Creamed Eggs on Toast

Miss Peachy🍑 and I had a sleepover in the motorhome recently. We made creamed eggs on toast. She loved it and sometimes she’s a hard sell on anything different!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 4+ cups 1/2 and 1/2 
• 6 hard-boiled eggs chopped
• 2 hard-boiled eggs sliced
• kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste  
• Instructions 
• In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter; add flour and whisk for 1-2 minutes until golden brown and bubbly
• Remove the skillet from the heat; slowly add the 1/2 and 1/2, whisking constantly until the gravy is smooth. Return the gravy to the heat and continue to whisk until the gravy is nicely thickened. Fold in chopped eggs; season to taste with salt and pepper. Use the sliced eggs for garnish. 
• Serve the warm creamed eggs over toast or biscuits. Enjoy!
• *you can use milk but I like mine richer. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

SPAGHETTI WITH MASCARPONE, MEYER LEMON, SPINACH, AND HAZELNUTS

1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
1 Meyer lemon zested and juiced (about 3TBS juice)

1/2 teaspoon salt

a few grinds of fresh pepper

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 pound spaghetti

5 cups (loosely packed) fresh spinach, washed, spun dry, and roughly chopped

1/2 cup chopped, toasted hazelnuts

Combine the zest, lemon juice, mascarpone, salt, pepper, and nutmeg in a bowl. Whisk to combine.

Bring a pot of water to boil and salt generously. Cook the pasta until al dente, taking it off the heat about 1 to 2 minutes before you would normally remove it. Drain, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta water.

Return the pasta to the pot, and set over low heat. Stir in the mascarpone sauce. Add the spinach and toss so that the spinach begins to wilt. Add about 1/4 cup of the pasta water (more if necessary) to keep the sauce fluid but not too watery. Continue to cook and toss until the spinach is cooked. Add the hazelnuts and stir to combine. Serve immediately.

GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE

Niki loves green bean casserole but Lindsy and I couldn't stand that fake version.  This is what we came up with. Alton Brown. Don't bother with the onions...they don't turn out good. Just use the canned ones or skip them which is what we do.

This is very good mushroom gravy just to make on its own.  



NOT YOUR MAMA's GREEN BEAN CASSEOLE

Courtesy Alton Brown 

1 pound fresh green beans, rinsed and trimmed

1 gallon water

2 tablespoons kosher salt

For sauce:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

12 ounces mushrooms, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup chicken broth

1 cup half-and-half

Bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons of salt to a boil in an 8-quart saucepan. Blanch for 5 minutes. Drain in a colander and immediately plunge the beans into a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain and set aside.

Turn the oven on to 400 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a 12-inch cast iron skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms begin to give up some of their liquid, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and nutmeg and continue to cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and stir to combine. Cook for 1 minute. Add the broth and simmer for 1 minute. Add the half-and-half and cook until the mixture thickens, approximately 6 to 8 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in the green beans.  Place into the oven and bake until bubbly, approximately 15 minutes. Remove and serve immediately.

Recipe courtesy of Alton Brown, 2007

POTATO SOUP/CLAM CHOWDER

I made a lot of different soups at the deli but I think Clam Chowder may have been the favorite. This potato soup is made the same way only without clams. It's not fancy and comes out very thick sometimes but you can always adjust the milk. Ron prefers it without the celery. 

1 lb. bacon, diced
1 large onion (2cups), diced
1 cup celery, diced
10 lbs potatoes, peeled and diced
8  cups chicken broth
1 quart heavy cream
White pepper
1 stick butter

In an 8 qt pot, put diced potatoes and chicken broth just to cover (add a little water if potatoes aren't covered).  Cook until potatoes are very fork tender. 

Brown bacon until crisp. Remove from pan. Add onion and celery to bacon grease and cook until translucent, drain grease and add to potatoes. Add cream and white pepper. 

Put in bacon bits if desired. If soup appear too thin, add some potatoes buds to thicken. If too thick add a bit more milk.  Stir in butter and let sit, covered, for awhile before eating, salt and pepper to taste (or refrigerate and reheat later).  Serves maybe 16

If you want clam chowder add a large #10 can of clams and its juice. (I don’t put celery in clam chowder. Hold back a couple cups of broth, then adjust liquid) 

You can leave the bacon out if you'd like.  Sauté the onions in the butter. Finish as above. 

Penne with Brown Butter, Arugula, and Pine Nuts

I could eat this every night.  






Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis
Serves: 4 to 6 servings




Ingredients
Dressing:
* 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 large lemon, zested and juiced
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pasta:
* 1 pound penne rigate pasta
* 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, at room temperature
* 4 cups baby arugula
* 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
* 1 cup grated Parmesan
* 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts (see Cook's Note)
* 2 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained
Directions
For the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, and pepper until smooth. Set aside.
For the pasta: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and reserve about 1 cup of the pasta water.
In a high-sided skillet, whisk the butter over medium heat until melted. Simmer until foamy. Continue to cook until the butter has a nutty aroma and turns a caramel color, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the pasta, dressing, arugula, tomatoes, Parmesan, pine nuts, and capers. Toss until coated, adding the reserved pasta water, 1 tablespoon at a time to loosen the sauce, if needed. Transfer to a large bowl and serve.
Cook's Note: To toast the pine nuts, arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F oven until lightly toasted, 6 to 8 minutes. Cool completely before using.