Saveur Cooks Authentic American - Editors Of Cook's Illustrated Magazine [17]
Eggs
A line cook at the Waffle House in East Point, Georgia.
It’s our favorite way to greet the day: a farm-fresh egg fried in olive oil until the white is crisp around the edges and the yolk is barely firm. A little coarse sea salt, a grind of black pepper, a thick slice of crusty bread, and the morning is off to a blissful start. Other times, we ask more of this elemental ingredient, whether poached and covered in hollandaise, smothered with a bright tomato salsa, or baked into a frittata topped with ricotta. So indispensable is the egg to our well-being that calling it the perfect food almost seems like an understatement.
Ricotta and Roasted Pepper Frittata
Frittata con Ricotta e Peperoni
Main-course frittatas like this one are popular in the southern Italian region of Calabria, where traditional sheep farming is an enduring way of life and freshly made sheep’s milk ricotta is an everyday pleasure. Calabrians sometimes add sliced cured sausage to this ricotta frittata on Easter, to celebrate the end of the Lenten fast.
½ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano
2 tbsp. roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
1½ tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. chopped fresh oregano
8 eggs, beaten Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 small new potato, peeled and sliced into 1/8-inch rounds
1 medium red bell pepper, roasted, peeled, and cut into ¼ -inch strips
¾ cup ricotta cheese
Serves 4–6
1. Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat oven to 425°F. In a large bowl, whisk together ¼ cup of the Pecorino, the parsley, ½ tsp. salt, oregano, and eggs and season with black pepper. Set the egg mixture aside.
2. Heat the oil in a 10-inch nonstick ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining salt and the onions and potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned and soft, about 20 minutes.
3. Remove the skillet from the heat. Add the egg mixture to the skillet and stir to distribute the onions and potatoes evenly. Scatter the peppers over the top, spoon the ricotta over the mixture in 6 dollops, and sprinkle with the remaining Pecorino. Bake until the frittata is lightly browned on top and the center is set, about 15 minutes. Run a rubber spatula around the edges of the frittata to loosen it, then slide it onto a serving plate. Season with more black pepper, if you like, cut into wedges, and serve.
Classic Eggs Benedict
No one knows for sure where the name “Eggs Benedict” came from, but most accounts trace this dish’s invention to Delmonico’s, an iconic Gilded Age restaurant in New York City. It has since become an American brunch classic, and no wonder. The combination of poached eggs, creamy hollandaise, and Canadian bacon on a toasted English muffin manages to be elegant and comforting at the same time.
2 cups distilled white vinegar
2½ tsp. kosher salt, plus more to taste
1 tbsp. canola oil
8 slices Canadian bacon
3 egg yolks
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
¼ tsp. Tabasco
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
8 eggs, cracked into separate small bowls
4 English muffins, split and lightly toasted Paprika or cayenne pepper, for garnish
Serves 4
1. Bring 16 cups of water to a boil in a tall 6-qt. saucepan over high heat. Add the vinegar and 2 tsp. salt, lower heat to medium, and bring to a simmer.
2. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, turning once, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat.
3. Combine the egg yolks, lemon juice, Tabasco, 4 tsp. warm water, and the remaining salt in a blender. Blend at medium speed while slowly drizzling in the melted butter to make the hollandaise. Transfer to a bowl, cover with foil, and set aside.
4. Swirl the simmering vinegar water with a spoon to create a whirlpool. Carefully slide each egg into the