Egg on Pizza? Try it you'll like it!!

I've recently been reading a thread about egg on pizza. The august intelligentsia's that were discussing this phenomena were trying to delve into the historical origin. Now I fully admit that I am not a collage professor nor do I ponder many whys and wherefores in the culinary world. I do read zillions of cookbooks and anything that mentions food.

With that said-egg on pizza seems to me to be a natural. I fantasized about my non-existent Italian grandmother who would forage for fresh eggs from our free range chickens, climb a ladder and cut down the drying prosciutto to slice paper thin pieces. She would send my fictitious brother Guido to the garden for sun warmed tomatoes and fragrant basil and parsley.There we were, sitting in the dimming light of our kitchen around the wood table covered with nicks and burns from previous generations. Our wood burning oven, stoked with wood we all had gathered was baking the pizza.What better healthy meal could this be?

It was Friday night at our house. A day that I set aside for "fun food". After my NSSP (Not So Silent Partner) suggested light food,-fish, chicken, rice- I suggested pizza. Having been on the road and eating with his sales crowd he mentioned having pizza the previous night. Not missing a marital beat however he said it could hardly compare to my homemade version. (you've got to love a smooth talker!!) At this point I hadn't told him of my burning urge to crack said egg on pizza and I thought it wise that he be lulled into thoughts of our usual Italian delight, sausage, mushroom, onion, and chiffonade basil.

My foodie neighbor and I call our favorite grocery store "church" and on Friday I crossed its threshold with a mission. Mumbling a litany of vegetables as I stroked them. "Ah... fresh peas!! they must go with something! and what's this a pile of fava beans?? Vidalia onions? Oh, my." But wait! I looked at my watch and realized that I couldn't make my own dough in time and I would have to buy fresh dough. Slipping into high gear I dashed the outer edges of church genuflecting and grabbing ingredients.

Only 6 thin slices of prosciutto, 3 ripe tomatoes, a bag of basil, 2 handfuls of crimini mushrooms, fresh mozzarella, pizza dough and away I went. I quickly unloaded the groceries at home and turned on our "pizza oven" (wondering how hot the oven ever got). And then the question-

"What kind of pizza are we having tonight?" I put on my best happy voice and launched into my quest for egg pizza. It was met with curiosity, a shrug, and when's dinner. Left alone with my ingredients I began my inner dialogue in earnest.

"What goes first? How to layer the ingredients? Should egg be whole and fried? Broken yolk? Scrambled? Cheese on top? Basil? Is the G## D###m oven hot yet?

Here are the answers to these burning questions and more...

I stretched out two pizza doughs into rectangles put thin ribbons of proscuitto on top, sliced tomatoes, random sliced mushrooms and very finely diced vidalia onions. Chopped parsley and basil next. Little orbs of fresh mozerella. I put the pizza in the oven for a couple of minutes to firm up then cracked the eggs on top. At the last minute I made the decision to break the yolk not trusting my oven to cook the egg before burning the dough.

The result? A very rich and filling dish with all of the components of an American breakfast. Served with salad, fruit, and wine we watched HBO's"Rome".
Hail Caesar! and Bon Appetit!

What Would You Eat???

I was just going to brag about a lovely lunch that I had with my FF (Food Friend) when I thought, what the h**l, I’ll just drag and click their menu to my blog and let you feast your eyes on what we had to pick from! We have three simple rules to Lady’s Lunch. 1. Commence at 1pm. 2. We share what we order. 3. A bottle of wine picked out by said FF and I guess 4. Lots of scintillating conversation (gabbing). The Items I have **are the ones we picked to gorge on.


STARTERS

CHICK-PEA AND SEMOLINA SOUP
fresh mint, preserved lemon and fried chick-peas

**WILLAPA BAY OYSTER SALAD
red wine braised bacon, spinach, croutons and kalamata olive aïoli

SKILLET ROASTED MANILA CLAMS
garlic, sun dried tomatoes, saffron and grilled bread

SALAD OF KING FISHER FARMS SEASONAL GREENS
toasted hazelnuts, balsamic vinaigrette and currants

RICOTTA CHEESE GNOCCHI
bay scallops, arugula and lemon brown butter

SALAD OF WEPPLER FARMS MÂCHE
naval oranges, pistachios and goat cheese

ENTRÉES

**GRILLED WASHINGTON ASPARAGUS SANDWICH
gruyère, fried egg, aïoli and house made chips

BRAISED DRAPER VALLEY FARMS CHICKEN
crushed hertha potatoes, sorrel purée and capers

CREAMED KING OYSTER MUSHROOM PASTA
your kitchen garden rapini, arugula and shaved ricotta salata

PAN ROASTED ALASKAN HALIBUT FISH CAKE
saffron-fennel ragoût, potatoes and meyer lemon aïoli

ROASTED GARLIC AND RICOTTA CHEESE RAVIOLO
your kitchen garden cardoons, kale and almonds

SLOW COOKED CATTAIL CREEK LAMB RAGOÛT
bacon braised kale, cipolline onions, gremolata and parmesan

DESCHUTES ORGANIC ALE BATTERED FISH AND CHIPS
house made slaw and sauce gribiche

**HOUSE CURED HAM AND GREEN GARLIC PIZZA
beecher’s cheddar and fresh arugula

WILDWOOD POTATO CRUSTED DUNGENESS CRAB CAKE
fennel, radishes, toasted almonds and aïoli

CHICKEN ROMAINE SALAD
creamy garlic dressing, balsamic roasted red onions, capers and parmesan

GRILLED STRAWBERRY MOUNTAIN HAMBURGER
cracked pepper focaccia bun, dijon aïoli, garlic confit and hand cut fries

As our eyes lit on each dish and we mentally tasted them it was very hard to decide what we wanted to spend real calories on. This isn’t one of those iceberg lettuce ice tea female lunches this is a no holds barred grease filled feeding frenzy with no apologies and we have a blast!! Now I put menus in two categories. The first is a menu that you cross off what you don’t want and order from the one or two items that might interest you. The second menu like the one above is a gustative challenge. As I say in my monthly book reviews (www.ingoodtastestore.com, click gourmet store then cookbook reviews)- Read! Eat! Enjoy!! The Queen Has Spoken

A Jiggle on the Table

My NSSP (Not So Silent Partner) and I have a food couple that we get together with from time to time and indulge and imbibe with, it's swell. My girlfriend is generous with her presents and when we go out to lunch she delves into her copious purse and often presents me with a "treasure". Before Easter it was a crouching rabbit Jell-O mold. Interesting. It sat on my kitchen counter vying for space with mail, magazines, and newspapers until...

We were invited for Easter dinner at said friends home. Then the BOB (burst of brilliance) happened! I would make a Jell-O Easter bunny for the table!! Now when a B.O.B. occurs it is like fireworks going off- perhaps it is an LSD flashback that we were all threatened to have (into eternity) when we did pharmaceuticals in the '70's. It felt more like evil glee...

Well, what color should ol' Thumper be? Since he would be sitting on a bed of greens I went with your basic red. I did have fleeting fantasy's of layering colors, adding chunks of fruit etc. but truth be told I am not a Jell-O Queen and my expertise is limited. As a child, Jell-o never passed The Princess’s lips in our house.

I really wanted to unmold it before we left but my more rational side prevailed. When we got to our friends house, I shooed everyone out of the kitchen and commenced to the unmolding. As usual it was easier said than done. Ol' Thumper didn't shimmer out in one plop and when I shook the mold he broke in two!! So being the ever resourceful chef I shored him up for a viewing. He glowed and shimmered with delight as the candles bounced through his red transparent body.

Now I feel I'm ready for a real competition- The Bumpas and Parr Jelly Competition (no joke!this was a side article on www.seriouseats.com). So if you are in England around May 23rd you can see the competition or if you are there July 4 you can partake of a jelly dinner. If not take a gander at www.jellymongers.co.uk. Oh, those Brits!

This summer I think I will banish fresh flowers and delve into colorful jiggles for my centerpieces. I have found a new food group to master! Watch out Martha Stewart!