Tonight's dinner was comes from Melissa Clark's, In The Kitchen with a Good Appetite. I've only just recently heard of her. I guess she writes a column for the New York Times called, "A Good Appetite," or something like that.
Anyway, I picked up her cookbook at the library last week, and have been deciding on what I want to make out of it. I have a tendency to browse through many cookbooks, love many of the recipes, but don't end up making them. Mostly because of how rich so many of the recipes I like seem to be. And, I have to be sure that my kiddos will eat it, too. They pretty much will try most of what I make, but it doesn't mean they'll like it, or get in a decent meal that evening. So, I'm picky.
Tonight's meal was a home run hit! I had originally typed, "grand slam," but had to change it. I would have been a grand slam, but we did have to make Vincent finish his asparagus. He had only eaten half of it, and we insisted he could fit the rest. Seriously, it's so healthy, and it was only 3 half stalks (the bottoms, of course). He did finish his entire plate in record time, which is rare. This was Vincent's plate:
I cooked the kids' eggs fully and gave them raw carrot sticks instead of the slaw. Their asparagus also didn't have the anchovy breadcrumbs, but they both asked to try it and liked it! Here's what the asparagus plate looked like:
So, I took two recipes from Clark's book, and made one meal. The first was "Buttery Polenta with Parmesan and Olive Oil-fried Eggs and Swiss Chard." The second, "Pan-roasted Asparagus with Fried Eggs and Anchovy Bread Crumbs." And, I had previously sliced fennel bulb and julienned carrots hanging around, so I made the slaw. Oh, man! I forgot to stir the butter into my polenta! Oh well, here are the recipes:
Buttery Polenta with Parmesan & Olive Oil-fried Eggs (inspired by Melissa Clark)
4 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups polenta (not quick cooking), coarse cornmeal, or corn grits
3/4 t salt
2-4 T unsalted butter
1/4 t freshly ground black pepper, plus additional
1-oz chunk Parmesan cheese (or 1/4 cup grated)
Eggs (however many you desire)
1. In a large pot, bring water and salt to a simmer. Sprinkle in the polenta while stirring. Lower the heat and simmer the polenta, stirring every few minutes or so. Cook until thickened, and not too gritty, approximately 10-20 minutes. Stir in the butter and pepper and cover the pot to keep warm.
2. Using a vegetable peeler, slice the cheese into slivers, or grate the cheese.
3. Fry your eggs! I like using a bit of canola oil with olive oil to raise the smoke point. I should also mention that you want your eggs runny still, unlike my kid's in the above photo.
Pan-roasted Asparagus with Fried Eggs and Anchovy Bread Crumbs (Melissa Clark, again, as you already know)
2T extra-virgin olive oil
3T unseasoned bread crumbs
1 anchovy fillet, minced
1 small garlic clove, minced
Kosher salt to taste
1/2 t freshly grated lemon zest
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed
Pinch freshly ground black pepper
1. Heat 1T of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the bread crumbs and anchovy and cook, stirring occasionally, until the bread crumbs are browned and toasted, about 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic and a large pinch of salt and saute until fragrant, 1-2 minutes longer. Add the lemon zest, then transfer to a small bowl.
2. Wipe out the skillet with a paper towel and return it to the heat. Add another tablespoon of the oil and then add the asparagus and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cover and cook, stirring and shaking the pan occasionally, until the asparagus is tender, 5-6 minutes. Transfer the asparagus to a serving plate and sprinkle with the bread crumbs mixture.
Melissa's recipe actually has a 3rd tablespoon for olive oil to fry 2 eggs in, using the same pan. She serves the eggs on top of the asparagus. I also want to add that the amount of bread crumbs in this recipe is actually quite a bit. I sprinkled what I thought was sufficient, and put the bowl out on the table to add as desired. There was still another tablespoon or more leftover, so I saved it, to toss it into a salad or something in the next day or so. Oh, and I added chopped parsley to my crumbs.
As for the fennel carrot slaw, only made about 1.5 cups worth. Probably 1/2 cup of thinly sliced fennel bulb, 1/2 cup of julienned carrots, and 1/2 cup of thinly sliced sweet onions. I mixed with a lemon vinaigrette and a little champagne vinegar, salt and pepper. Oh, and chives! I heart chives.
So, put it all together! Polenta sprinkled with Parmesan, asparagus, fried egg, and a side of slaw. Yes, please!
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