’s recipe for methi thepla
‘This simple homemade bread is my childhood favourite comfort food,’ says Mumbai-based artist Shilpa Gupta of her methi thepla recipe for this month’s Artist’s Palate feature, a Wallpaper* homage to our favourite contemporary art
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith Last updated
-
Bosco Sodi’s recipe for Brussels sprouts
Gather round for Bosco Sodi’s simple yet imposing recipe for Brussels sprouts.
By TF Chan Published
-
Mickalene Thomas’ recipe for duck with chimichurri
Try Mickalene Thomas’ take on a much-cherished recipe for duck with chimichurri. As featured in our monthly Artist’s Palate series, a Wallpaper* homage to our favourite contemporary art
By Pei-Ru Keh Last updated