Breakfast Strata with Sausage, Mushroom, Monterey Jack - by Cooks Illustrated

Courtesy of Cooksillustrated.com

MAKES ONE 8 BY 8-INCH STRATA, SERVING 6

To weigh down the assembled strata, we found that two 1-pound boxes of brown or powdered sugar, laid side by side over the plastic-covered surface, make ideal weights. A gallon-sized zipper-lock bag filled with about 2 pounds of sugar or rice also works. This recipe doubles easily; use a 9 by 13-inch baking dish greased with only 1 1/2 tablespoons butter and increase the baking time as directed in step 4. Feel free to substitute any good melting cheese, such as Havarti, sharp cheddar, or colby.

INGREDIENTS

• 8 - 10slices supermarket French bread (1/2-inch thick) or Italian bread (6 - 7 ounces)
• 3tablespoons unsalted butter , softened
• 8ounces bulk breakfast sausage , crumbled
• 3medium shallots , minced (about 1/3 cup)
• 8ounces white button mushrooms , cleaned and quartered
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 1/2cup medium-dry white wine , such as Sauvignon Blanc
• 6ounces Monterey Jack cheese , grated (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 6large eggs
• 1 3/4cups half-and-half
• 2tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 225 degrees. Arrange bread in single layer on large baking sheet and bake until dry and crisp, about 40 minutes, turning slices over halfway through drying time. (Alternatively, leave slices out overnight to dry.) When cooled, butter slices on one side with 2 tablespoons butter; set aside.

2. 2. Fry sausage in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat, breaking sausage apart with wooden spoon, until sausage has lost raw color and begins to brown, about 4 minutes; add shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and translucent, about 1 minute longer. Add mushrooms to skillet, and cook until mushrooms no longer release liquid, about 6 minutes; transfer mixture to medium bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper. Add wine to skillet, increase heat to medium-high, and simmer until reduced to 1/4 cup, 2 to 3 minutes; set aside.

3. 3. Butter 8-inch square baking dish with remaining 1 tablespoon butter; arrange half the buttered bread slices, buttered-side up, in single layer in dish. Sprinkle half of sausage mixture, then 1/2 cup grated cheese evenly over bread slices. Arrange remaining bread slices in single layer over cheese; sprinkle remaining sausage mixture and another 1/2 cup cheese evenly over bread. Whisk eggs and parsley in medium bowl until combined; whisk in reduced wine, half-and-half, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Pour egg mixture evenly over bread layers; cover surface flush with plastic wrap, weigh down (see note, above), and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to overnight.

4. 4. Remove dish from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature 20 minutes. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Uncover strata and sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cheese evenly over surface; bake until both edges and center are puffed and edges have pulled away slightly from sides of dish, 50 to 55 minutes (or about 80 minutes for doubled recipe). Cool on wire rack 5 minutes; serve.

A lotta Frittata - from Food and Wine

Found in Food and Wine Magazine Foodandwine.com

This cheesy frittata is the kind of dish—fast, flexible and easy to reheat—that Tom Valenti likes to have around for all kinds of holiday eating. "A frittata is just as good, or maybe better, at midnight," he says.

Potato Frittata with Prosciutto and Gruyère

1. 1 dozen large eggs
2. 2 tablespoons water
3. Salt and freshly ground pepper
4. 1 packed cup shredded Gruyère
5. 4 ounces prosciutto, sliced 1/4 inch thick and cut into 1/4-inch dice
6. 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
7. 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
8. 2 scallions, thinly sliced

1. Preheat the oven to 375°. In a bowl, beat the eggs with the water and season with 3/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Beat in the Gruyère and prosciutto.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large, nonstick ovenproof skillet. Add the potatoes and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until tender and golden brown, about 7 minutes. Add the scallions and cook for 1 minute. Stir the egg mixture and add to the skillet. Stir to distribute the potatoes. Cook until the bottom is just set, about 3 minutes; lift the frittata to allow the uncooked eggs to seep underneath.
3. Bake the frittata for about 10 minutes, until nearly set in the center.
4. 1. Preheat the broiler. Broil the frittata 8 inches from the heat for 1 minute, until the top is just beginning to brown. Cut the frittata into wedges and serve hot or at room temperature.
   MAKE AHEAD The unmolded frittata can be kept at room temperature for 4 hours.

Perfect Poached Eggs by Cooks Illustrated

Recipe from my favorite food magazine Cooksillustrated.com

Published May 1, 1997.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:

When developing a poached egg recipe that would address the difficulty of getting the eggs in and out of the water intact, our first thought was to trade in the usual saucepan for a skillet, which, being shallow, gives the cook much easier access to the eggs. The addition of vinegar to the cooking water helped to set the eggs quickly in our poached egg recipe. Contrary to the usual interpretation of poaching, we also thought we'd try to limit the eggs’ exposure to rapidly boiling water, which can cause the eggs to disintegrate. We brought the water up to a full boil before adding the eggs, then turned off the heat once the eggs were in the pan, letting the residual heat in the water cook them.

SERVES 2, TWO EGGS EACH

Poached eggs take well to any number of accompaniments. Try serving them on a bed of grated mild cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese or creamed spinach; in a pool of salsa; on a thick slice of tomato topped with a slice of Bermuda onion; on a potato pancake; or simply with plain buttered toast.

INGREDIENTS

• 1teaspoon table salt plus more to taste
• 2tablespoons white vinegar
• 4large eggs , each cracked into a small handled cup
• Ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. Fill 8- to 10-inch nonstick skillet nearly to rim with water, add 1 teaspoon salt and the vinegar, and bring mixture to boil over high heat.

2. 2. Lower the lips of each cup just into water at once; tip eggs into boiling water, cover, and remove from heat. Poach until yolks are medium-firm, exactly 4 minutes. For firmer yolks (or for extra large or jumbo eggs), poach 4 1/2 minutes; for looser yolks (or for medium eggs), poach 3 minutes.

3. 3. With slotted spoon, carefully lift and drain each egg over skillet. (Can be dropped into ice water and refrigerated up to 3 days; see related Quick Tip: “Storing Poached Eggs.”) Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Egg Salad That Can't Be Beat

Found this recipe on a nicely designed site, with spectacularly beautiful food photography called bellaeats.com - Visit and enjoy.

Egg salad from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters

serves 4 (unless you're a big, big fan like me...then you might want to double the recipe)

Ingredients

• 6 eggs*, at room temperature (if you can, please buy happy, organic, farmer-raised chicken eggs)
• 2 tsp capers - rinsed, drained, and chopped
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh chives*
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley*
• salt
• freshly-ground black pepper
• pinch of cayenne
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise (Alice recommends homemade, which I'm sure is simple and lovely, but I used store-bought)
• 2 tsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup diced celery

Method

1. Cook the eggs in simmering water for 10 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and cool in a bowl of ice-cold water. Peel and chop the eggs coarsely.
2. Mix together the rest of the ingredients. Add the chopped eggs and mix well.
3. Adjust seasoning if necessary.

Poached Eggs In Wine Sauce At Balthazar

Found this on an interesting blog www.frombatoparis.com - thank you Cristina

On the menu at Balthazar in Soho New York City

For these Eggs Meurette (serves 2) you will need:

* fresh eggs, 2
* Burgundy wine ( or similar), 90 ml
* bacon slices, 4
* butter, 35gr
* vinegar, 1 teaspoon
* red onions, 2
* brown sugar, 2 teaspoons
* slices of bread, 2
* fresh greens,

(for the “beurre manié“)
* butter, 1 teaspoon
* flour, 1 teaspoon

For the red wine sauce: combine using a fork, one teaspoon of soft butter (room temperature), with one teaspoon of flour. Knead it into a ball. Refrigerate (this is called “beurre manié” (Once you are at it, you can make more “balls” of beurre manié, keeping them in the freezer for other sauces that you will make in the future; remember the proportion flour, butter is always 50/50). Put the wine in a saucepan, let it boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer till reduced to a third (it should have a syrup consistence). Add the beurrie manie. Whisk until well dissolved, and the sauce coats a wooden spoon.

Put the slices of bacon on the grill rack of your oven ( 110°C) Cook until crispy. At the same time, you can toast the slices of bread ( I used Poilâne here)

For the caramelized onions: slice the onions thinly. Melt the butter. Sauté the onions in it. Add the sugar. Then reduce the heat, and let the onions caramelize for 25′ aprox.

For the poached eggs: put water in two saucepans. Take them to a boil and then, reduce the heat to medium. Add one teaspoon of vinegar to the water in one saucepan. Break the egg in a little bowl. Swirl the water with the vinegar using a spoon, place the egg in the central hollow that is formed. Cook the egg for 3′. Then with a slotted spoon, remove it from this water, and rinse it in the water of the other saucepan. Drain it on paper towels. Trim off the stringy edges, if necessary, using a small knife.

Put the slice of toasted bread on a dish, accomodate one dollop of caramelised onions on it, then the poached egg. Serve with greens. Place the two slices of bacon on the greens. Spoon the sauce over the egg.

Meatloaf + Eggs = Tasty

From Saveur.com

May 2010 issue is full of classic comfort foods like this delicious meat loaf. They based this recipe on one in Lobel’s Meat Bible by Stanley, Evan, Mark, and David Lobel (Chronicle Books, 2009), and featured it as part of Betsy Andrews's roundup of the best recently published meat cookbooks ("A Well-Read Carnivore").

3 slices crustless white bread

Kosher salt, to taste

16 oz. spinach leaves, stemmed

12 oz. ground beef chuck

12 oz. ground pork

4 oz. thinly sliced mortadella, minced

1 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan

1 tsp. minced fresh rosemary leaves

1⁄4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

2 eggs, lightly beaten, plus 3 hard-boiled eggs

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium onion, minced

Freshly ground black pepper, 
to taste

2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1⁄2 cup beef broth

1⁄2 cup white wine

1. Tear bread into small pieces and transfer to bowl of food processor. Process until finely ground; set aside. Bring a 4-qt. saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add spinach and cook, stirring, until just wilted, 15–30 seconds. Using a slotted spoon, transfer spinach to a bowl of ice water. Drain spinach and squeeze it with your hands to remove excess water. Set spinach aside.

2. Heat oven to 400°. In a large bowl, combine the bread crumbs with the beef, pork, mortadella, cheese, rosemary, nutmeg, beaten eggs, garlic, and onions, and season with salt and pepper. Transfer half of the meat mixture to a 9" x 13" baking dish. Using your hands, form meat mixture into a 4" x 8" rectangle about 1" thick. Arrange half of the spinach on top of rectangle in a 2"-wide strip down the middle. Arrange the hard-boiled eggs end to end on top of the strip of spinach, and top eggs with remaining spinach. Using your hands, shape the remaining meat mixture on a sheet of parchment paper into a rectangle roughly 4" x 8" and lay it over the spinach, eggs, and meat. Press the meat gently around the eggs to form a uniform loaf, pinching top half of meat together with bottom half and smoothing any seams.

3. Brush meat loaf with oil and bake for 30 minutes. Pour in broth and wine and continue cooking meat loaf, basting every 10 minutes or so with liquid, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the loaf registers 155°, about 20 minutes more. Using a spatula, transfer meat loaf to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Strain cooking liquid; set aside. To serve, cut meat loaf into thick slices, transfer to a serving platter, and spoon some of the reserved cooking liquid over the top.

Breakfast Pizza - Good Morning

Found this recipe on smittenkitchen.com

Breakfast Pizza

Adapted, barely, from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook via an earlier version of it

Makes 2 (12-inch) pizzas

When I asked what I would change about this when I make it again, I drew a blank. I actually like it that much the way it is. Nevertheless, the bacon could of course be omitted if you’re bacon-averse, countless toppings could be added from spinach to mushrooms or sausage, you could swap some or all of the mozzarella for goat cheese and you could swap out some of the flour in the crust for whole wheat flour. Although the recipe as is makes two large pizzas, I think it would be fun to make six smaller ones with one egg each in the center — plus, friends could choose their own toppings. So “drew a blank” = okay, I have a few ideas. But I’m pretty sure I’ll be making this exactly as written next time.

1/2 teaspoon dry active yeast
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons bread flour, plus more for dusting
Kosher salt
6 strips bacon
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
2 cups grated mozzarella
6 large eggs
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons minced chives
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 shallot, minced

The night before, prepare the dough: Place 3/4 cup lukewarm water in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Sprinkle in the yeast, stir and let sit for 5 minutes. Add the flour and 1 teaspoon of salt and mix on low for 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes, then increase the speed to high and mix until a smooth dough forms, about 2 minutes more. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, divide into two equal pieces and form each half into a tight ball. Place on a large floured sheet pan, place the pan in a plastic garbage bag, tie the bag loosely and refrigerate overnight.

One to two hours* before baking, place the dough in a warm spot. Adjust the oven rack to the lowest position and set a pizza stone on it. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees 30 minutes before you are ready to bake the pizza.

Prepare the dough and toppings: Fry the bacon in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until crisp. Cool on a paper-towel-lined plate; roughly chop.

Dip your hands and a ball of dough into the flour. On a lightly floured countertop, pat the dough into a disc with your fingertips, then drape the dough over your fists and carefully stretch it from beneath to form a 12-inch circle.

Generously dust the surface of a pizza peel or large inverted sheet pan with flour and place the stretched dough on it. Sprinkle the dough with half of the Parmesan, mozzarella and bacon. Crack 3 eggs over the top and season with salt and pepper.

Bake the pizza: Shake the pizza peel slightly to make sure the dough is not sticking. Carefully lift any sections that are sticking and sprinkle a bit more flour underneath, then slide the pizza directly onto the baking stone in one quick forward-and-back motion. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating after 5 minutes. When the crust is golden, the cheese is melted and the egg yolks are cooked, use the peel to transfer the pizza to a cutting board. Sprinkle half of the parsley, chives, scallions and shallot on top. Let cool for 2 minutes, slice and serve immediately. Prepare the second pizza in the same way.

* The original recipe suggests that you take the dough out one hour before baking but I took mine out two hours earlier, because I always find it takes a looong time to get dough back to proofing at room temperature. In this time, you can lazily prepare the toppings and get your oven nice and hot.

Perfect Scrambled Eggs Says Cooks Illustrated

If you love to cook then I highly recommend my favorite food magazine, Cooks Illustrated.

The website is cooksillustrated.com. Unfortunately it's not a free site. However buying the magazine subscription gets you free web access. It's not for super fancy cooking. It's basic cooking tips on everything from cooking the best meatloaf to baking the perfect apple pie. They test their recipes numerous times so that they're fail safe. Their food and product reviews are also fantastic. They test everything from bottled ketchup to the best cooking knives.

SERVES 2

It's important to follow visual cues, as pan thickness will affect cooking times. If using an electric stove, heat one burner on low heat and a second on medium-high heat; move the skillet between burners for temperature adjustment. If you don't have half-and-half, substitute 8 teaspoons of whole milk and 4 teaspoons of heavy cream. To dress up the dish, add 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley, chives, basil, or cilantro or 1 tablespoon of dill or tarragon to the eggs after reducing the heat to low.

INGREDIENTS

• 4large eggs plus 1 large yolk
• 2tablespoons half-and-half
• 1/8teaspoon salt
• 1/8teaspoon pepper
• 1/2tablespoon unsalted butter , chilled

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. Beat eggs, yolks, half-and-half, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper with fork until eggs are thoroughly combined and color is pure yellow; do not overbeat.
2. 2. Heat butter in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until foaming just subsides (but should not brown), swirling to coat pan. Add egg mixture and, using rubber spatula, constantly and firmly scrape along bottom and sides of skillet until eggs begin to clump and spatula just leaves trail on bottom of pan, 45 to 75 seconds. Reduce heat to low and gently but constantly fold eggs until clumped and just slightly wet, 30 to 60 seconds. Immediately transfer eggs to warmed plates and season with salt to taste. Serve immediately.

STEP-BY-STEP

UNSCRAMBLING PERFECT SCRAMBLED EGGS

To get big, fluffy, tender, and rich-tasting curds, we experimented with every element of the process until
we nailed the right formula.

• 8 EGGS PLUS 2 YOLKS
  adding yolks not only enriches the egg flavor, but the extra fat and emulsifiers raise the coagulation temperature to stave off overcooking.
• HALF-AND-HALF
  offers more rich-flavored fat than milk but also contains enough water to generate the steam necessary to make the eggs puff up.
• 10-INCH SKILLET
  Trading the usual 12-inch pan for a smaller 10-inch one keeps the eggs in a thicker layer, thereby trapping more steam and producing heartier curds.
• DUAL-HEAT METHOD
  starting the egg mixture over medium-high heat creates puffy curds; turning the heat to low once the eggs coagulate ensures that they won’t overcook.

Beautiful Chinese Tea Eggs

Found this recipe at http://asiansupper.com/

If you've never had this classic Chinese street snack, you're missing out on an incredibly flavorful way to eat hard boiled eggs. They're perfect for a picnic or a hike, and while a humble boiled egg, the intricate marbled design gives them a certain "wow" factor, good if you want to mix it up with a different hors d'oeuvres for a party.

While it doesn't take too much work to make tea eggs, it does take time, so you might as well make a batch of them instead of just a few. I typically make 6-8 eggs with the recipe below. If you'd like to make a lot more, you should adjust the spices & water up.

RECIPE INGREDIENTS:

• 6-8 eggs (you can make more or less, it's up to you)
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tsp chinese five-spice (if you don't have this, you can substitute 2 star anise & 1 cinnamon stick)
• 2 tsp salt
• 3 black teabags or 3-4 tsp black tea

RECIPE STEPS:

• Bring eggs to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for about 5-7 minutes. Cool the eggs by rinsing in cold water. Let them rest in cool water for a minute or two.
• Using the back of a spoon, lightly tap the egg shells all over to create a pattern of fine spider-like cracks. Set them back into your pot and cover them again with cool water.
• Add the soy sauce, five-spice, salt and black tea to your pot. Simmer, covered, for at least an hour, better yet two hours.
• You can eat the eggs immediately, or you can let them steep longer in the refrigerator. To steep them in the refrigerator, transfer the eggs into a container with enough liquid to cover them.

Serving Size: 3-5
Preparation Time: 20 minutes