Learning to cook eggs from his grandma at age 7, Gregg Wangard never thought one day he would create an omelet for a national holiday recipe project.

But that's exactly what the 32-year-old chef de cuisine at Marisol at The Cliffs in Shell Beach has done.

Wangard's hash brown omelet is one of six holiday recipes that resulted from a recent partnership between the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board and Sargento.

"I always wanted my yolks runny with my toast," Wangard said with a big smile about learning to cook eggs over-easy as a young boy, who then started making breakfast regularly for his family.

The Wisconsin native and father of two young children still is the one to wake early and make the first meal of the day for his loved ones.

"I am definitely a breakfast guy," Wangard said, adding he thinks it's important to start the day with a good meal.

He chose to submit the hash brown omelet recipe for the holiday entertaining project because the dish is simple to make, and it was also a town favorite at a small cafe in Brandon, Wis., where he washed dishes as teenager.

"You don't need a lot of ingredients; all you need is a potato, egg and cheese," Wangard said about the omelet. "I wanted to do a recipe that's realistic for the consumer. It's also good, easy for a family to make and I would love to eat it."

n n n

Wangard is an ambassador chef for the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board, which was approached by Sargento earlier this year to work on the holiday entertaining recipe project.

The signature recipes created by the six ambassadors chefs, who are spread across the United States, all incorporate Sargento's newest artisan blend shredded cheese - Wisconsin white cheddar.

"While artisan cheese producers have experienced explosive growth over the past several years, too often the artisans are limited in their ability to share that cheese beyond regional distribution," said Chris Groom, Sargento core marketing director.

The Sargento artisan blended cheddar is made with Maple Leaf Cheese, which is produced by an artisan cheesemaker that operates as a farmer-owned company dating back to 1910 in southern Wisconsin. It is available at most major supermarkets.

Groom also said the recipe project emphasizes unique, homemade meals that can be served at upcoming holiday get-togethers with family and friends.

Research shows that nearly two-thirds of consumers plan to eat this year's holiday meals at home, while half plan to dine at a friend's home or holiday parties, according to Sargento.

"The holidays are a time for family and friends that is food related," Wangard said. "I get excited (about this project) because you can do something with Sargento's product."

n n n

The chef credits much of his skills in the kitchen and his love for cooking to his grandma, who he spent a lot time with as a child and teenager.

"Her food was always so good," Wangard said. "I try to duplicate the same. I often think of my grandma ... and have a lot of great memories. Growing up as a kid, I would get excited about the holidays. (My grandma) was the grandma who came with everything at the holidays."

Although food is a major ingredient of holidays, Wangard doesn't believe it's a good time to experiment with new recipes that are difficult to make.

"It would be horrible to have it be 'the day of' and not have the recipe turn out," Wangard said, adding he encourages people to have a lot of tasting spoons out when preparing holiday meals and to use the freshest ingredients available.

"Taste your food as you go," he added. "If you like it, 99 percent of your guests will like it, too."

He also believes knowing where the food - a turkey, ham or even cheese - that will be served at a holiday meal or party comes from makes for a good story to tell guests.

Wangard lives in Paso Robles with his wife and their two young children.

Hash Brown Omelet with Ham & Wisconsin Sharp White Cheddar

Difficulty

- Prep Time: 10 minutes

- Cook Time: 10 minutes

- Serves two

Ingredients

1 medium russet (baking) potato (1/2 lb.), peeled, grated (11/2 cups)

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1 large egg, beaten

1/8 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

2 TBS. butter

1/2 cup (2 oz.) diced cooked ham

1/2 cup (2 oz.) Sargento Artisan Blend Shredded Wisconsin Sharp White

Cheddar Cheese

Directions

1. Combine potato, onion, egg, salt and pepper in a medium bowl; mix well. Melt butter in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add potato mixture, spreading out to a single layer. Cook 4 minutes or until deep golden brown. Use a wide spatula to carefully flip potato over so browned side is up (or slide onto a plate and flip over back into skillet). Cook 3 minutes or until bottom begins to brown.

2. Spoon ham and cheese down center of potato mixture. Use spatula to fold omelet in half over filling. Reduce heat to low; cook 2 minutes or until filling is heated through and cheese is melted. Cut in half and transfer to two serving plates.

More holiday entertaining recipes can be found at www.sargento.com.

November 9, 2009