scrambled eggs with salmon caviar (aka fancypants scrambled eggs)

Did you hear that? That, my friends, is the sound of relief. I don’t know what kind of mental blockage I was having, but I just couldn’t get my taxes done this year. My w-2 went MIA for a few weeks. There was a box full of receipts that had to be sorted through – the absolute last thing in the world I wanted to do. And then at the eleventh hour, I finally got my act together. Needless to say, I am delighted that that shiz is filed. It was really beginning to feel like a hostage situation up in this joint.

Since I was here last, which was forever-ago {insert sad face}, there has actually been quite a bit of activity in my kitchen. Easter came and went. I feel like I missed it. I went about business as usual that day – baked a couple dozen cupcakes (yes, there were cupcakes!), ran to the farmers’ market to buy strawberries for the rugrats (no Easter candy from Auntie Sandy this year), got my hair did. And before I knew it, I was late to dinner and still frosting cupcakes.

I did manage to squeeze in a little treat for myself that morning. After the cupcakes were out of the oven, I moved on to breakfast. Farm fresh eggs. Salmon caviar. A splash of heavy cream. A dab of butter. You get the picture. It was a whole lot of decadence.

These scrambled eggs were inspired by a little place called Zuni Cafe. Lee and I met there for brunch a few Sundays ago. We sat at a sunlit table on the ground floor of the dining room and enjoyed a few adult beverages. I ordered the rabbit salad with a poached egg, he ordered the scrambled eggs topped with steelhead caviar. I had one bite of those eggs and wished that I had ordered that instead. Those eggs were everything. Little pops of salty ocean goodness enveloping silky curds of the most perfect soft scrambled eggs. I seriously contemplated ordering a second entree, but ultimately decided against it.

Instead I promised myself that I would make those eggs as soon as possible. It happened two weeks later. Because it’s such a simple dish, the ingredients are key. You should be able to find cured salmon roe, also known as ikura in Japanese cuisine, at any market that sells sushi-grade fish (I bought mine at Tokyo Fish Market in Berkeley; if you’re in San Francisco, Nijiya Market in Japantown is where you’ll want to go). And if you can get your hands on fresh farm eggs, they are definitely worth the extra bucks; those amazingly bright orange yolks produce a richer, creamier, super delicious cooked egg. I like to call this dish eggs on eggs or fancypants scrambled eggs. It’s my new favorite breakfast and I totally wish I had ikura on hand everyday (salmon roe is loaded with omega-3s – hooray!). And in case you were wondering, a glass of rosé pairs really nicely if it’s that kind of morning. Bon appétit!

scrambled eggs with salmon caviar (aka fancypants scrambled eggs)

inspired by Zuni Cafe

serves 2

4 large eggs

1 tablespoon heavy cream

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/4 cup cured salmon roe

large pinch of salt

fresh cracked pepper

Crack the eggs into a medium size bowl. Lightly beat the eggs with a fork or small whisk, being careful not to over mix. Add cream and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Heat a medium skillet over medium-low heat. Add the butter and melt until it begins to bubble. When butter is foaming, add the eggs to the pan. As the eggs start to set, push the egg curds to the center of the pan using a rubber spatula. Continue to push the eggs around until no longer runny, but still moist. Be careful not to overcook. When the eggs are just about done, remove the pan from heat and distribute the eggs between two plates. Toss a generous amount of the salmon roe over the eggs and serve immediately with toasted baguette or sourdough.

yogurt pancakes with mascarpone butter

Sometimes you just need to round up a few friends, throw your essentials in a bag, and skip town. Make a stop at In-n-Out for dinner on the way. Have a few bourbon negronis when you reach your destination. And just relax.

Sometimes a weekend in Tahoe is just what the doctor ordered. Especially when that weekend is filled with good company, good energy and some good eating. And waking up to morning snowfall is really the cherry on top of a perfect weekend.

Sometimes on a snowy Sunday morning you just need pancakes. In this case, it had to be yogurt pancakes. In my world, there would be no yogurt pancakes without Adrian.

Adrian used to make these yogurt pancakes that I was obsessed with. I’m not even really a pancakes for breakfast person, but those yogurt pancakes were something special. Notice all this talk in the past tense? That’s because the recipe mysteriously disappeared a few years ago, and we have been without yogurt pancakes ever since. Sometimes he jokes that I snatched the recipe, and now I kind of wish that I had because then at least one of us would still have it.

I tried to find the recipe online a while back, but there are a ton of yogurt pancake recipes on the internet, and the ones I did try weren’t quite right. I actually gave up kind of quickly. But recently I got this hankering for yogurt pancakes. So the search resumed.

After a couple of tries and some tweaking here and there, I ended up with a yogurt pancake that is pretty close to the original. It’s a flatter, creamier pancake; not as fluffy as a buttermilk pancake, but it does have some body and a similar tang. I like them with a little mascarpone butter and a drizzle of maple syrup, or a squirt of lemon juice and powdered sugar. A dollop of this warm blueberry sauce is also a really nice treat. And you definitely can’t go wrong with a few slices of bacon on the side. Sometimes only yogurt pancakes will do.

yogurt pancakes with mascarpone butter

adapted from the Washingtonian

makes about 12 6-inch pancakes

for the mascarpone butter:

1/2 cup salted butter at room temperature

1/3 cup mascarpone cheese

In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter and mascarpone on medium speed until smooth. Store, covered, in the fridge. Makes about 1 cup.

for the pancakes:

3/4 cup plain or vanilla yogurt (not Greek style yogurt)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

3 eggs

1 teaspoon grated lemon or tangerine zest

1-1/4 cups milk, or more as needed (same note as yogurt)

1-1/2 cups self-rising flour (you can substitute 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 2-1/4 teaspoons baking powder, mixed together)

3 tablespoons sugar

vegetable oil, butter, or bacon fat for greasing the pan

maple syrup and/or lemon wedges and confectioner’s sugar for serving

In a large bowl, combine the yogurt, melted butter, egg, zest, and milk and beat well with a whisk or electric mixer. Add the flour and sugar. Stir carefully until incorporated, being careful not to overmix. Add more milk if the batter is too thick. It should have the consistency of a milkshake.

Preheat the oven to 175°F. Heat a griddle or nonstick pan over medium-high heat, and add 1 tablespoon of oil, butter, or bacon grease. To see if the griddle or pan is hot enough, throw in a little batter. You should hear a light sizzle but shouldn’t smell or see smoke.

When the griddle or pan is ready, use an ice cream scoop to pour the batter. Watch for little bubbles to form on the surface, about 3 to 4 minutes. Flip and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes. Keep the pancakes in the oven until you’re ready to serve.

Serve warm with a drizzle of maple syrup and 1 to 2 tablespoons of mascarpone butter. Garnish with confectioner’s sugar and a lemon wedge.

millet muffins

It has recently occurred to me that I almost never make muffins. I think it had been well over a year since my last batch. And then these millet muffins happened.

I love millet. Lately, I’ve been throwing a few spoonfuls in with my oatmeal in the morning. I especially I love the texture it lends to baked goods, that super satisfying crunch. I’ve never met a millet bread that I didn’t like.

So when I spotted millet muffins in Super Natural Everyday, which has become one of my favorites, I immediately flagged the recipe and couldn’t wait to make them.

I’ve made these muffins twice now and I’m sure I’ll make them again. Here’s why:

These guys are made with whole wheat flour without tasting like they’re whole wheat. In other words, they’re moist and have a really nice crumb – not too delicate, not too dense. They’re sweetened with only honey, making them just sweet enough; not quite dessert sweet, but more of a breakfast or midday sweet, which means a little butter and jam are perfectly welcome. They are fragrant with lemon and most importantly, they’re studded with crunchy bits of millet. These are definitely a keeper in my book. And a nice way to get reacquainted with muffins.

millet muffins

from Super Natural Everyday by Heidi Swanson

makes 12 muffins

2-1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1/3 cup raw millet

1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt

1 cup plain yogurt

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup barely melted unsalted butter

1/2 cup honey

grated zest from 1 lemon, plus 2 tablespoons of juice

Preheat the oven to 400°F and position rack in the top third of the oven. butter a standard 12-cup muffin pan or line with paper liners.

Whisk together the flour, millet, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, eggs, butter, honey, and lemon zest and juice until smooth. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Divide the batter among the muffin cups, filling each cup about 3/4 full.

Bake for 15 minutes, until the tops of the muffins are browned and just beginning to crack. Let cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then turn the muffins out of the pan to cool completely on a wire rack.

apple graham coffee cake

Hey rhubarb! Where you at?

This is the pressing matter at the moment. Maybe I’m mistaken, but I swear there is usually rhubarb at the farmer’s market this time of the year. But I’ve been checking every week. And nada. No rhubarb is an indication to me that it’s not really spring yet. And this makes me yearn for springtime even more. Oh well. Hopefully I’ll have some rhurbarb deliciousness to share with you in the not-too-distant future.

In the meantime, I’m doing a bit of spring cleaning over here. I recently took an inventory of my pantry and have come to realize that I have a lot of flour. Like a lot. Some of it is leftover from past experiments. And then there is some that I’ve been hoarding for future projects. It’s a little bit out of control, so I’m making a point to use what I have before I buy anything else.

Enter Good to the Grain. This lovely book has been sitting on my shelf for quite some time, waiting patiently for a little attention. It’s full of recipes that call for flours other than your run of the mill all-purpose variety. Since there is a whole chapter devoted to whole wheat flour, I decided it was time to finally crack open the package of graham flour that I’ve been holding onto. And since I had apples on hand, it seemed the only thing to do was make this apple graham coffee cake.

I’m a sucker for apple cakes. There is something so simple, even humble about an apple cake. Apples, cinnamon, sugar, flour, you get the picture. I was pleasantly surprised by this particular apple cake; I have to admit that I get a bit nervous when whole wheat flour is involved. I live in fear of heavy masses of dry, flavorless dough. But this cake is exactly the opposite – it is incredibly moist with a light crumb and bit of a rustic feel from the coarse graham flour. And the caramelized apples baked into the surface of the cake are just perfect, tender and sticky with cinnamon and sugar. Not only will this cake satisfy your sweet tooth, but you might just join the whole-grain fan club.

apple graham coffee cake

adapted from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce

makes one 9-inch round cake

apple topping:

2 large tart apples (I used Granny Smiths), peeled and cored

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon sugar

dry mix:

3/4 cup all-purposr flour

3/4 cup graham flour

3/4 cup whole-grain pastry flour

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon kosher salt

wet mix:

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup whole plain yogurt

1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 large egg

Preheat the oven to 350°F, with the rack positioned in the middle of the oven. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan with high sides (I used a 9×3-inch pan with a removable bottom). Set aside.

Quarter the apples, then cut each quarter into thirds. Slice the thirds into pieces as thick as your thumb.

In a large skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of butter with 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon over medium-high heat until bubbly. Add the apples and toss to coat, then let sear for 1 minute without stirring. Cook for 6-10 minutes, until tender and caramelized, stirring once a minute or so. Remove the caramelized apples from the heat and scrape them onto a plate with the buttery sauce.

Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl and set aside.

Whisk together the wet ingredients until thoroughly combined. Using a spatula, scrape the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently mix until combined. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spatula. Spread the apple topping evenly over the batter.

Bake on the middle rack for 40-48 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking. The cake is ready when it is golden brown and springs back when lightly touched, or when a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve the cake warm or at room temperature.

blueberry-filled doughnuts

Imagine warm blueberry pie, with that gorgeous, naturally sweet, just set, deep violet filling. Now imagine that filling inside of an airy, fried pillow of dough. This is what I daydream about these days. During a family dinner last month, my cousin’s husband requested jelly doughnuts. And they’ve been on my mind ever since.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been cleansing for the past three weeks. Every morning I drink a tall glass of cold water mixed with psyllium husks as fast as I can (which gives me brainfreeze), followed by a smoothie that consists of frozen blueberries, soy protein powder and flax oil, and then another dose of psyllium husks before bed. It’s really not so bad. But what makes this morning routine bearable are the blueberries. I’ve got mad love for blueberries.

Of course, when on any type of cleanse, I tend to obsess about the things I should be avoiding, such as beautiful, deep-fried, blueberry filled doughnuts. Something had to be done.

The first batch was nearly a disaster. I threw the dough together and refrigerated it overnight as instructed. When I woke the next morning, I discovered that the bowl I used was too small and the dough had runneth over. And it was runny, more of a batter than a dough. I took one look at it and knew that it couldn’t be rolled out. So I moved on to plan B, and tried another recipe. And did the whole thing by hand rather than use my stand mixer with the dough hook attachment. The initial results seemed much better. And I loved kneading the dough by hand. I loved kneading the dough so much that I was convinced that I could salvage that first batch of dough. So I added more flour. And then more flour. I kneaded until the dough came together into a huge, smooth, elastic mass.

I was actually quite happy with that batch of doughnuts, but since I used three different types of flour (all-purpose, bread, and pastry) and had no idea how much I actually added to the original recipe, I thought I should give it another go. And then I found another recipe that looked promising, so I made a few adjustments. And spent another Sunday making doughnuts.

Through all of this trial and error, the greatest lesson I’ve learned is this: the key to being a happy, successful doughnut maker is to be sure that there are people around to enjoy the fruits of your labor. Because raised doughnuts take time. And patience. But there is nothing quite like a doughnut, freshly fried, filled with warm fruit, and coated in powdered (or granulated) sugar. And they must be devoured immediately, preferably by loved ones.

blueberry filled doughnuts

adapted from FoodFest 365! and The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook

makes 1 dozen doughnuts

5 tablespoons warm water

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon dry active yeast

2 cups powdered sugar, sifted ,  plus more for dusting

6 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon nutmeg

3 large eggs, room temperature

1-1/2 cups whole milk, warm

5-1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

canola oil for frying

blueberry filling or your choice of jam

In a medium bowl, combine the water with the yeast and stir until dissolved. Add 1 tablespoon of powdered sugar and 1/2 cup of flour and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place for 10 minutes to rise.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, powdered sugar, nutmeg and salt. Add the milk, eggs,  and butter and mix until well combined.

Add the yeast mixture to the dough and thoroughly combine.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead. If the dough is sticky, add more flour until the dough hardly sticks to your hands. Continue to knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 7-10 minutes. Put the dough in a large buttered bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel. Let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, undisturbed.

Punch the dough and then turn onto a floured surface. Knead dough a few times and then roll out until it’s  1/2 inch thick. Cut the dough into rounds with a 3-1/2-inch cutter. Set on a baking sheet lined with a lightly floured kitchen towel. Cover with another towel and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.

While the doughnuts are rising, fill a large heavy bottomed pot with oil about 2 inches deep. Heat oil over medium heat until it reaches 350°F on a candy thermometer.

Place a round of dough in the hot oil and fry until golden, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove the doughnut with a slotted spoon and let drain on paper towels. Repeat until all dough has been fried.

To fill the doughnuts:

Pour the blueberry filling into a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip. Using a chopstick, poke a hole 3/4  of the way into each doughnut. Gently rotate the stick to make a well for the filling. Insert the tip of the pastry bag into the hole and fill until the doughnut feels heavy. Place the filled doughnut in a bowl of powdered or granulated sugar and coat evenly. Repeat with the rest of the doughnuts. Serve immediately.

for the blueberry filling:

makes about 3 cups

4 cups blueberries

2/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup water

2 teaspoons lemon juice

Combine the ingredients in a large pot over medium heat. Stir often to dissolve the sugar.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium low and let simmer until a thick syrup has formed, about 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat. The mixture will thicken as is cools. Set aside.

shrimp and grits

Peeling shrimp is one of my earliest memories of being in the kitchen. Growing up, my parents would host a big party every year on New Years day. And every year, my sister and I were put to work in the kitchen, cutting carrots and peeling shrimp for tempura, while my mom steamed live Dungeness crabs in beer. I remember carefully removing the shells and trying to keep the tails intact. I also remember icy cold fingers and shrimp guts – not the most pleasant of childhood memories. But eating hot, juicy battered-and-fried shrimp later that day made it all worth it. It’s what I like to remember about those New Years past.

All of these memories came back to me while preparing lunch last weekend. Miss Kim had requested a macaron making lesson while she was in town. I hadn’t seen her since before the arrival of her new bundle of joy, so I figured I’d kill two birds with one stone and make the ladies some lunch while catching up and meeting the little one. And I was in the mood for some shrimp and grits.

I must say that new babies in town and my recollections of being in the kitchen as a child made me realize that having kids is like building a little team of sous chefs (I learned how to peel potatoes before I learned how to write in cursive). Which makes me look at baby-making in a totally new light. I could definitely use a few extra sets of hands in the kitchen down the road.

Back to shrimp and grits. Oh, shrimp and grits. Just the thought of shrimp and grits makes my mouth water.  I love the combination of creamy grits with savory, smothered shrimp. I also like that it’s hearty without being too heavy. Plus, it’s a good excuse to eat shrimp for breakfast. That might explain why it has become one of my brunch favorites over the last couple of years.

This is Momofuku’s take on shrimp and grits. It’s a hybrid of Southern shrimp and grits and traditional Japanese ramen. The grits are cooked in bacon dashi, a sort of Japanese-style bacon stock, and seasoned with light soy sauce. And the shrimp, when cooked in the same pan as the bacon garnish, take on this deep smoky flavor. The whole thing is topped with a poached egg and is to die for. I like to think of this as the dish otherwise known as bacon-bacon shrimp and grits. And I’ve decided I’d like to rent a space inside David Chang‘s brain. Actually, it would probably be more interesting to live inside his mouth. That sounds wrong, but don’t judge. At least not until you’ve tried his shrimp and grits.

shrimp and grits

adapted from Momofuku

serves 4

for the bacon dashi, which you can make a day or two in advance:

2 3×6-inch pieces of konbu

8 cups water

1/2 pound smoky bacon

Rinse the konbu under cold water, then add it to 8 cups of water in a medium pot. Bring the water to a simmer over medium heat and turn off the stove. Steep for 10 minutes.

Remove the konbu from the water and add the bacon. Bring to a boil, the reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Strain the bacon from the dashi,  and chill the broth until the fat hardens at the surface. Remove and discard the fat. Dashi will keep in the refrigerator for a few days.

for the shrimp and grits:

2 cups water

2 cups white or yellow quick-cooking grits, soaked overnight

2 cups bacon dashi

2 tablespoons usukuchi (light soy sauce)

kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1/2 pound smokey slab bacon, cut crosswise into 1-inch long batons

1 pound medium shrimp (16-20 shrimp), shelled and deveigned

2 tablespoons grapeseed or other neutral oil

4 poached eggs

1/2 cup chopped scallions (green and white parts)

Place grits in a medium bowl and add 2 cups water. Let grits soak at least 8 hours and up to overnight.

Drain grits and transfer to a medium saucepan. Add dashi and bring to a simmer over low heat. Cook, whisking constantly, for 5 minutes. Add usukuchi, a large pinch of salt, and season with pepper. Continue whisking constantly until thickened, bubbling, and no longer grainy, about 10 minutes. If the grits are too thick, add water or more dashi. Add the butter and stir until melted. Adjust seasoning if needed. Set aside and keep warm.

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and cook, stirring occasionally until it shrinks to about half its original size and is crisp and browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove bacon from skillet and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Drain fat and wipe skillet with a paper towel; set aside.

Place shrimp in a large bowl and add grapeseed oil; season with salt and toss to coat. Heat cast-iron skillet over high heat and add shrimp, working in batches if necessary. Press down on shrimp using the back of a spatula. When shrimp look about halfway cooked, turn and press down on second side. Continue cooking until shrimp have just become opaque and have browned slightly. Remove from pan.

Divide grits evenly between 4 bowls.  Top each with a poached egg. Divide shrimp and scallions evenly between bowls and serve immediately.

granola!

2011, I like you already! The new year has been full of friends, old and new, laughter, great food and great drinks. I rang in the new year at a spectacular dinner party hosted by the lovely and talented Mr. Anderson. Chocolate mousse, Veuve Clicquot, an amazing view of San Francisco and fireworks – it was an ideal way to start the new year. I really couldn’t have asked for more.

Since we all want to start off the year on the right foot, how about some granola? Every new year, I swear to myself that I’m going to eat healthier. And I know I’m not the only one, which is why I decided a few weeks ago that I would give the gift of good health in the form of homemade granola (along with salted caramels and marshmallows, and a few other sweet things – you can’t deny the people of all the good stuff!).

Why granola? Because it’s healthy! Or maybe wholesome is more fitting. And because a little bag of homemade granola landed on my desk one evening (thanks, Ginger!) and inspired me to make my own. And when poured into jars and tied with some good looking ribbon, it’s practically begging to be given away.

This is my dream granola. It’s full of nuts and dried fruit and toasted coconut and sweetened with brown sugar and maple syrup.  It’s a sweeter granola, which makes it perfect over plain yogurt. I think next time I’ll throw in some candied ginger, maybe some pumpkin seeds. Or dried figs. Mmmmm. The possibilities are endless, sort of like the year to come. Happy New Year, my dears!

homemade granola

adapted loosely from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito

makes 1 pound of granola

2 cups rolled oats

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1 cup nuts ( I used a combination of walnuts, pecans, almonds, and hazelnuts)

1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

1 cup dried fruit (I used dried cherries, golden raisins, and chopped dried apricots)

Preheat oven to 325°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a large bowl, toss the oats with salt and cinnamon.

In a small bowl, combine maple syrup, brown sugar,  oil and vanilla. Whisk until smooth. Pour the syrup mixture into the oats and stir until evenly coated.

Spread the oat mixture evenly onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving a few clumps for texture.

Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven and flip the oats with a metal spatula. Scatter the nuts and coconut over the granola and return to the oven.

Continue to bake for 5 minutes, then remove from the oven and flip the mixture again. Return the baking sheet to the oven.

Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven and flip the oats one last time.

Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 5 minutes. Cool completely. Once, cooled, toss the granola with dried fruit. Store in an airtight container. The granola will keep for 1 week.

croque-madame

The grilled cheese sandwich is one of my all-time favorite comfort foods. The earliest grilled cheese I remember were made of Kraft singles and white bread and whatever margarine my mom kept in the house in the 80′s. My nine-year-old self thought they were hella good (actually, my twenty-eight-year-old self would most likely agree). Over the years my grilled cheese have evolved. While I don’t really discriminate when it comes to cheese, sourdough is my bread of choice these days, and I love to sneak in a few tomato slices (and sriracha on the side) .

I mentioned a while back that I had lunch at Bouchon in April. And of all the wonderful things on the menu I chose the croque-madame for my entree. The croque-madame is the fanciest incarnation of the grilled cheese sandwich. It’s a ham and cheese sandwich, grilled and topped with a fried egg and Mornay sauce. I am a total sucker for anything topped with a fried egg. Like everything else we had that day, the sandwich was absolutely delish and the accompanying pommes frites were to die for – skinny, salty and perfectly fried. The French sure know how to take a simple concept and turn it into something glorious.

I decided that I would make croque-madame as soon as I could get my hands on some real ham. By real I mean off the bone and ovenbaked, not pre-sliced or packaged. I had a feeling the wait would not be long. And I was right. Fun fact about my folks: they randomly cook whole turkeys, bone-in hams, and corned beef throughout year. These people do not wait for holidays to indulge in such things. Luckily for me my mom decided to bake a ham for Sunday night dinner with Grandma a few weeks ago. And there was plenty leftover to go towards my croque-madame mission.

As it turns out, a loaf of brioche is not so easy to come by in these parts. Apparently, a lot of the smaller bakeries that I frequent make only mini brioche daily; loaves have to be specially ordered in advance. For a heartbeat I considered making my own brioche, but I wasn’t feeling that ambitious, nor did I have the patience to wait for dough rising, etc. Thank goodness for La Boulange, who sells brioche in convenient half loaves and just so happens to have a location right by my BART stop. So aside from literally having to hunt down the brioche and preparing the Mornay sauce, which in the future I’ll make in advance and reheat, this was a super fast and easy little number.

My brother happened to be visiting the weekend croque-madame was in the test kitchen. According to him, it was the best thing I’ve ever cooked. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but it was pretty fantastic. The brioche becomes almost pastry-like when it’s grilled and the subtly flavored Mornay is so good that I wanted extra on the side for dipping. It surprises me that more restaurants don’t include croque-madame on their brunch menus. Because it is seriously in the running for my new favorite brunch dish. Move over, eggs Benedict!

croque-madame

from Bouchon by Thomas Keller

serves 4

8  1/2-inch thick slices Brioche, other egg bread, or pain de mie

8 ounces thinly sliced ham

8 slices (about 1/2 ounce each) Swiss cheese

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

4 large eggs

2 teaspoons chopped Italian parsley

Freshly ground black pepper

1 cup Mornay Sauce, warmed

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup diced Spanish onion (Vidalia)

Kosher salt

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups milk

1 cup heavy cream

1 bay leaf

3 black peppercorns

3 whole cloves

Freshly grated nutmeg

Freshly ground white pepper

1/3 cup Comté or Emmentaler Cheese

to make the Mornay sauce (2 cups):

Melt the butter in a medium heavy saucepan set on a diffuser over medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook slowly, stirring occasionally, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the onion is translucent. Sprinkle in the flour and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly so that the roux doesn’t burn or color. Whisking constantly, add the milk and cream and whisk until fully incorporated. Bring to a simmer, whisking, then add the bay leaf, peppercorns, and cloves. Move the pan to one side of the diffuser, away from direct heat to avoid scorching, and bring back to a gentle simmer. Adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook, whisking occasionally, reaching into the corners of the pan, for about 30 minutes. (If the sauce does begin to scorch, pour it into a clean pan – don’t scrape the bottom of the pan – and continue.)

Remove the sauce from the heat and season to taste with salt, a grating of nutmeg, and a pinch of white pepper. Strain the sauce, add the cheese, and whisk to melt. Use immediately, or place in a storage container, press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface to keep a skin from forming, and refrigerate for up to a week. If the sauce is too thick after refrigeration, it can be thinned with a little heavy cream.

to make the croque-madame:

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Lay out the bread slices. Divide the ham among them, making sure it does not extend over the edges of the bread. Place the cheese over the ham. If the cheese is larger than the bread, bend it over to fit.

Heat two large ovenproof nonstick pans or griddles over medium heat. (If you only have one large pan, make 2 sandwiches and keep them warm in the oven while you make the second batch.) Add 1 tablespoon of butter to each pan. When it has melted, add half the bread cheese side up to each pan and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the bottoms are golden brown. Transfer the pans to the oven for 2 to 3 minutes to melt the cheese.

Meanwhile, melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter in a large ovenproof skillet and fry the eggs. Cook the eggs until the bottoms are set, then place the skillet in the oven for a minute to set the top of the whites.

When the cheese is melted, remove the sandwiches from the oven. Place 2 slices together to make each sandwich and put each sandwich on a serving plate. Place an egg on top of each sandwich. Pour about 1/4 cups of the Mornay sauce over the white of each egg, leaving the yolk uncovered. Grind black pepper over each egg and garnish the eggs with a diagonal sprinkling of chopped parsley.