Egg Clouds

Eggs- love them or hate them, they are undeniably one of the easiest things to cook.  I've found myself on both sides of the egg divide.  When I was younger I couldn't stand the whites of eggs, and would only eat the yolks runny with toast dippers.  As I've gotten older I've come around to fully embrace eggs, but even though I fully appreciate a good hard boiled, poached, or fried egg; I do find that they can get a little boring.

I was completely blown away when I saw the picture of this recipe on foodgawker.  

Yes, the entire thing is an egg.  Well, an egg with some mix-ins, but an egg nonetheless.  The yolk is nestled in a little cloud of whipped egg white.  I found the idea so original and whimsical, I knew I had to give it a shot.

The recipe is a little more complicated than most recipes, but it is still pretty easy and quick.  So it is undoubtedly a beautiful dish, but how does it taste?  The texture is very different than any egg I've ever had before- it's simultaneously light, spongy, and tender.  This version is loaded with garlic chives, bacon, and pecorino romano.  A perfect combination that makes this one deliciously savory breakfast treat.

Egg Clouds

Slightly adapted from here.  Serves 4.

Ingredients

 4 eggs
1 ounce grated pecorino romano cheese
1/4 cup chopped garlic chives
4 slices bacon, cooked to a crisp and crumbled
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions
1.  Preheat oven to 450F.  Separate egg whites from yolks, putting whites in one large bowl and yolks in 4 small separate bowls.
2.  Whip egg whites until stiff peaks form.  Carefully fold in chives, cheese, and bacon.
3.  Place 4 separate mounds of egg white mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet, making a deep well in the center of each mound.  Bake for 3 minutes.
4.  Remove from oven and place 1 yolk in each egg white well.  Season with salt and pepper and bake another 2 to 3 minutes.

Meatless Monday: Curried Carrot Soup

Carrots have never really been a favorite of mine (although I eat them quite frequently).  They are the quintessential quotidian vegetable- a reliable if somewhat boring source of vitamin A.  

Curried Carrot Soup

In this luxurious soup the mundane carrot is elevated from a lunch bag side kick to a main course super hero.  I paired mine with roasted asparagus (my favorite!) and a nice hunk of baguette.  This soup is delicious, only requires a handful of ingredients, and is ready in about 40 minutes.  Adapted slightly from Martha Stewart.

Ingredients

2 tbsp butter

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 large yellow onion, small diced

1 tsp curry powder

2 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into 1 in. chunks

3.5 cups low sodium chicken (or vegetable) stock

3 cups water

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp lemon juice

Directions

1.  In a large pot melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the onion and cook for a couple of minutes until fragrant.  Add the garlic and curry powder, and continue to cook until the onions are soft, about another 5 minutes.

2.  Next add the carrots, stock, water, 2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper.  Bring mixture to a boil, and then cover and let simmer for 20 minutes until carrots are fork tender.

3.  Remove the soup from the heat, and using an immersion blender, blend the soup until all the carrots have been pureed.  Add the lemon juice and season to taste.  

WIAW- easy like Sunday morning

Hey y'all, I'm back.  I took a wee little hiatus from WIAW (and to a lesser extent blogging period), and it's done me some good.  I've had a chance to reconnect with the reason I started this damn thing, my undying love for all things tasty.






I've decided that documenting all of my Tuesday eats has been stressing me out, so I've decided to give Sunday a chance.  My Sundays are usually pretty relaxed (bathrobe all day) and are leisurely spent in the kitchen.

This past Sunday started in the wee hours of the afternoon... Well technically it was 11:30am, but whatever, it's Sunday so who's counting, right?

Brunch:

So I usually want a more elaborate breakfast on the weekends, but this Sunday I was STARVING when I woke up.  I placated the hunger beast with a fruit salad (apple, orange, strawberries) topped with some Greek yogurt and granola.  This of course was just the first course.

Up next roasted potatoes, sweet potatoes, and onion.  It's seriously the easiest breakfast hash ever, since it is done in the oven rather than the stove top.  You just set it- "AND FORGET IT!!!"  (Anyone else ever watch that infomercial like a billion times as a kid, no, just me?)

I was pretty full after this, so I'm glad that the "dessert" took a while to finish:

Beautiful.  As long as I can remember I have been OBSESSED with artichokes.  Even as a kid, I would pester my mom to buy a couple every time I saw them.  Steamed simply with water and lemon, then dipped in melted butter- perfection.  This artichoke was particularly awesome because it came with an eight inch long stem = extra deliciousness (because lets be honest here the stem/heart is the best part).

Anyway after this crazy feast which took all of two or so hours to complete, I was pretty full for the rest of the afternoon.  At about 4pm I was feeling a bit peckish, so I made some hard boiled eggs.

The bowl next to them has the very best friend of hard boiled eggs, soy sauce with a squirt of sriracha-yum!  These were perfect too, soft and velvety, without the disgusting smelly green film around the yoke.  That friends is the sign of an overcooked egg.  For eggcelent hard boileds every time, all you have to do is cover your eggs in cold water, bring them to a boil, and then cover and remove from the heat, and let sit 12 minutes.  Seriously, it's like magic.

Dinner came a few hours later in the way of whole wheat penne with green garlic, bacon, and peas.  Delicious- spring on a plate.

Anyway, that's all for now folks!  Thanks for stopping by and have a great Wednesday.

Meatless Monday: Moar lentilz plz!!!

Okay, okay, so I know there are a lot of jokes going around about lentils.  Namely because they are often used by the well-meaning folks as a cure all for the problems of the poor, fat, and hungry.

I.E.  "All the poor fat peoplez should eat all the lentilz because they're healthy and cheaper than a Big Mac!!"

All ass-hattery aside, I really think people should eat more lentils.  They are healthy, cheap, and insanely delicious!!!  The only downside as far as I can see is there lack of, shall we say, visual appeal?

Honestly, this is actually a pretty good picture of lentils.  If you want to see them in their total paradoxically ugly/ delicious form, see this post here on Sausage with Lentils.

Where was I?

Right, lentils are delicious (if somewhat disgusting looking), and I really could eat them any day of the week.  (Mr. greenhorngourmande still remains somewhat unconvinced of this all lentil diet.  That's okay though, because that just means more for me.)

Seriously though, I'm pretty in love with this tasty little legume.  As seen in a recent photo of me daydreaming of this particular lentil dish, Mujadara.

I can haz all the lentilz!?!?!

I do have to admit that this particular dishes appeal lies not so much in the lentils, but rather the copious amounts of caramelized onions contained within.  This dish is hearty, savoury, and ready in about 45 minutes.  Give it a try, and maybe you too will find yourself as a member of #teamlentilz4life.

Mujadara

Ingredients

1 tbsp canola oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp garam masala
2 cups brown lentils, rinsed
1 cup long grain rice
4-6 cups liquid (veg. stock, chicken stock, water etc.)
2 large onions, thinly sliced
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper

Directions
1.  In a large pot heat 1 tbsp of oil and add the diced onions.  Cook until softened and add the garlic and garam masala, cooking until fragrant.
2.  Add the lentils and 4 cups of liquid.  Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 20 minutes until lentils are beginning to become soft.  Add the rice and enough liquid to cover by about an inch.  Stir together, cover, and cook over low heat until rice and lentils are completely cooked.
3.  While lentils are cooking in step 2, melt the butter and olive oil in a large frying pan.  Add the onions, salt and pepper, and cook until caramelized.
4.  Stir caramelized onions into the cooked rice and lentils, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Weeknight lovin' pt. 2- Why everything should be made in one pot

I am a brown bagger.  Well, technically speaking, I'm a 'zip-lock bagger', since I always pack my lunch in the same old freezer bag.  (Far more leak proof, don't-cha know?)  The soup du jour is pretty much always leftovers, most of the time they're decent enough, but every once and a while they leave the whole office greedily sniffing the air and asking hopefully, "did you get that from around here?"

Of course I have to shatter their dreams of a fragrant lunch when I tell them that it's just my leftovers.  (Although I always offer the consolation prize: the recipe.)

At any rate, this dish I'm about to share is one of the aforementioned leftovers that left my coworkers with lunch envy.

It's something along the lines of a gumbo, but with more of a Mexican flair.  It's bursting with flavor, and when served over brown rice, it makes a hearty and satisfying weeknight meal.

Chicken Sausage Stew

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil

2 jalapeno chicken sausages, cut into 1/4in half moons

1 medium onion, sliced into 1/2in half moons

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Serrano pepper, finely chopped

1 can diced tomatoes

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp coriander

2 tsp fresh thyme

2 cups kidney beans

1 cup sliced bell pepper

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

kosher salt

freshly ground pepper

Directions

1.  In a large heavy bottomed pot or dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat and brown the sausage.  Once the sausage is browned, remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.  In the same oil, add the onions, salt and pepper, and cook until slightly softened and translucent.  Add the garlic and Serrano, and cook until fragrant, about one more minute.

2.  Add the diced tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, coriander, and thyme.  Stir to combine and let simmer for 10 minutes.  Add the beans and peppers and continue to simmer until peppers are softened, about 15 minutes.  Add the lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste.  Serve over white or brown rice.  Garnish with avocado if desired.  (I really recommend it).