Duck Egg Kale Frittata

I have been buying my eggs from a new farmer for the past few months. I always notice that he has duck eggs but I was apprehensive about trying them. I finally took the plunge and I am glad that I did. They are bigger than chicken eggs but I found out that (compared in weight) duck eggs have more vitamins, minerals than chicken eggs! They do have a slightly higher fat and cholesterol count but I am not really worried about that. Overall, I think they have a more distinct flavor than chicken eggs. I would buy them again!

I made this frittata with the leftovers that I had from making the kale stew. It was delicious. I think kale and eggs pair nicely together. Try it!

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

• 5 Duck eggs
• 5 leaves of kale, stems removed and chopped finely
• 1 veggie sausage, cut in half lengthwise and diced (I used sun-dried tomato Tofurky brand)
• 1 clove of garlic, chopped finely
• 4 mushrooms, chopped
• 1/4-1/2 of a medium onion, diced
• Parmesan, shredded-1/3-1/2 cup (I like a lot of cheese but you use as much as you want)
• Half and half (approximately 1 tablespoon)
• Salt and pepper-a pinch or 2 
• Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix duck eggs together in a bowl. While beating eggs pour in half and half and mix until combined. Coat a cast-iron skillet with plenty of olive oil. Heat oil in the skillet on medium heat. Add onions and cook for approximately 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook another minute. Add mushroom, sausage and kale, saute a few minutes, until kale cooks down, add more oil, if needed. Add the eggs, half of the Parmesan salt and pepper. Mix everything together and cook for another 2 minutes. Sprinkle the top of the frittata with the remaining Parmesan cheese. Place skillet in the over and cook for 5-10 minutes, until the top starts to brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Serve with hot sauce and leftover baguette.     

Kale and White Bean Stew

I have made several variations of this soup over the years so I thought it was about time that I posted one of them.  In the past I have added mushroom, used different greens (it is great with swiss chard), used tomatoes instead of sausage etc etc. I am not usually a big fake meat eater but for some reason it just sounded good, you can feel free to omit it or use real sausage. I think this soup always turns out delicious.  I made this variation a few weeks ago and it lasted for days which was good considering the fact that I had 3 exams that week! I served this with a whole wheat baguette with melted Parmesan!

Makes 6 main coarse servings

Ingredients:

•  3/4 pound dried white beans (I used cannellini)
• 1 large sweet onion (or 2 medium onions)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 5 cups veggie broth or veggie bullion
• 2 qt water
• splash of white wine
• 1 (3- by 2-inch) piece Parmesan rind (this really makes it!)
• 1 dried rosemary or dried thyme
• 3 veggie sausages, (I used the sun-dried tomato Tofurky brand) cut in half length-wise & chopped
• 4 carrots, halved lengthwise and cut into moons
• 1 lb kale (I prefer lacinato), stems and center ribs discarded and leaves coarsely chopped 
• vinegar (you choose!)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• baguette

Preparation:

Cover beans with water by 2 inches in a pot and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let stand, uncovered, 1 hour. Drain beans in a colander and rinse.

Cook onions in oil in an 8-quart pot over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 1 minute. De-glaze the pan with a few splashes of white wine, let cook another minute in the wine.

Add beans, broth, 1 quart water, cheese rind, salt, pepper, and rosemary (or thyme) and simmer, uncovered, until beans are just tender, about 50 minutes.

While soup is simmering, brown sausage (if using).

Stir carrots into soup and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in kale, sausage, and remaining quart water and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until kale is tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Add a splash or 2 of vinegar, I used balsamic. Season soup with salt and pepper.

Adapted from Epicurious

 

Quinoa Cakes with Kale Pesto & Poached Eggs

Colleen and I made these a couple months ago and they were seriously delicious. I liked them so much that I made them 2 weeks later for a dinner party. They are really versatile, I think you can pretty much top them with anything. The second time I made them I served them with basil pesto and poached eggs as well as with a roasted beet & goat cheese puree. Thinking about them makes me want to whip some up right now, did I mention they were easy?

Here is the recipe for the cakes:
makes about 2-3 servings.

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
• 2 cups water or broth
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/4 cup flour (I used whole wheat the first time & gluten free all purpose the second time)
  
• 1/4 cup Parmesan, grated
• salt and pepper to taste
• oil for frying

Directions

1. Simmer the quinoa in the water until the liquid has been absorbed and the quinoa is tender, about 15 minutes and let cool a bit.
2. Mix the cooked quinoa with the eggs, onion, garlic, flour, parmesan, salt and pepper, adding more flour if required.
3. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat.
4. Spoon the mixture into the pan and form patties of any size that you desire and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 2-4 minutes per side, and set aside on paper towels to drain.

We didn't measure anything while making the kale pesto, here is a framework to work with. In my experience, pesto is something that can't be measured, you have to keep tasting.

For the Pesto:
4-6 cups kale leaves, ribs removed, coarsely chopped (lacinato works best, I think)
2 large fresh garlic clove, coarsely chopped
2/3 cup coarsely chopped, toasted walnuts
3/4 cup grated parmesan
1/2 cup olive oil
lots of salt and pepper

Mix everything in a food processor or blender.

Here is a great link on The Smitten Kitchen on how to poach an egg. The only advice I have in addition to her explanation is to add some vinegar to the water. It helps to keep the egg from separating and no, your egg won't taste like vinegar!

Original recipe found on Closet Cooking.

Split Pea and Cabbage Soup with Onion Strings

Before spring hits (again) in full force I wanted to post a couple soup recipes that I made this winter. I have several recipes that I need to post; blogging takes a backseat to grad school and work! Keep posting ya'll, I know you are making great stuff out there.

**please forgive my photos, my kitchen is so dark and full of shadows. And man, I didn't even clean the bowl off! I am so glad that I decided not to go to art school!!!**

Ingredients
For the soup:
3/4-1 pound dried split green peas (I used slightly under 1 pound)
3 quarts water
1-2 tablespoons vegetable bullion (you can use veggie broth too)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 carrots, diced into half moons
1 medium yellow or sweet onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
a dash or 2 of cayenne pepper
1 bay leaf
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 head of green cabbage, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
Swiss cheese, if you fancy
For the onion strings:
1 small yellow onion, sliced thinly
1 teaspoon olive oil
1-2 tablespoon flour (I used all purpose gluten free)
Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
For the soup:
1.In a large Dutch oven or saucepan over high heat, bring the peas , bullion and water to a boil.
2. Boil the peas, uncovered, for two minutes.
3. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for approximately 1 hour.
4. After the hour is over, add the oil to a medium skillet over medium-high heat.
5. Add the carrot, onion, garlic and thyme to the oil and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 8-10 minutes.
6. Add the mixture to the peas, add the bay leaf and potatoes, and simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally.
7. Continue simmering, stirring occasionally, until the soup has thickened, about 1-2 hours.
8. After about 1 hour of cooking, add the cabbage and cook for at least another 30 minutes.
8. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
For the onion strings:
9.In a small sauté pan over medium-high heat, add the oil until shimmering.
10. In a small separate bowl, toss the sliced onions with the flour and salt and pepper.
11. Add the onions to the pan, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are nicely browned and crispy, about 15 minutes or so.
12. Garnish the soup with the crispy onions and shredded swiss cheese.
Makes approximately 4 servings
ENJOY!
Adapted from The Curvy Carrot who adapted from Food and Wine magazine