Spring Omelette with baby Jerusalem Artichokes

I picked my first 2 spears of asparagus recently, and decided I most wanted some buttery eggs with spring onions to accompany them. I also had a handful of tiny jerusalem artichokes that I pan fried, and topped everything with some fresh tarragon. (Had it occurred to me earlier, I would have incorporated the tarragon into the cooking part, and not just as a garnish. I had to go cut more after I realized how delicious it was with both. Tarragon and jerusalem artichokes = delish!) 

During Ramadan I find I want eggs at least once a week, and the way I want them is with a lot of butter. A LOT. Buttery eggs - how can I eat them any other way? It makes me think of Julia Child. *Though, speaking of buttery eggs - I took myself on a solo date last week to a "show" at the Walker (show is a loose term, because the single other person there, a stranger, and I, made up both the show and the audience, reading our "script" from note cards placed between us under the pane of glass, making it more like an experience) followed by take-out dinner from Rainbow Restaurant. Which included a very fancy egg dish. And those eggs, while I cannot imagine were cooked with butter, must have been cooked in a good quantity of sesame oil in a hot wok - they were so light and airy and somehow both creamy and crispy. With the accompanying tarot rice flour cake, the dish just melted in my mouth and I was in complete awe. So, maybe it is eggs with fat that I love?!

I've made these eggs with just spring onions, or just with butter and herbs. Stellar every time. 

Spring Omelette (serves 1)

• 2 T butter
  
• salt
• 3 spring onions, chopped
  
• 2 spears asparagus (opt), chopped
• opt herbs: tarragon, parsley, chives
• 3 eggs
  

1) Heat a small cast iron on med heat. Melt your butter in the pan, and add your spring veggies. (I add just the white onion part now, adding the green part just before I pour in the eggs.) Saute the veggies for a few minutes until tender.

2) While they saute, crack your eggs into a vessel, and use a fork to lightly whisk them. I hear over-whisking is not beneficial, so whisk just enough to mix them. If you want herbs, add them, and the green onion bits to the buttery pan. Saute 30 seconds or so before adding the eggs.

3) Pour your eggs into your cast iron. Stir them a bit to incorporate the butter into the eggs. As they start to set, gently stir some more so that the runny part has access to the pan. The goal is an omelette, not scrambled eggs, so you want to stir just enough, then let it sit to set. The butter will help you here. I am no good at flipping my omelette, so I stir/let set until the top is cooked, meaning the bottom will brown just slightly. Fold your omelette over on itself, and serve. 

I had mine with some labneh, which was divine, and the baby sunchokes, pan fried in yet more butter.

Also, it is almost Eid!! The last week was particularly challenging on the fasting front, and it was so lovely to not only get this beautiful henna, but also to a) be around some more people who b) are also fasting. What a gift. I love seeing the different designs each henna artist creates - they are all SO different. 💕

Eggs and Asparagus Broiler Breakfast

I got this idea from Nom Nom Paleo, where the main flavoring is furikake, which I don't have, but sounds delicious. Basically, you just saute some asparagus in a cast-iron skillet for a few minutes, then crack some eggs in the same pan, and put the whole thing under the broiler until it's done to your liking (for me, like 2 minutes or so, but I'm a time optimist, so I could be wrong about that estimate).

The flavorings I use are also inspired by Nom Nom Paleo - before I read her cookbook, I'd never thought of using powdered mushrooms before. She has a flavor mix she calls Magic Mushroom Powder, which I've made before and which is good. Lately, though, I've been using an onion powder mix, which I made partly with spices from an outfit called Burlap & Barrel, and I also sprinkle some dried porcini powder on top.

You can get dried porcini mushrooms in small packs at the co-op, and then blitz them in a spice grinder or coffee grinder (if you don't also use it for coffee). I just keep mine in a jar next to my stove.  Add it to anything, for FLAVOR.

SPICE BLEND
Onion Powder
Sumac (I used sumac that was flaked and then cured in oil and salt, as opposed to whole berries)
Pepper flakes (I used "Aleppo-style" pepper flakes - also cured in oil and salt)

I think I used fairly equal parts of the three ingredients, but possibly more onion powder than the other two, as it's kind of the base. I keep this in a jar by my stove, like the mushrooms. It does get kind of caked up, so you have to crumble it with your fingers over the food. I think the oil-cured ingredients help it to not turn into a total brick, which has happened to me before with other onion-powder blends.

BROILER BREAKFAST
Handful of asparagus, washed and chopped (or you can cook them whole)
Two (or more) eggs
Your favorite fat to fry eggs in (I've been using some schmaltz I made)
Oniony spice blend to taste
Dried porcini mushroom powder to taste
Salt to taste

1. Turn on the broiler.
2. Heat the fat in the skillet on the stovetop.
3. Add asparagus and saute them for a few minutes, to par-cook them.
4. Crack the eggs into the skillet and turn off the heat.
5. Sprinkle everything with salt, the spice blend, and the mushroom powder.
6. Put the pan under the broiler and cook until the eggs are done how you like them. I don't like undercooked whites, but I do like the yolks to run a bit, so I wait until there's a skim of white on the top of the yolks (see picture above, and below, where I've scraped that white away so you can see the yolks aren't overcooked).