Posts tagged greens
My little volcano – Egg nests in a green crater
Sep 15th
Mon petit volcan – Nids d’oeufs en cratère vert
I got inspired by a very popular Turkish dish called “Mthlama” made out of Swiss chards, onions, mint and eggs. I used kale in this dish, simply because I love the texture of a thicker green leaf.
Turkish cuisine has combined flavors of Mediterranean and Arabic cuisine, of course Ottoman Empire was so powerful and rich in culture and arts, that left a huge trace in a large part of the Asian continent. Turkish cuisine is high in colors and flavors, it has evolved during centuries into a very refined cuisine. Due to their geographical location, the seven Turkish regions have various specialties all sharing a common point of having powerful flavors. I would like to visit Turkey some day, not only for their gastronomy but for their designers as well.
When you’re in the mood for some greens, this is a very fragrant and light recipe that will satisfy you without leaving you hungry. I would not call this a very elegant nor sophisticated dish, it’s definitely a rustic dish that sits in your plate with an imperfect shape. But when the yolks starts dripping on the minty greens, and you dip your “mouillette” (toasted bread sticks for dipping) in it, it is pure pleasure…you know, one of those simple pleasure, such as smelling a rose, or biting on a crunchy and fresh piece of baguette (that’s the French in me).
So if you have a bunch of greens but have no idea on how to prepare them, this is perfect. It does not need advanced culinary skills, just a few eggs, mint, et voilà c’est prêt!
Ingredients for 4
- 2 bunches kale
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 1/3 cup vegetable broth
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 3 tbs mint
- 4 eggs
- 4 slices country bread sticks, toasted
- salt and pepper
Preparation
Blanch kale for 5 minutes in salted boiling water. Drain and chop in small strips, removing the stem which tends to be hard.
Heat olive oil in a pan, add onions and brown then them. Add Kale and broth, cover and let the kale cook and soften. Adjust with salt and pepper. Add paprika and mint and stir for another 5 minutes until the water and juices evaporates.
In a baking and deep dish, form little nests and break an egg in the middle. Add salt and pepper on top of the egg and drizzle with olive oil.
Cook in a pre-heated oven at 375F for 10 minutes, ensuring the egg is not over-cooked. Serve with toasted bread.
A cozy nest – quail eggs in purple potato nest with smoked salmon, chive sauce on a bed of lemon greens
Jun 29th
Un nid bien douillet – oeufs de caille en nid de vitelotte et saumon fumé, sauce ciboulette sur verdures melangées au citron
Quail eggs…have you ever seen something cuter? They’re very popular in France to add to any appetizer but unfortunately they are not available everywhere in the US. Whole Foods and Sigona market sell them, but those are the only grocery stores where I have seen them on the shelves. Whole Foods sell ostrich eggs for about $30 each but I bet you can feed 4 or 5 people with one of those eggs.
Those adorable quail eggs found a nest in the middle of a potato, they fit perfectly in it, they’re just waiting to be savored with a bit of salmon and fromage blanc touch. I like to use fromage blanc, instead of heavy cream or sour cream, it’s a lot lighter and does not taste sour. If you cannot find fromage blanc, you could substitute it with greek yogurt either the plain one or the 2%. Fromage blanc is a dairy French specialty which has the texture of something in between greek yogurt and sour cream. Very smooth, creamy and velvety.
For the mixed greens you can use any leafy greens, such as spinach, collard greens, etc…
Ingredients for 4 as appetizers
- 4 medium size purple potatoes or any other potato
- 8 quail eggs
- 2 large slices of smoked sockeye salmon
- 1/2 lb mixed greens
- zest of one lemon
- juice of one lemon
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 2 tbs fromage blanc or Greek yogurt
- 1 tbs chopped chives
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 1 tsp rice vinegar
- salt and pepper
Preparation
Wash the potatoes. Pat dry and cut them in half lentghwise, the largest surface should be the one cut in half so that the quail egg would fit in each hole.
Drizzle olive oil and vinegar, add salt and pepper and broil at low heat. Cook until the potatoes are tender but browned on the outside.
In the meantime, bring water to a boil, add salt and cook greens for about 10 minutes. Drain.
Wash lemon and remove zest. Cook lemon zest in boiling water for 3 minutes. Drain and pat dry. Chop in smaller pieces.
In a mixing bowl and lemon juice (keep one tsp to add to fromage blanc), olive oil, lemon zest, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix well. Add to the cooked greens.
When potatoes are cooked, remove from the oven and break a quail egg in the middle of the hole, sprinkle with salt and pepper and place back in oven for 3 minutes. Do not overcook the eggs, the yolks need to remain liquid.
Mix fromage blanc with chives, 1 tps lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Cut salmon in strips. Place on top of eggs, and add 1/2 tsp of fromage blanc mixture.
Serve two potato halves on top of 1 tbs of greens.
