Early in the summer I started planning a Friendship Brunch with my friend Tania. We wanted to bring together a group of women, that tirelessly work for our community day in and day out. Both of us enjoy planning events, big or small, first things first: Food! We met over lunch (of course), and picked a date, planned a menu, chose location (her house), assigned tasks, created an electronic invitation, sent, and done! We can get a lot done in one hour, that is something that we found out, few years back when both Tania and I, were serving on a non-profit agency board together.
When the day arrived, there was a lot of cooking done, our menu included: Mimosas, freshly brewed coffee, and iced tea. Maple syrup bacon, muffin eggs, fruit salad, Italian sausage hash, homemade biscuits, and this Egg Toast with Citrus Greens. We had a great time brunching amongst friends, having pleasant conversations, asking for advice from one another, and most importantly, growing friendships. Some of us work for private corporations, some work for non-profits, schools, or the city, some are business owners; but we all have one thing in common: we all care deeply about our Latino community. We are all doing our best to ensure that our kids, and the following generations, have great opportunities to succeed.
Ok, so let’s talk about this recipe. I love eggs! There are so many different ways to cook them, that you can never be bored, right?. For this particular recipe, the only thing you have to pay attention to, is the cooking time. In order to achieve super creamy eggs, you have to stop the cooking before the yolk is cooked all the way through. No worries, is really easy. I recommend to use a kitchen timer, to ensure perfect cooking time. The toast is cooked in butter until crunchy. To balance the richness of the eggs, and the buttery toast, citrusy mixed greens are the perfect bed for our egg toast. I used arugula and pea shots, you can use any combination you have. Let’s get cooking.
Ingredients:
(serves 4)
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon salt
4 thick slices Pullman white bread
4 tablespoons butter
Salt & pepper to taste
2 cups mixed greens
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste
Smoked Paprika, for garnish (optional)
Place eggs in a medium sauce pan, cover with cold water. Cook over high heat to bring to a boil. Allow to bubble for 1 minute, remove from heat, leave the eggs in the water for 9 minutes. Pour off hot water, cover eggs with cold water, let sit for 5 minutes. Peel eggs, place in a bowl, add salt, and mash with a fork until creamy.
Cut each slice of bread into 3 pieces. Place a sauté pan over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon butter, and heat until frothy. Add 3 pieces of bread, season with salt and pepper. Turn toast to brown on all sides. Remove from the pan, and drain on paper towels. Repeat with each slice of bread until they are all toasted. Note: Because the bread absorbs the butter really quickly, I prefer to cook with one tablespoon of butter at a time, cooking each serving separate.
In a large bowl, whisk lemon juice, and olive oil until emulsify, season with salt & pepper. Toss the mixed greens gently to coat.
To serve, place half cup of citrus greens on a plate, arrange 3 pieces of butter toast over the salad, top each toast with 1 tablespoon of creamy eggs. Sprinkle with smoked paprika, if using. Serve warm or at room temperature. Enjoy!
This recipe was adapted from the book Shefzilla by chef Stewart Woodman.
