Tuscan Farmer's Breakfast

Gently poached eggs over a tasty cannellini bean and tomato stew, topped with Italian gremolata sauce.  And how about fresh fruit, the Italian way, with fresh mint.  You're gonna love waking up to this.  Can't poach eggs?  No worries, we'll show you the fool-proof poach.  Perfect for meal prep for the next few days.

-- 100% irresistible, 100% healthy, 100% easy --

Serving Information:

Serving size: about 1/4 of finished dish

Calories: ~250

Protein: ~15 g

Carbohydrates: ~22 g

Fiber: ~6 g

Total fat: ~10 g

Saturated fat: ~2.5 g

Trans fat: ~0 g

Ingredients:

• 1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

• 1/2 an onion white/yellow, diced

• 4 garlic cloves, roughly sliced

• Optional: 1/4 teaspoon chili flakes, more to taste

• 1 tablespoon total of chopped rosemary, sage and/or thyme

• 14-ounce can diced fire-roasted tomatoes

• 14 to 15-ounce can cannellini beans or white beans

• 1 cup chicken broth

• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

• 4-6 eggs

• salt and pepper to taste

• Fruit: chopped fresh kiwi, organic strawberries, blueberries, pineapple and/or bananas

• 1 teaspoon lime juice

• 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped mint

Instructions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet/saucepan over medium-high heat and sauté the onion, garlic, and chili flakes for 2 minutes. Lower heat to medium and sauté until fragrant and golden, stirring often.  Once the onion is tender, add the herbs and cook one more minute.

2. Add diced tomatoes and their juices, the drained beans, and chicken stock.

3. Season with salt, and pepper and bring to a simmer on medium-low heat for 5 minutes. For a thicker result, uncover and let simmer for a few more minutes as desired.

4. Option 1: Make small divots in the bean stew and crack the eggs into them. Season each egg with salt and pepper, cover, and simmer gently on low until the whites are set but the yolks are still soft.

5. Option 2: Poach eggs and gently burry in bean stew. Season each egg with salt and pepper, turn off heat, cover. See the Secret to Egg Poaching below.

6. Option 3: Boil eggs separately for 8 minutes, remove shells, halve, then place into stew.

7. Make the gremolata sauce (see below).

8. Sprinkle each egg with a spoon of Gremolata sauce.

9. In separate bowl, add lime juice to chopped fruit, toss, garnish with chopped mint. Chill until served. (Optional: sprinkle with cinnamon).

Gremolata Sauce:

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

• 2 teaspoons lemon juice

• 2 garlic cloves, finely minced

• Zest of one lemon

• 1/2 cup olive oil

• 1/8– 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1/4 teaspoon pepper, more to taste

• Optional chili flakes for heat

Instructions:

Place chopped parsley, garlic, zest, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Give a stir. Taste. Add more lemon juice if you like. (You want this salty and lemony.) If you want a looser consistency add a little more oil. Add a pinch of chili flakes for heat.

Secret to Egg Poaching:

Poached eggs: a work of art but lots of work, right? No! There are multiple ways to poach an egg. And admittingly, most ways are tedious and require patience and practice. But I stumbled upon the easiest, most fool-proof way of poaching not one, but multiple eggs at once, with no special equipment. Here's how it works...

1. Fill a large pot or pan with about three inches of water depth. The wider the pan, the more eggs you can poach at once. Add in about 1/4 cup of white vinegar.

2. Bring water to a boil.

3. Crack the first egg into a small bowl or ramekin... the smaller the bowl, the better.

4. Turn the heat off.

5. As soon as the boiling stops, gently but swiftly pour the first egg into the water, close to the edge.

6. If you have more eggs, quickly pour them into the pan, dropping them in a clockwise fashion.

7. When the desired number of eggs are transferred to the pan, turn the heat on low, making sure not to allow the water to boil. Alternatively, you may just leave the heart off completely.

8. Cover the pan and let set for about four minutes.

9. Check the eggs for desired consistency and remove using a large, slotted spoon and the same order in which you dropped the eggs into the pan.

Tips for best results:

• Allow eggs to reach room temperature; a little bit warmer is even better. Why? Egg poaching success depends on the ability of an egg to quickly develop a "protective" cooked outer layer, so that the egg's structure can stay intact while cooking. To get that protective layer quickly, the warmer the egg is when slipped into the hot water, the closer it is to developing that cooked outside layer. So, the warmer the egg, the better.

• Use the smallest bowl or ramekin possible. The goal is to introduce the raw egg narrowly into the hot water, as quickly as possible in a controlled manner. A wide introduction from a wide bowl will make the egg cook in a wide geometry, which is not desirable.

• Try not to cook more than 4 or 5 eggs in one pan. The more eggs being cooked, the quicker the hot water will cool down.

  
  

Curated by Mark Gardner, Amateur "Chef"

Back to Homes Harpeth