August 6, 2016

The Perfect Round Sandwich Egg

The key to sandwich equilibrium is balance between layers.

I have a confession: I love McMuffins.
I know they're awful, in fact, I don't eat anything else from McDonald's because I've been in those kitchens and... Well, it's just a big "no" for me. So, a few years ago I started taking matters into my owns hands and making my own breakfast sandwiches.
It.Has.Been.Awesome.

First off, as with everything else I make in my kitchen, I know exactly what's going into it. There's something so satisfying about digging into a tasty morsel made exactly to your specifications and with ingredients you literally hand-picked yourself. Maybe it's just me, but when I eat out, I wonder if the chef or manager who stocks the kitchen has similar food priorities as I do.
Let's just think about eggs. Are they fresh? Were the chickens humanely treated? Have the eggs been quick pasteurized? When I'm in the grocery store, I get to decide which way to go.

Not to mention, many would call me a picky eater. I like what I like and everything else is incredibly iffy. I much prefer choosing all my own toppings, how it's cooked, and what it's served with (the iconic Micky D's hashbrowns used to be a Top 10 favorite, but now I can barely stomach them) than being at the whim of some menus.

Now, you may be thinking, "Homemade is all well and good, but why bother with the ring? What's the big deal with perfectly round eggs?"
Well, nothing, really. Except I like the yolk separate from the white and traditional over-easy eggs have crazy shapes that don't exactly fit on sandwiches that well.

Not surprisingly, Breakfast Sandwiches are a popular request by our Foodies, and that means 6-12 at a time on prep days. Instead of buying an expensive specialty mold, we can fit 4-6 rings like this in a typical pan. It ensures consistency throughout the batch and cuts down on valuable work time.

You will need:
- A non-stick skillet
- A metal canning ring
- A thin spatula
- 1/2 tbsp butter
- 1 egg
- Salt & pepper, to taste

Over medium heat, let the non-stick skillet and the canning ring get very, very hot. Once the pan is just short of scalding, turn the heat to low and add the butter. When the butter is totally melted, carefully crack in an egg.
I will say, you should do this rather slowly at first, going slow creates a nice thin layer of half-solidified egg within the ring to help keep the uncooked bits from running away.

Sprinkle the egg generously with salt and pepper, then let it cook for a full minute or until opaque around the edges. Resist the temptation to move the ring around, jostling it too much will almost surely cause leaks.

When the first side is done, gently get your spatula under entire ring and carefully flip the whole thing over (tilting the pan up can help reduce splatter). Let this side cook for another minute (for runny yolk) or up to 2 minutes for well done. After about 30 seconds, use the corner of your spatula to lift the ring away.

Here are a few notes to help you prevent some of my initial mistakes:
1. You can change the size of your round eggs by using different rings. Standard rings (like on 8oz and classic pint jars) are perfect for mini bagel or English muffin sized eggs. Wide mouth rings (like tall 1.5 cup and wide mouth pint) make larger eggs, perfect for pitas or regular bagels.
2. You can beat the egg prior to it hitting the pan if you do not like the separated white and yolk, but in my opinion, the texture difference of the unbeaten egg is the best part.
3. Like it spicy? A tiny sprinkle of cayenne is delicious with eggs. Class it up without the heat by seasoning with paprika and dried parsley flakes. Or add dill to complete the best egg-cream cheese-everything bagel sandwich you have ever had.

And that's it! Quick, easy, undeniably delicious... That's how we do it here at Share.Love.Food.!
If you would like to add this menu to your meal rotation or get hands on help preparing it, contact us - We can make it happen!

Lotsa Love,
Lauren
Owner / Operator @ SLF

June 07, 2016

Brown Butter Pasta With Spinach and Parmesan Cream Sauce

WHOA that's a mouth-full! But it's a deceptively easy recipe.

My favorite recipes are super simple but serve like they're complicated and/or elegant. In general I'm not a fancy-food kind of cook but sometimes you just need to kick it up a notch. For those days, save this recipe! Under 10 ingredients, takes ~35 minutes, oh, and did I mention you only need one pan?
Yeah. Hold your applause, please.

There's a special trick to my one-pot pasta dishes that takes the flavor level completely over the edge, but whenever I talk about it, people look at me VERY strangely. So before you start reading the recipe and reel back in horror, here it is: I toast my pasta in butter before adding the liquid to actually cook it. Especially after some aromatics are added to the fat, it infuses an almost impossible amount of tastiness into the noodles.
Okay, now that I've explained the method behind my madness, let's begin.

One large saucepan (2.5 quarts is my ideal), non-stick
Silicone tipped tongs or wooden paddle spoon

6 tbsp unsalted butter
1 lb dry linguine, broken in half
3-4 cloves garlic, smashed well
1/4 onion, minced very fine
3 large handfuls baby spinach, stems removed and chopped
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup whole milk
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Salt & Pepper, to tasteYou will need:

Over medium heat, melt the butter. Shake the pan occasionally until it foams and begins to color. Add garlic and onion plus a good sprinkle of salt. Stir often until vegetation is soft and just beginning to brown around the edges.
Add dry linguine to the pan and toast the pasta until about half is golden-brown and delicious looking. Before the noodles start to smoke, add the chicken broth and the milk, stirring well. Bring to a very gentle boil then drop the heat down to a simmer.
Cook, covered, for 15 minutes until most of the liquid is absorbed. Toss in the chopped spinach and parmesan cheese, stir well. Turn off heat and allow the pan to sit 5-10 minutes as the spinach wilts and the sauce thickens. Serve with plenty of extra grated parmesan sprinkles and LOTS of fresh cracked black pepper.

I have perfected this recipe after many, many attempts. Let me tell you a few things before you strike out on your own:
1. You need a thick cut pasta. Spaghetti will get too soft before the sauce thickens up, and angel hair (which sounds so delightful!) turns into a bowl of paste rather than creamy pasta.
2. Start with unsalted butter, but you need to add some salt before putting the noodles into the pan. The salt helps the starches caramelize, which is what causes the extra color and yumminess.
3. Pour the chicken broth first OR mix the milk and broth, but DO NOT add milk to the pan directly. The bubble-over is something you wouldn't wish upon your least-liked relative.
4. Be careful when choosing parmesan cheese for this recipe. Many of the pre-grated parmesan you sprinkle on salads or on top of pizza have an anti-clumping powder added to the containers. This helps keep giant chunks from falling out on your plate but this powder doesn't melt or dissolve, so using it in a sauce will result in icky, nasty clumps.

Lotsa Love,
Lauren
Owner / Operator @ SLF

The Perfect Round Sandwich Egg

The key to sandwich equilibrium is balance between layers.

Brown Butter Pasta With Spinach and Parmesan Cream Sauce

WHOA that's a mouth-full! But it's a deceptively easy recipe.

Build-A-Box Is Back!!

Everyone's favorite, custom snackbox has returned!