Poached Egg Breakfast Sandwich

Start your day off right with a fancy looking open faced sandwich!  I was inspired to make this after watching Bobby Flay make something similiar.  This would be perfect for a brunch- super easy to make and filling yet not heavy.

Poaching eggs are so easy and really lends itself well to the roll it sits on.

There are lots of ways to make this sandwich, so if you want to make substitions, feel free.

Ingredients
(1 sandwich)

• 1 egg, poached
• 1/3 cup of cheese, shredded (I used parmesean)
• 2-3 tomato slices
• kaiser roll, split in half (you'll only need one half for each sandwich)
• oil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes
• handful of arugula
• white vinegar

Directions

1. To Poach Eggs:  Fill a pot with water and bring to a boil.  Once it comes to a boil reduce heat so it is right before a rolling boil (you want the water with basically no bubbles, just really hot).  Add 2-3 tbsp of vinegar to the water.  Break the egg in a small bowl first so its easy to transfer to the water.  Add the egg gently to the water and swirl the water around the egg a bit so the whites form around the yolk.  Cook for about 5 minutes.  Remove with a slotted spoon and lay gently on a paper towel to dry off excess water.
2. To assemble the sandwich:  Brush or drizzle oil on the bread and season with salt and pepper.  Toast under the broiler until brown and crispy.  Then top with cheese- put under the broiler again to melt cheese.  Lay sliced tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.  Add the arugula and then gently lay the egg on top.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and red pepper flakes if you want. 
3. Cut a small slit in the egg and let the yolk run down all over the sandwich.

Enjoy with a bloody mary!

Asparagus with "Healthy Hollandaise"



Hollandaise is an emulsion (blend) of egg yolks and butter, usually seasoned with lemon juice.  It is also usually hailed as a difficult sauce to make because you don't want to scramble the yolks with the heat of the butter.  The sauce is very classic, but I feel it's so heavy and unhealthy plus it's a pain to make. So here is a fancy looking dish that is SUPER easy to make.  I actually just made it for myself for dinner tonight.  Serve with some toasty bread so you can soak up all the rest of the runny egg and lemon juice.  This is for ONE serving, so it's really easy to make for one or many.

Ingredients

• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon of white vinegar (to help the egg whites coagulate)
• One egg
• 1/2 bunch of asparagus (about 1/2 lb)
• 1/2 lemon, juice and zest
• salt and pepper
• extra virgin olive oil
• Parmesan or peccorino romano cheese, shaved

Directions

1. Blanch and shock the asparagus.  (Boil in salty water for a couple mins until bright green, them drain and run under some cold water) Set aside for now.
2. In a small pan we are going to poach the egg, but first I wanted to infuse the water with a couple spices- smash 2 garlic cloves, the vinegar, 2 tbs of salt and a couple grinds of fresh black pepper.  (I threw in 2 small sprigs of fresh thyme-if you have it throw that in too, if not, don't worry)
3. Bring the water to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for about 5 mins.  Reduce the heat to low, where you just have a few bubbles, and poach your egg for 2-3 mins. Just until the egg sets, then turn off the heat and let sit for about a min.
4. Zest the lemon half and reserve.
5. Toss the asparagus with the oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.  Plate them.
6. Top the asparagus with the poached egg- top with a pinch of salt and pepper and the lemon zest.
7. Top with pieces of shaved Parmesan or peccorino romano.

When you cut it open the egg runs and coats the asparagus. Use the bread to soak up all the extra sauce. It was seriously delicious, and it's a full complete meal- protein, veggie, and carb/starch.