Deconstructed Eggs Benedict Salad

I had a great dish recently in San Francisco. Two perfectly poached eggs on a raft of polenta, accompanied by a field green salad with asparagus and fava beans and a vinaigrette. The creamy, rich egg yolk and grainy polenta were a perfect foil for the bitter greens and sharp vinaigrette. The fresh fava beans and skinny, spring asparagus spears added just enough texture and flavor variety to complete it. I enjoyed it so much I was sorry I was sharing it with my friend LeAnn. I was tempted to point at a passing sailboat (we were in Sausalito at Cibo) but hung resolutely to the agreement to eat only half. It got me thinking about eggs which led me to think of my favorite egg dish, Eggs Benedict. Next thing I knew I was creating a supper salad of Deconstructed Eggs Benedict. The lemony hollandaise is now a tart lemon vinaigrette with a poached egg on top. The english muffin is now an English muffin French Toast crouton and salty pancetta replaces the canadian bacon. Make sure you make enough. You won't want to share.

Deconstructed Eggs Benedict Supper Salad

Lemon Vinaigrette:

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Dash of Tabasco

½ pound Pancetta

8 eggs for poaching

2 eggs for English muffin croutons

1 T. Dijon mustard

½ cup milk

4 english muffins, split

8 cups spring lettuce mix

Whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and a dash of Tabasco in a small bowl and set aside. Rinse and spin dry the lettuce. Put it in the fridge covered with a damp paper towel so it stays nice and crisp.

Dice the pancetta and cook until crisp. Drain on a paper towel. Poach the 8 eggs in boiling water until desired doneness. Place them immediately into a bowl of ice water to stop cooking. Leave them there for now. You can do this a couple of hours ahead of time if you need to. Keep the egg water warm on low heat if you are eating right away. You can use it to re-warm the eggs when you are ready to serve..

Preheat a non-stick skillet or griddle to medium high heat. In a small bowl, whisk together the 2 eggs, mustard and milk. Dip the English muffin halves into the eggs and milk, like you were making French toast, coating both sides and place in the hot skillet drizzled with olive oil. Cook until golden brown on both sides. Repeat with the other three English muffins. Remove from pan and cube.

Place the poached eggs back in the hot water for a few minutes to re-warm the eggs. Put the lettuce in a large bowl and drizzle with some of the vinaigrette. Taste and add more vinaigrette if you like. Divide the lettuce onto 4 large plates. Sprinkle with cubed pancetta and the english muffin cubes. Top with the warm poached eggs. Season with salt and freshly black pepper. Serve.

This recipe can be done in stages throughout the day. The pancetta can be made ahead and warmed for 10 seconds in the microwave. The vinaigrette can be made ahead and refrigerated. The eggs can be poached in advance.

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Shaved Asparagus Salad

This is a perfect spring time recipe when the first asparagus appears at the farmer's market. For those of us that live in colder climates that time is now. My California friends have probably been eating home grown asparagus for months!

Shaved Asparagus Salad

Comforts Shaved Asparagus Salad has received cheers from its customers. It uses raw, thin sliced asparagus and if you’ve never tried raw asparagus, it can transform asparagus haters in a minute.

Serves four

12 large asparagus, with the tough ends snapped off
2 hard boiled eggs, peeled
½ cup dried tomatoes, julienned
¼ cup pine nuts, toasted lightly in a dry sauté pan
4 slices bacon, cut into ½ pieces and cooked crisp (optional)
8 cups loosely packed mixed Salad Greens, washed and dried
Champagne vinaigrette:
5 Tbsp. mild olive oil
2 ½ Tbsp. Champagne vinegar (or lemon juice)
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
½ tsp. ea. salt and fresh ground pepper
2 tsp. honey

Make the dressing: Place all the dressing ingredients in a small covered jar and shake until combined or blend with a stick blender.

Lay three stalks of asparagus on a cutting board and slice as thinly as possible on the diagonal. Repeat with the remaining asparagus. Place the torn salad greens in a bowl and dress lightly with the vinaigrette, reserving some of the dressing for the asparagus. Divide the lettuce among four salad plates and top equally with the nuts, dried tomatoes, and bacon. Using the largest holes on a box grater, grate the hard boiled eggs over the salads, about a half egg per plate. Now add the asparagus to the bowl you tossed the greens in and dress lightly. Divide the asparagus on top of the four salads equally.

Have fun with this salad by adding your favorite chevre or feta cheese. Use a regular Spring Mix salad blend, all frisee or no lettuce at all. Replace the pine nuts with toasted pecans or even candied walnuts. Serve over a bed of thinly sliced tomatoes when they come into season instead of dried tomatoes. Instead of a hard boiled egg, serve a poached egg on top. The possibilities are endless!


This recipe is courtesy of Glenn Miwa. It is one of the many I am testing for a Comforts cook book.
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