Eggie Weggs.

[It's obvious, isn't it?  Look at the honeyed-orange color of those eggs.  They aren't a starchy, opaque yellow.  They're golden, singing with color.  You cannot find eggs with this density, this primary hue in a grocery store.  John and I were stunned when we first enjoyed them.  Stunned.  Please, if you can, buy farm fresh eggs.  They'll "stand up and smack you in the face."]

We're doing a lot with eggs, or "eggie weggs", as John likes to call them, which is always an innovative experience for us.  Actually, it resembles elementary school arts and crafts time.  We dig through dwindling refrigerator contents and decipher what may or may not work in an omelet.  The good news is, pretty much anything and everything, as long as it's sauteed first, works well.  As we're buying seasonal foods, we have a lot of regulars hanging out with us:  fresh spinach, shiitake mushrooms, fresh onion, garlic and of course, eggs.  Tomatoes are always welcome in the saute pan, but we don't get them often as they aren't in season yet (I can't wait). 

Also, it's important that John gets his brain food, and there's hardly an easier way (other than a salad, which we'll talk about soon) to infuse vitamins and minerals into a dish than by way of an edgy omelet, or maxed out scrambled eggs.

       (pretty brain food)

One of our favorite breakfast spots in Athens is Mamma's Boy.  This restaurant has a smorgasbord of eggs dishes on the menu; one dish is scrambled with tomatoes, onions, spinach and goat cheese.  It is an egg lover's dream come true.  After I ate them, I became incapable of ordering anything else.  However, since we are sticking to our local-only creed, we decided to adopt our own concept straight from their ingenuity.  The best advice I could give is to treat plain scrambled eggs like a blank canvas, or, like a salad (you can add anything to a salad.  Anything.  Believe me.), ready to be flamboyantly decorated to the max by an artist like yourself.

A chef we enjoy, Bobby Flay, is a firm believer that "everything good begins with sauteed onion and garlic."  At first I thought this concept was reserved for lunch and dinner, but I have come to love how it wakes you up for breakfast, too.  One thing to note is that onion and garlic are much more flavorful when fresh, not dried.  We bumped dried garlic to a backup once we started getting long, green, snappy fresh sprigs. 

                                  (snappy, fresh garlic & onion)

Also, any cheese will do.  I believe we used mozzarella in the above picture.  The traditional staple is goat, but feta, mozzarella and havarti are snazzy components too.  You can use whatever you have.

Personally, I enjoy creative challenges first thing in the morning, especially when John enjoys the results.  I like to think I'm helping him ace his exams, and it's a good way to start the day. 

Eggie Weggs for a Momma's Boy

2 cloves fresh garlic

1/4 cup onion, diced

1 large shiitake mushroom, cut into strips

3/4 cup fresh spinach

1 tomato, diced

4 to 5 eggs, depending on size

olive oil

salt & pepper, to taste

choice of cheese as topping

In a medium sized saucepan on medium low heat, add olive oil.  When heated (you can teste with a droplet of water, if it sizzles, it's ready), add the garlic and onion, simmering until golden brown.  Add spinach, mushrooms, tomato if using and simmer for 4 minutes.  While simmering, crack open eggs in a large bowl and add 1 to 2 tablespoons water and whisk until they begin to bubble.  (You can whisk with a fork if needed.)  Pour eggs into pan and cover until halfway cooked, about 5 more minutes.  When the base of the eggs are set, scramble them lightly with a spatula.  When cooked to desired consistency, pour out on plate and grate cheese of choice lightly over the eggs.  Serve.

*Hint: don't be (like me) tempted to jack up the heat at any point of the process.  Scrambled eggs are best when thoroughly cooked on low heat.

The Magic Ingredient.

They say that the road to hell is paved with good intentions, so I'll start with an apology for the beet juice stained plate picture above. With all my heart, I wanted pretty pictures for you. I just didn't know it would turn out to be so dang good. It wasn't until the food disappeared that my husband looked at me, sighed and said, "Babe, that was some blog-worthy pasta." I nodded and expressed my disappointment at not having a proper photo. "Just take a picture of the plate," he said. Pathetic, I know, but I will try to compensate by revealing the saucy goodness that I failed to photograph.

A generous soul gave us some of those rolled up egg noodles. You know, the ones that cook in under 10 minutes? They are genius. With some simmering creme fraiche and some sauteed shitakee mushrooms we had a deluxe dinner pasta sauce. In an all time low moment, meant to be shared between husband and wife, I'm sure, I had some sauce on my chin. When my husband pointed it out, I grabbed a piece of bread, mopped it off my chin and ate it. Yep, I'm that barbaric and it was that good.

(A word about creme fraiche. It's fancy, expensive and full of fat, but it's what I like to call the "magic ingredient." If you think your dinner is headed straight to the compost - a dab o' creme fraiche will save the day, any day.)

My cooking skills are less than perfect. Often when something delicious is created, I'm as surprised as anybody else. I didn't get any by-the-book qualities, and sometimes I struggle to share recipes because I play as I go and don't keep track of what I'm doing. This can end in disaster but thankfully tonight it didn't. If you're like me, you will love making this recipe. If you're not like me but still want to try it I'll give you the most exact recipe I can but you will have to trust your nose and tastebuds.

Also, if you think of a snazzy name for it let me know. I'll stick with "Mop Your Chin With Bread Pasta" for now. (See? I need your help.)

Mop Your Chin With Bread Pasta

1/2 package tagliatelle (egg noodle) pasta (about 4 oz)

1/2 package creme fraiche (also about 4 oz)

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/2 cup whole milk or 2%

salt and pepper to taste

water as needed

1 or 2 large shiitake mushrooms, chopped lengthwise

Coat a large saucepan with a generous amount of olive oil and let warm at medium low heat. Add minced or crushed garlic and simmer until light golden. Pour in 4 oz. of creme fraiche, stirring until melted. Raise heat to medium and add shiitake mushrooms (sliced into long strips) and cover, simmering for about 7 to 10 minutes. Uncover and add milk, salt, pepper and water as needed (taste before adding). Cover again, raise heat a little more and allow sauce to simmer for about 3 more minutes. Uncover, stir, and let rest on the lowest setting.

Boil noodles until tender, remove, drain and lightly spray with cold water (this keeps them from getting too sticky). Ladle the sauce over the pasta and serve. Please note that the sauce will be thin, (I hate to use the word "runny" but it's accurate) that's OK the flavor's still there.

PS. The beet recipe has not been forgotten, don't worry. (There wasn't any sauce left to photograph.)

PPS. Yes, those are my long toes poking out of the picture. I'd hoped you wouldn't notice.