117: Recipe: Couscous Cakes with Poached Eggs and Hollandaise Sauce

Me and my sweetie are all about awesome brunches over the weekends....we love experimenting with eggs and trying to pair it with something different every weekend....This weekend we had some leftover couscous and the idea of the couscous cake..similar to a risotto cake was born....(I know... I know.. it is not out of this world or unique....but we will pretend it was..)

For the couscous cakes, you will need

1 cup cooked couscous

1 large egg

½ cup bread crumbs

1 tsp. cumin powder

Heat a heavy bottomed pan and add 2 tbsp. cooking oil.  Mix all the ingredients mentioned above and form small patties and place in the pan. Do not make the patties too thick. Brown each side for 2-3 minutes and voila!! the amazing couscous cakes are ready.

Layered some sauteed mushrooms and spinach, topped with the couscous cakes. We paired this with poached eggs (you can find the really easy poached egg recipe I previously posted here). This was topped off with some yum Hollandaise sauce.

Hollandaise Sauce recipe,

2 egg yolks

½ tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

¼ cup unsalted butter, melted (1/2 stick)

Pinch of cayenne

Pinch of salt

Vigorously whisk the egg yolks and lemon juice together in a stainless steel bowl and until the mixture is thickened and doubled in volume. Place the bowl OVER (not in the water) a saucepan containing barely simmering water (or use a double boiler). The hot water should not touch the bottom of the bowl. Continue to whisk rapidly. Be careful not to let the eggs get too hot or they will scramble. Slowly drizzle in the melted butter and continue to whisk until the sauce is thickened and doubled in volume. Remove from heat, whisk in cayenne and salt. If the sauce gets too thick, whisk in a few drops of warm water before serving.

This whole thing sure turned out to be one hearty brunch...

Hope y'all are having a glorious Sunday!!

40: Weekend Brunch: Poached Eggs on Potato Hash and Spinach

Hope y'all are having a bright and cheery Sunday...I am back to my routine now after the break and sadness of getting back to a normal routine....

I decided to start my weekend with some yummy food to give me the feel of being on a vacation...what better to have than poached eggs...

I wanted to share a really easy way of making poached eggs...I always was scared of poaching eggs....just because it truly is an art to poach eggs just right...However, I learned a really easy way to make them from a friend who was chef in his previous life :)

Poached eggs in the microwave...how easy can it get..for this you will need a microwave safe cup (I used a wide and short coffee mug). Grease the inside of the mug with butter and then gently break an egg into the cup. Now cover the cup with a small plate and place in the microwave. Microwave the egg for a total of 60 secs in 20 sec intervals. Make sure you are around to check the egg after every 20 secs. After 60 secs, take the cup out of the microwave and leave it for a few minutes to cool. Then gently scoop the egg out with a large spoon and Voila!! you have a perfectly poached egg :) Ain't that real easy.. a great idea for lunch too, you can easily make it in your office kitchen.

I served the poached eggs with a homemade potato hash and spinach. For the potato hash, peel two medium sized potatoes and grate. Add salt, cayenne pepper, and one Tbsp flour. Mix well. Heat a pan and lightly butter the pan. Form a patty with the potato mix and fry on the pan until both sides are crisp and well done. Place the potato hash on the plate and top it with a slice of muenster cheese and the poached egg. Sprinkle some salt and pepper over the egg.

Saute chopped spinach with salt and garlic powder and serve with eggs.

Poached eggs and homemade short stack of pancakes... who says I am back from my vacation :)