Never been as angry at a dish as I was at this one. (I mean, as angry as you can get making dinner, I guess.) Either I don't know what I'm doing with polenta, or instructions to fry polenta are mean and evil. Polenta explodes... all those little bits of corn pop pop pop in the hot oil, causing much cussing and consternation. I had a dish towel covering the arm of my spatula hand, and a piece of aluminum foil in my other hand as a shield for the rest of me. Add the danger to the fact that the polenta rectangles don't stay in one piece, rendering themselves unpretty plate additions... bah. Hateful.
Other than that, I was pretty happy with dinner. The poached egg oozed dreamily over the lightly-dressed arugula and the polenta blobs provided nice texture and heft. Speaking of the polenta, this was the first time I'd made it with coconut milk and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked it. The coconut flavor was a nice twist - I wouldn't do it all the time, but it made for a nice change.
So. If you have an outfit made of silicone and gloves on, make this tasty salad for yourself!
Poached Eggs with Arugula and Polenta Fingers
c/o Bon Appetit Magazine, May 2008
From Oliver Maindroult of Urbane.
1 13.5 to 14 ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
½ cup water
½ cup polenta (coarse cornmeal)
1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 ½ tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
4 large eggs
2 cups arugula
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
Fleur de sel
Butter 13x9x2-ince baking pan. Bring coconut milk and ½ water to a boil in heavy medium saucepan. Gradually whisk in polenta; reduce heat and simmer until polenta is very thick and tender, about 7 minutes. Mix in cheese. Pour polenta into half of pan; spread to form 9x6-inch rectangle. Press plastic wrap onto surface of polenta and chill until firm, about 1 hour. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.
Preheat oven to 300°F. Turn polenta out onto cutting board. Cut into 3x1 –inch rectangles. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Working in batches, add polenta fingers; cook until golden, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to baking sheet; keep warm in oven.
Add enough water to large skillet to reach depth of 2 inches; bring to simmer. Mix in 1 teaspoon coarse salt and white wine vinegar. Crack each egg into separate custard cup. Slide eggs into water and cook until whites are set but centers are still runny, about 3 minutes.
Meanwhile, toss arugula with ½ tablespoon oil and balsamic vinegar in medium bowl; divide among 4 plates.
Top each salad with poached egg. Break yolks with tip of knife. Sprinkle with fleur de sel. Serve with polenta.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Poached Eggs with Arugula and Polenta Fingers
Friday, December 28, 2007
Goat Cheese, Lentil and Potato Salad
We had this last week, maybe the week before. I was really excited about it because it was cold and icky outside, and I like to think that this was a decently healthy dinner. Sure, I crumbled a ton of goat cheese on top.... and then topped the goat cheese with a poached egg (not pictured because it didn't photograph well.) But other than cheese and egg, it was totally healthy! :)
Now, I try to keep a decent amount of herbs on hand... its easier in the summer, when I have them potted outside... but if you have parsley and mint, and also have a decently stocked pantry, you could make this for dinner in a pinch. Try it, you'll like it.
Goat Cheese, Lentil and Potato Salad
c/o Food & Wine magazine, October 2007
http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/goat-cheese-lentil-and-potato-salad
1 1/4 cups French green lentils (9 ounces), rinsed and drained
2 Yukon Gold potatoes (about 14 ounces), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
3 scallions, thinly sliced
2 medium tomatoes, seeded and finely diced
1/2 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup finely chopped mint
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
8 ounces fresh goat cheese, crumbled (1 3/4 cup)
In a large saucepan, cover the lentils with cold water and bring to a simmer. Cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until the lentils are tender, about 18 minutes. Drain the lentils well and transfer to a large bowl.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, cover the potatoes with cold water and bring to a boil. Cook over moderately high heat until the potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. Drain very well and add to the lentils. Add the scallions, tomatoes, parsley, mint, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice, season with salt and pepper and toss. Spoon the lentil salad onto plates and top with the goat cheese. Serve at once.
Make ahead: The cooked lentils and potatoes can be refrigerated overnight. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Wine: Though lentils are earthy, the tangy dressing and goat cheese are natural partners for Sémillon's lemony, zesty flavors. Stephanie Toole's lively 2006 Mount Horrocks Sémillon is a classic example.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Poached Eggs in Salad Aren't Scary
Despite being a big fan of poached eggs in general, and especially on toast or on corned beef hash, the idea of a poached egg in my salad always squidged me out. Which is odd, now that I think about it, because I like hard-boiled eggs in my salad... so it shouldn't have been too much of a leap to try poached. Muh.
At any rate, Dave and I watched Emeril prepare one night. We don't normally watch Emeril Live, but he just so happened to have Daniel Boulud as a guest chef, and we both have a little chef-crush on Boulud (we watch his After Hours show, we went to his restaurant in Vegas), so it was an easy call. As we were watching, Dave decided that we had to have this at home. (Read: I had to make this so he could eat it.) I thought that this was an interesting request, as Dave definitely doesn't eat runny eggs... I didn't know what had gotten into him, but I was certainly going to capitalize on it!
We timed this salad for when we were having friends over for dinner. I thought, I'm making something I'm already familiar with, may as well try out something new on them. (Yay guinea pigs!)
I asked my butcher for a thick hunk of bacon, so I could cube it at home, and grabbed the other ingredients at the store. I've never worked with frisee before, and I found it to be pretty interesting... and it gave me a reason to pull out the salad spinner!!
This salad was lovely to make, and pulled together for a really nice presentation. If your love of toast is anything like mine, this will take it to a whole new level. I mean, whats not to like about toast thats made by grilling bread that was dipped in bacon fat?!?!??!
Everyone seemed to like it, and with such a small ingredient list and an easy preparation, I know we'll have this again.
Frisee Salad with Bacon Lardons and Poached Eggs
Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagassee, 2006
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_36266,00.html
2 heads frisee lettuce, about 1 1/2 pounds
12 ounces thick-cut bacon, diced into 1/2-inch pieces
4 (1-inch) thick pieces baguette
1/4 cup minced shallots
5 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
6 cups water
1 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
4 large eggs
Trim the green tops from the frisee, and trim the root ends. Separate the leaves and tear them into 2-inch pieces. Wash and spin dry in a salad spinner and divide the frisee into 4 shallow soup or pasta bowls.
Preheat a grill pan over medium-high heat.
Set a 10-inch sauté pan over medium-low heat and add the bacon. Cook, stirring often until most of the fat has rendered, and the bacon is crispy, about 7 to 8 minutes. Dip bread slices in bacon fat just to coat and remove bread from pan. Place bread on grill pan and toast on both sides until golden.
Add the shallots to the bacon and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Pour the vinegar into the pan and season with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and 1/8 teaspoon of the pepper, remove from the heat. Use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon from the pan and drain onto a plate lined with paper towels. Drizzle the vinaigrette evenly over the lettuces, and divide the bacon among the bowls as well.
In a wide-mouthed saucepan, bring the water to a gentle boil with the white vinegar. Crack an egg into a cup, and gently slide it into the water. Slide each of the other 3 eggs into the water in the same manner. When the water comes back to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer until the eggs are set, about 3 to 3 1/2 minutes. Gently remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and pat dry with a linen cloth or paper towel. Place an egg over the top of each mound of frisee and season with the remaining salt and black pepper. Serve immediately.
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