This is what I was able to find for you, hope this answers your question...I know it's a lot of information. Here goes: Omelettes According Alan Davidson's Oxford Companion to Food [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 550, 553), the word omelette" is of French origin and came into use during the mid-16th century. Somewhat similar egg dishes were known to and ancient medieval cooks. Mr. Davidson traces the origins of the omelette to ancient Persia. We know the Ancient Romans often combined eggs and dairy products into patinae, custards and a variety of other sweet and savory dishes. C. Anne Wilson comments: "The precursor to the omlette in Britain was known as a herbolace and in the late fourteenth century was a mixture of eggs and shredded herbs, baked in a buttered dish. A contemporary French recipe under the same name is much more detailed, and gives instructions for heating oil, butter or fat thoroughly in a frying pan before pouring in eight well-beaten eggs (of medieval size) mixed with brayed herbs and ginger. The French version was finished off with grated cheese on top, and appears to have been quite close to the modern concept of an omelette." ---Food and Drink in Britain From the Stone Age to the 19th Century [Academy Chicago Press:Chicago] 1991 ( p. 142). "Omelette...a sweet of savoury dish made from beaten whole eggs, cooked in a frying pan, and served plain or with various additions. The word comes from the French "lamelle" (thin strip) because of its flat shape; previously it was known as alumelle and then alumette, and finally amelette. (Some authorities claim that the word has a Latin origin, ova mellita, a classic Roman dish consisting of beaten eggs cooked on a flat clay dish with honey.)...Omelettes were known during the Middle Ages. In the 17th century one of the most famous omelettes was omelette du cure, containing soft carp roes and tuna fish, which Brillat-Savarin [a food writer] much admired." ---Larousse Gastronomique, Completely revised and updated edition [Clarkson Potter:New York] 2001 (p. 808) "The etymology of the world omelette (homelaicte in Rabelais) is also very obscure, although the dish itself goes back as far as the Romans. It thought to derive ultimately from lamella, a thin plate, referring to the long, flat shape of the omelette, and to represent a gradual corruption of [the word] allumelle first to allumelette, then to alomelette. Le cuisinier francois [a cookbook] of 1651 has aumelette. Jean-Jacques Rousseau...had the dexterity and precision required to turn his beaten eggs by tossing them in the air, like a pancake... The Cuisine bougeoise [another cookbook] of 1784 uses the modern form of the word, omelette, carefully distinguishing between it and scrambled eggs, a new recipe of the time..." ---The History of Food, Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat [Barnes & Noble:New York] 1992 (p. 359) [NOTE: This book has a wonderful history of eggs--pages 355-362] With regards to the question on the use of dairy products as an integral part of an omlette's egg mixture, we surveyed several centuries of cookbooks authored by top American/English chefs and culinary experts. We do not own many historic French cookbooks, which would be required to make this a truly balanced study. This is what we found: 17th, 18th, and 19th century sometimes contained dairy products (perhaps a holdover from ancient egg recipes), 20th century recipes typically do not. A buffet of simple omelettes through time: Ancient Rome Apicius includes several recipes for eggs in his cookbook, including one for "ova [eggs] sfongia ex lactem", eggs mixed with milk, oil, honey and pepper fried like a pancake. Recipe here. 1685 The Accomplisht Cook, Robert May, London, Prospect Books, 2000, (p. 430-1) "To make omlets divers ways. The first way. Break six, eight, or ten eggs more of less, beat them together in a dish, and put salt to them; then put some butter a melting in a frying pan, fry it more or less, according to your discretion, only on one side of bottom. You may sometimes make it green with juyce of spinage and sorrel beat with the eggs, or serve it with green sauce, a little vinegar and sugar boil'd together, and served up on a dish with the Omlet." "The sixth way. Beat the eggs, and put to them a little cream, a little grated bread, a little preserved lemon-peel minced or grated very small..." 1769 The Experience English Housekeeper, Elizabeth Raffald , London, Southover Press, 1997, (p. 148) "To make an Omelette. Put a quarter of a pound of butter into a frying pan. Break six eggs and beat them a little, strain them through a hair sieve. Put them in when your butter is hot and strew in a little shred parsley and boiled ham scraped fine with nutmeg, pepper and salt..." 1826 Physiologie du Gout, Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin [Paris] L'Omlette du Cure 1845 Modern Cookery for Private Families, Eliza Acton, London, Southover Press 2002 (p. 321) "A Common Omlet. Six eggs are sufficient for an omlet of moderate size. Let them be very fresh; break them singly and carefully...when they are sufficiently whisked pour them through a sieve, and resume the beating until they are very light. Add to them from half to a whole teaspoonful of salt, and a seasoning of pepper..." 1875 Cassell's Dictionary of Cookery, London (p. 466) "Omlete, Plain. The following recipe is by the often-quoted M. Soyer: "break four eggs into a basin, add half a tea-spoonful of salt, and a quarter of a tea-spoonful of pepper, and beat them well up with a fork...Two table-spoonfuls of milk...may be added." 1884 Boston Cooking School Cook Book, Mrs. D. A. Lincoln, Boston (p. 200) "Beat the yolks of two eggs till light-colored and thick; add two tablespoonfuls of milk, one saltspoonful of salt, and one fourth of a saltspoonful of pepper." 1890s Francatelli's Modern Cook, Charles Elme Francatelli, London (p. 395) "Omelet, with fine-herbs. Break six eggs in a basin, to these add half a gill of cream, a small pat of butter broken in small pieces, a spoonful of chopped parsley, some pepper and salt..." 1896 The Cook Book by "Oscar" of the Waldforf, Oscar Tschirky, New York (p. 585) "Plain omelets. Beat six eggs well in a basin and season with pepper and salt and a little water. Melt a large piece of butter in a frying pan, pour the beaten eggs in and stand it at the side but not on the fire, turning it often. When the edges are done gather them together and roll over and over, and serve them very hot." ---"Parsley omelet. Break two eggs in a basin, put one tablespoonful of milk with them and beat up, mixing thoroughly but not making too light; add a little salt and a tablespoonful of finely-chopped parsley while beating..." 1903 The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, A. Escoffier, English translation by H. L.Cracknell & R. J. Kaufmann [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1997 (p. 174) "Omelettes. The theory of the preparation of an omelette is both simple and at the same time very complicated for the simple reason that people's tastes for this type of dish are very different--one likes his omelette very well cooked, another likes it to be just done, and there are others who only like their omelette when it is extremely soft and underdone. The important thing is to know and understand the preference of the guest...In a few words, what is an omelette? It is really a special type of scrambled egg enclosed in a coating or envelope of coagulated egg and nothing else. The following recipes are for an omelette of 3 eggs each, of which the seasoning comprises a small pinch of fine salt and a touch of pepper, and which requires 15g (1/2 oz) of butter for its preparation." 1919 The Hotel St. Francis Cook Book, Victor Hirtzler, San Francisco (p. 102) ---"Omlete with fine herbs. Mix equal parts of chopped parsley, chervil, and chives with the beaten eggs, season well with salt and white pepper, and make the omelet in the usual manner." 1941 Cooking a la Ritz, Louis Diat [J.B. Lippincott:New York] (p. 289) "Omelette. Ordinary omelettes are made of three or four eggs as it is better to make them medium sized rather than too big to insure their being well cooked. For 3 eggs, use « teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon butter. Mix the eggs lightly with a fork and add the salt. Do not beat the eggs stiffly thinking to make the omelette lighter. On the contrary, the omelette will become heavier and more watery." 1966 The New York Times Menu Cook Book, Craig Claiborne [Harper & Row:New York] (p. 324) "Fresh herb omelet. 3 eggs, 1 tablespoon cold water, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon butter, 2 teaspoons chopped chives, 1 teaspoon chopped parsley, « teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon, 1 fresh parsley sprig." 1972 The French Chef Cookbook, Julia Child [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] (p. 105) "Omelette gratinee aux champignons...beat the eggs, a big pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper in the mixing bowl with a fork until the yolks and whites are blended-20 to 30 seconds." [NOTE: this recipe does call for cream sauce, but it is meant for the cheese & mushroom filling, not mixed directly in the eggs.] 2001 Larousse Gatronomique, compe (p. 809) "Plain omlette. Beat 8 eggs lightly and season with salt and (if liked) freshly ground pepper; 2-3 tablespoons milk or 1 tablespoon single (light) cream can be added to the beaten eggs."

I have no idea but I must say I absolutely love them. Infact I will have one today.

G'day GingerL, Thank you for your question. I was going to research this but couldn't possibly add anything to XTeddyXOXBearX's answer. Hats off to him or her. Regards

well there has been a load of people who have invented the omelette so im not to sure who did and they invented it because it tastes so good why don't u try one with cheese

Actually, I'm LOOKING for an answer to the origin of the word 'omelette'. can you help me? simonson@chello.nl

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