Eggs Polenta with Tomato Balsamic Sauce

I wanted to make brunch, and I didn't really have anything in the house except for eggs, an onion, a fresh tomato, and some garlic. Thankfully, I always have cornmeal in a canister and I have a giant brick of parmesan in my fridge. This is a play on the polenta recipe I posted recently on my blog. It doesn't take more than half an hour to whip up this awesome breakfast. The poached eggs can be omitted or substituted with fried mushrooms or tofu, or white beans cooked with garlic, salt and pepper, for it to be vegan, and the cheese and butter can be substituted for olive oil. This recipe serves 4-8 (1 or 2 per person).

Pan-Seared Polenta

1 cup corn meal, "polenta"
2 cups water
1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder or a pinch of cayenne pepper
1 tsp butter (substitute with 3 tablespoons olive oil, if vegan)
1/2 cup whole milk (omit if vegan)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste
+ 1 tbsp of butter or olive oil

1. In a medium pot, boil water with a pinch of salt. Once water is boiled, turn the heat to medium and add the corn meal, stirring often. It should cook very quickly (about 3 minutes).
2. Once the polenta starts to form, whip rigorously, to avoid clumps, with a fork, and add the remaining ingredients, including the milk, butter, cheese, salt and pepper, and cayenne or chipotle. If you're vegan, salt generously and be generous with olive oil to add that creaminess.
3. Smooth your polenta into a rectangular cake or brownie pan (8x13??) with a spoon to let it set enough to slice. I recommend throwing it in the freezer for 5-8 minutes while you get your sauce together, so it'll be ready to slice and fry while your eggs are poaching.
4. In a heavy-bottomed, medium-large sauté pan, melt your remaining 1 tbsp of butter, or heat olive oil on medium-high heat. Once the polenta is set enough to slice, slice it with a butter knife into 8 (4x2). Fry the polenta slices until crispy brown, about 3-5 minutes on each side.


Tomato-Balsamic Sauce

2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion or 1/2 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large tomatoes, diced
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp maple syrup (optional)
1/2 tsp chili flakes
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. In a small sauté pan on medium heat, warm the olive oil and sauté the onions until translucent, then add the garlic and tomatoes and sauté for a few minutes.
2. Add the balsamic, chili flakes, maple syrup, and salt and pepper. Let the sauce continue to cook on medium for about 5 to 8 minutes until, to help the balsamic reduce. Then, lower the heat to low and continue to simmer the sauce gently until you're ready to use it.



Poached Eggs

8 eggs

3 tsp white vinegar
1/8 teaspoon salt

1. In a saucepan boil water with vinegar and salt on high. You can begin boiling the water immediately after you put your polenta into the freezer, right before you're getting your tomato sauce together. Timing wise, you will begin poaching your eggs while your sauce is simmering and your polenta is frying.

2.

Once boiled, reduce the temperature to medium, so that the water is still at boiling temperature, but no longer boiling rapidly.

3. Crack eggs individually into a small bowl and slip them into the water one at a time. If you do this carefully and the water is hot enough (just below boiling temperature so that it is still), you should not need to coach the egg with a spoon. But, if your egg starts to go for a swim, just direct it lightly with a spoon. It's easiest if you put the eggs in one at a time so that they do not run together.
4. Cook each egg for around 6 minutes, or a little longer if you like it firmer (around 3-4 if you like your yolk really runny).
5. To remove your eggs, scoop each one out with a serving spoon. You can use another serving spoon to hold back the egg and drain excess water off, as if you were using a pot lid to drain a pot of pasta.

***If you're vegan, you can sauté a can of white beans or white kidney beans in some olive oil with salt, pepper, and garlic and substitute them for the eggs. Or, you can sauté a portabello mushroom cap with salt, pepper, and garlic in olive oil.

To serve...

On the pan seared polenta, place the poached egg and a heaping tablespoon of the reduced sauce. Top with grated parmesan cheese, and serve with salt and pepper to taste. If you have a side, like fruit or salad, one per person allows to serve 8. If you're just serving the polenta and eggs, 2 each makes for a very hearty brunch!!

I apologize for the terrible photo quality; it was taken with my cell phone camera.

Greek Eggs Florentine

I got this idea from my aunt, this holiday season, who had whipped up a batch of special "healthy greens" Spanokopita (Greek spinach pie) in no time, telling us she keeps a batch of this mixture in her fridge to make Eggs Florentine with. I had to try it myself. She told us she added more eggs to the mixture to make Spanokopita with, but, without getting her recipe, I decided to just have a go of it on my own. Thanks Auntie Fay!

Chard, Kale, and Spinach & Feta Warmed Salad

1 large onion, halved and chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 bunch of swiss chard, with stems removed, chopped

1 bunch lacino kale (the dark green, almost black, kind with a flat leaf), chopped

500 g (one package) frozen spinach (chopped or whole leaf), thawed and drained

2-3 tsp (a splash) of lemon juice

3 tbsp olive oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

3/4-1 cup crumbled feta cheese

1 egg, beaten

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F on broil.

2. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large (oven safe) sauté pan on medium heat. Add the onions and sauté them until they begin to be tender. Add the garlic and sauté until the onions are translucent.

3. Add the swiss chard and lacino kale and stir. Cover the pan for 5-10 minutes until the chard and kale are cooked down.

2. Stir in the spinach and season with the lemon juice, the remainder of the 1 tbsp olive oil, and the salt and pepper. Continue to sauté for around 5 minutes until the spinach begins to cook. You'll smell it.

3. Stir in the beaten egg. Continue stirring for 3-5 minutes until egg cooks in.

4. Stir in the feta cheese. Continue stirring for 2-3 minutes until cheese distributed.

5. Put pan in oven for 5 minutes to broil. Watch closely. You just want the mixture in the oven long enough for the cheese to begin to melt, while adding a bit of a golden brown colour. You can turn down the oven temperature and keep the mixture in there to stay warm, while making other preparations.

This makes enough for at least 12 people. You'll have lots of leftovers! I'll give you some ideas for what to do with them below. For anyone who has made Greek Spanokopita, you'll notice that this bears a striking resemblance to the filling... You can substitute a 500 g package of frozen spinach for the chard and kale bunches.

Poached Eggs

2 eggs per person

3 tsp white vinegar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1. In a saucepan boil water on high heat. Once boiled, reduce the temperature to medium, so that the water is still at boiling temperature, but no longer boiling rapidly.

2. Add 3 tsp of vinegar and a pinch of salt to the water.

3. Crack eggs individually into a small bowl and slip them into the water one at a time. If you do this carefully and the water is hot enough (just below boiling temperature so that it is still), you should not need to coach the egg with a spoon. But, if your egg starts to go for a swim, just direct it lightly with a spoon. It's easiest if you put the eggs in one at a time so that they do not run together.

4. Cook each egg for around 6 minutes, or a little longer if you like it firmer (around 3-4 if you like your yolk really runny).

5. To remove your eggs, scoop each one out with a serving spoon. You can use another serving spoon to hold back the egg and drain excess water off, as if you were using a pot lid to drain a pot of pasta.

Toast

You'll need 2 slices of bread per person. I use rye or pumpernickel bread from the local bakery, but you can also use English muffins, or ciabatta or French loaf. You can brush slices of bread with olive oil and place them on a cookie sheet under your already warmed broiler, moving the spinach mixture to the bottom rack, or taking it out of the oven, and putting it back in for a moment before assembling the plate. Or, you can just use the toaster...

To assemble

Layer the spinach mixture onto your bread slices, about two generous tablespoons each. Place a poached egg on top. Sprinkle some fresh Parmesan or another hard cheese, and season with salt and pepper. You can also sprinkle finely crumbled feta instead of Parmesan. The runny yolks act as their own hollandaise sauce.

. . .

Other variations

Leftovers keep in the fridge really well, especially if you pack the spinach mixture into mason jars while warm, because they vacuum seal themselves once you put them in the fridge. I've been eating this mixture on its own, simply heated up, as a warm side dish. I also layered it on my sandwiches, both heated and cold, as a flavourful spread that added a bit of green.

I also took it for lunch as a chilled eggs Florentine salad: I layered a few tomato slices at the bottom of my tupperware, spooned some of the Florentine mixture on top, and, for a bit of protein, layered a sliced poached egg on top. I whipped up vinaigrette with lemon juice, honey, olive oil, salt, pepper, and basil to drizzle on top. I've also eaten it plain, and I've also used a small drizzle of a store bought fig-balsamic-olive oil dressing. You could easily make this into a sandwich by putting it in a tortilla wrap, or between two slices of yummy pumpernickel bread.

Like my Auntie Fay, you could add 2-3 more beaten eggs to the mixture, dolloping it onto rectangles of phyllo pastry, and folding into triangles. Make sure to use lots of olive oil or butter to brush your pastry. You would need to bake it for around 30 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown.

Gnocchi and Plum Tomato Sauce

3 tablespoons+ olive oil

5 shallots, thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/4 cups cooking wine (red)

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 - 1/3 cup pure maple syrup (to taste)

1 pinch of salt (to taste)

Freshly ground pepper (to taste)

3 -4 portobello mushroom caps, sliced

1 pints plum tomatoes, halved

1/2 cup olives (green or black), pitted and sliced (or fresh capers)

7-8 fresh basil leaves, chopped (garnish)

1/3 - 1/2 cup ricotta cheese (optional)

Grated parmesan cheese (optional garnish)

1 kg gnocchi

1. Heat the olive oil in a large, deep skillet (preferably cast-iron) on medium heat.

2. Add the shallots and sauté until translucent.

3. Add the garlic, mushrooms and a 1/2 pinch of salt and some freshly ground pepper.

4. Once the shallot have caramelized a little bit, and the mushrooms are tender, add the balsamic vinegar, red wine, and maple syrup. Stir. Turn the heat down to medium-low and let the sauce simmer and reduce.

5. In a separate sauté pan, heat about a teaspoon of olive oil on medium heat. Lighty sauté the plum tomato halves, so blacken them a bit. Once they've cooked up a bit (about 4 minutes), add them to the simmering sauce.

6. Add the olives or capers. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

8. Let the sauce simmer until any remaining liquid has reduced to desired consistency.

9. If you choose to add the ricotta cheese, to make the sauce creamy, stir it in. You can also let each diner stir in their own cheesy garnish at the end. I stirred mine into the pasta.

10. Add the boiled gnocchi to your skillet and you're ready to serve with fresh basil and parmesan as garnish.

I served mine with a baby arugala salad with fig-balsamic dressing and a few cherry tomatoes on top!

Bon appetit!