Oaxaca-inspired Eggs

Above, just before covering.

Above, the final product!

When Carolyn and I were in Oaxaca (Mexico) about 12 years ago, we had breakfast at a restaurant that served an interesting dish that consisted, essentially, of a bowl of tomato sauce in which the cook had floated a couple of eggs. The eggs were very soft (runny) and combined with the tomato sauce. Yesterday, we had tortillas and cilantro on hand and inspiration hit me. This is very different recipe, but the tomato sauce is a mental reference to that dining experience. You can make this in an 8” skillet, but ideally use two 6” skillets. You can use tomato sauce, but pizza sauce is thicker and more flavorful.

8 oz. pizza sauce
4 eggs
4 pcs. – corn tortillas
Onion powder
Cumin powder
Chile pepper powder
Cayenne pepper powder
Salt
Black pepper
Queso Chihuahua (grated or shredded)
Fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

Divide the pizza sauce between the two skillets. Sprinkle with onion, cumin, and chile pepper. About 1/8 of a teaspoon of each. Then sprinkle a little bit of the cayenne pepper.

Turn on the heat to medium. When the sauce is hot (bubbling), add two eggs, carefully, so the yolks don’t break and turn the heat down to low (i.e. just above simmering). Quickly distribute about 1 tablespoon of cilantro leaves and about 3 tablespoons of cheese. Cover.

Place two microwave safe plates into the microwave. Add the four tortillas on top and cover with a piece of wax paper. Heat two minutes.

Place two tortillas on each plate and slide the contents of the skillets off on to each. Salt and pepper to taste.

Poached Eggs

Carolyn gave me a set of four PoachPods (Crate & Barrel) for Father’s Day, which are floating egg poaching tools, made of silicone. They are simple to use and the results were perfect. This posting does not address how to make poached eggs in the conventional way. You’ll have to Google that.

To start, I began boiling water 3/4” of water in a sauté pan that has tall sides.  You could just a easily use a pot. I sprayed the inside of each pod with canola oil. Next I broke an egg into each pod, set them aside and turned the heat to simmer. Then I floated the pods in the water and covered the pan.  I cooked them for 5 minutes and they were perfectly done. Note, however, that you must remove the eggs immediately and serve them quickly because they continue to cook, even out of the water. Nevertheless, the eggs were nice and runny. Perhaps 15 or 30 seconds less in the water would have bought some extra time to serve everything.

Clean-up is simple. You merely “hang” the pods on one of the holes in the middle tray of your dishwasher. Or just wash by hand. The remaining bits of egg come off the silicone easily.

Next time I will try beaten eggs and see how they turn out. Perhaps something like an omelet consistency, I’m guessing.

Above, PoachPods at work.

Above, PoachPods “hanging” on the dishwasher rack, ready for a carnival ride.

Omelet

As simple as scrambled eggs, but better organized and ready to accept almost anything as a filling to prevent it from getting boring.  The beauty is that the basic omelet can be served without anything but a piece of toast.

Precook any fillings (except cheese) because when added as a filling, they will not cook at all and cold fillings would barely warm up.  Avoid crunchy things; somehow, they just don’t go well with an omelet.  Some cheese and diced ham  is classic, but generally, don’t go overboard with quantities.

Instructions for an omelet for one:

2 eggs
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons butter
pinch of salt
2 pinches of ground black pepper

Beat the eggs, water, salt and pepper in a bowl. Add the butter to a large seasoned skillet or nonstick pan and melt over medium-high heat.  As soon as the butter is melted, spread to evenly coat the bottom of skillet; add the eggs.  Grab the handle and swirl the eggs around so they cover the skillet evenly. Allow to cook until the eggs are set (i.e. not runny).  If you have a filling, add it at this point, over the middle third of the omelet.  Using a spatula, carefully turn the remain two thirds of the omelet over the middle third.  Turn of the heat and allow to sit for several minutes before serving on a hot plate.

Double the ingredients if preparing for two.

Note:  Experiment with the temperature. The goal is to deliver an omelet that is yellow; show no traces of caramelizing. i.e. not browned in any way. This can be more difficult than it sounds!

Magnolia Hotel Home Made Yogurt

Our friend Maria Jordan owns a small boutique hotel in Buenos Aires.  The breakfast she serves is outstanding and one of our favorite things is her home made yogurt.  She serves them in small glass jars.  We found similar jars (see photo) at the local grocery store (in Buenos Aires) and hauled them home.

About ten 3/4 cup servings.
8 cups milk (2% is fine) (do NOT use ultra pasturized milk)
¼ C. sugar (optional; but we add it)
1 T. vanilla (optional)
Buy a small container of plain yogurt to use as starter .
Bring milk to a simmer, over low heat so it doesn’t scorch the bottom of the pan. Allow to cool, but still hot (about 15-20 min.).  i.e. not so hot that you can’t put your finger in. Remove the “skin” that had formed on the top of the milk with a spoon and discard.
In a small bowl, pour off about a cup of the hot milk into a small deep bowl and mix in the plain yogurt. Stir in the sugar and vanilla. Pour this back into the plain warm milk and stir it all together. Pour into small clean, dry jars with lids (or a larger glass jar). Place into an unheated oven, or any place that would not have any drafts - it doesn’t need to be warm, just not cold. Leave for 6 to 8 house; but as much as 10-12 hours, if you want to leave over night. Then refrigerate for up to 10 days.
Note:  Our favorite way to eat our yogurt is to mix it with home made granola (see that recipe), ground flax seed and blueberries or other fruit.

Rapee Morv Andelle

– a Julia Childs recipe

A gratin of Shredded Potatoes with Ham, Eggs and Onions -  Serves 4

Tom brought this dish prepared, ready for baking, to Killasonna Lodge for our 2011 Memorial Day Weekend.  It’s a keeper.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

½ cup finely minced onions
2T olive oil
2T butter + 2T butter + more butter
2 cups (12 oz) finely diced cooked ham
4 eggs
4 cloves crushed garlic
2T minced parsley and/or chives and chervil
2/3 cup (3 oz) grated Swiss cheese
4T whipping cream, light cream or milk
Pinch of pepper
¼ teaspoon salt

Cook the onions slowly in the oil and 2 tablespoons butter for 5 minutes or so, until tender but not browned.

Raise the heat slightly, stir in ham, and cook a moment more.

Beat the eggs in a mixing bowl with the garlic, herbs, cheese, cream or milk, and seasonings.  The blend in the ham and onions.

Peel the potatoes and grate them, using large holes of grater.  A handful at a time, squeeze out their water.  Stir potatoes into egg mixture.  Check seasoning.  (May be prepared ahead to this point.)

Heat 2 tablespoons butter in the baking dish (or skillet). When foaming, pour in the potato and egg mixture.  Dot with butter.  Set in upper third of a preheated oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until top is nicely browned.  Serve directly from the dish or skillet.

The Birthday Granola

Natalie brought over some granola she made about a week ago.  It was supposed to be for Carolyn, but I must admit that I probably ate most of it.  I became addicted to it.  When my b-day rolled around she gave me a fresh batch and the recipe in the form of a card (below).  Not mention taking C and I out for dinner and some wine glass I.D. thing-a-ma-bobs.  Nice birthday!  The batch she made for my b-day was a bit more toasted than the first.  I like the toasty flavor.  I will be making this often!

Panetonne Bread Pudding

6 servings

Panettone -- A 15th century legend credits the invention to a Milanese nobleman, falconer Ughetto Atellani, who fell in love with Adalgisa, the daughter of a poor baker. To win her heart, Atellani disguised himself as a baker and cooked up a extravagant bread that included butter, eggs, and bits of raisins, candied lemon and orange peel. Nice story, but just one of numerous legends that surround this wonderful bread.

Bread Pudding – Bread dates back to the Neolithic era (~ 9,500 BC). Nobody knows when bread pudding was invented. Unfortunately, no romantic legends.

If it’s not the holiday season you can substitute ordinary white bread for the panettone to produce a standard bread pudding, which is worthwhile. We occasion a café in Chicago that makes theirs from day old croissants. I’ve also heard of bread pudding made from day old glazed donuts, which sounds interesting. Experiment! Add some dried cranberries, lemon peel or orange peel for fun. Some alternatives follow the recipe.

Note about rum sauce: Many people serve bread pudding with a rum sauce, but I haven’t tried it yet. Personally, I like drinking the rum while I prepare the bread pudding.

The recipe . . .

2-1/4 cups milk
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus some for greasing baking dish
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus some for sprinkling
6 tablespoons sugar, plus some for sprinkling
Pinch of salt
2 large or extra-large eggs
½ of a large Panettone (equal to six slices of white bread)

Preheat oven to 350 deg. F.

Combine milk, butter cinnamon, six tablespoons of sugar and salt in a saucepan and cook over low heat. Grease a baking dish with butter. Cut bread into large pieces (~1-1/2” x 1-1/2”) and place into the baking dish. Pour the milk over the bread and let soak for 10 minutes. Beat eggs and pour over the bread; mix lightly. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.

Place baking dish into a larger dish or pan and add water to the large pan to one inch of the top. Bake 1 hour. Test with a toothpick for doneness. The center can be fairly moist. Place under broiler to brown. Serve either warm or room temperature.

Egg Nog Bread Pudding

During the Christmas holiday substitute egg nog for the milk. Cut sugar back 1/3 to ½ or it will be quite sweet.

Chocolate Bread Pudding

Combine 2 oz. chopped bittersweet chocolate with the milk.

Apple Bread Pudding

Combine 1 cup of peeled and grated apples (drained) with the milk.