Savory Leek and Coconut Milk Pudding

Know anyone who isn't the biggest fan of vegetables? Well, here's a sure-fire way to get them to eat their veggies - bury them under a fluffy, eggy soufflé mixture and call it a pudding. Not that I would ever try such manipulative tactics with anyone in my household, but my husband did love this dish. Just sayin'.

Coconut cream comes in a can and is a thicker, more concentrated version of coconut milk. If you can't find it or you're not a fan of coconut milk, try it with whole milk or heavy cream. I haven't tested the recipe using those substitutes, but you should get a relatively similar result. 

Savory Leek and Coconut Milk Pudding

Serves 4 - 6 as a side dish

Preheat oven to 375

1 16 oz bag of cleaned, sliced leeks (or 2-3 leeks, white and light green parts only, sliced and thoroughly rinsed) 

1 bunch spinach, thick stems removed

4 eggs

1 cup coconut cream

1 tbsp butter

3 sprigs tarragon

1 sprig thyme

Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 tsp kosher salt

Heat a large pan over medium heat and melt the butter in the pan. Make sure the leeks are thawed if frozen and drained well, then add them to the pan. Sauté until soft and beginning to brown. Add the spinach to the pan and cook just until wilted. Remove from the heat and set aside. 

Beat the eggs with the coconut cream. Remove the tarragon and thyme leaves from their stems and roughly chop. Add the chopped herbs to the egg mixture along with the salt and nutmeg. Mix until just combined.

Butter or spray a medium-sized baking dish with cooking spray. Transfer the leek and spinach mixture to the dish and pour the egg mixture over. Bake for 25 minutes until slightly browned and just set in the center. 

Omelette Aux Fines Herbes

When the Easter Bunny (aka my friend Caitlyn) brings you fresh eggs from the chickens she and her family keep in their backyard, you make omelettes. And, if you're a culinary school grad trained in classic French cooking, you make Omellete Aux Fines Herbes.

The French way of making omelettes is a far cry from what you'll find at a typical American diner. They are delicate, completely colorless (meaning no brown marks from a hot pan) and if they're filled, it's a dusting of ingredients, not a mountain of filling that prevents the omelette from being rolled (the traditional way of serving them).

The standard diner omelette does little for me, but a delicate, rolled omelette with a slightly runny curd is the definition of satisfaction.

The folds in a chef's hat are meant to represent the many varied ways he or she can prepare eggs. Master this omelette and you're well on your way to grasping the fundamentals.

Here are the keys:

1. Low and slow - be patient with your eggs. High heat is the enemy of a tender, colorless omelette.

2. Nonstick - I use stainless steel pans 99% of the time, but when it comes to working with eggs, use nonstick. It's what they were made for.

3. Fat is your friend - you don't have to use a lot, but the pan should be slicked with fat. Since the temperature stays low, butter and coconut oil are great options.

4. Move and then don't - after you add your eggs to the pan, use a spatula to move the curd around occasionally for the first minute or so and then stop. Let the eggs set for the remaining cooking time.

5. Undercook - the best omelettes have an ever-so-slightly runny curd on the inside. Once you roll the omelette the interior curd will continue to cook from the carryover cooking so trust me and pull it off the heat before it's completely finished.

The step-by-step recipe and image tutorial should get you started, but as with all things in the kitchen, practice makes perfect. Try it a few times and you'll get the hang of it. As always, let me know if you have any questions.

Omelette Aux Fines Herbes

Serves 1

2 eggs

2 tsp butter or coconut oil

2 tbsp mixed, chopped herbs (traditionally parsley, tarragon, chervil and chives)

Kosher salt

Preheat a nonstick pan over medium-low heat.

Crack eggs into a bowl and whisk until no white streaks remain. Add a pinch of salt or more to taste and stir.

Melt the cooking fat in the pan and add the eggs. Use a rubber spatula to stir the eggs as they cook, pushing the cooked egg off the bottom of the pan and allowing uncooked egg to fill in the space (as in the image below).  Stir in this manner for the first two minutes of cooking, then tilt the pan from side to side to make sure the base of the pan is fully covered and let the mixture cook, undisturbed until almost set (see note above about undercooking).

Remove the pan from the heat and sprinkle most of the herbs down the middle of the omelette.

Use the spatula to fold a third of the omelette over the center.

Then continue to roll the omelette onto a plate. Sprinkle with remaining herbs and a touch of salt and serve. 

Butter + Coffee = Yes

If you're reading this blog then chances are you have at least a passing interest in healthy eating. If that's the case then you've probably already accepted the fact that fat is not the enemy. If you're still squarely in the nonfat is better camp, then please read this before going further. I'm never going to be able to convince you to put butter in your coffee if you're scared of fat.

Okay, now that we're all on the same page and agree that a reasonable amount of healthy fat is good for you, let's get down to the coffee.

Coffee is truly my first love. It's my first priority when I wake up in the morning and trust me, my husband and everyone else I come into contact with throughout the day want it that way. Me + coffee = better.

Blending butter with coffee has been popularized by the folks over at Bulletproof. Their recipe, and the one I follow, is a cup of coffee blended with 1 - 2 tbsps each of butter from grass-fed cows and their XCT oil (though I use MCT oil - short for medium chain triglyceride oil). MCTs are found in coconut oil and are a very readily accessible form of energy for the human body. Some studies show that they can increase metabolism, but nothing conclusive yet.

I started out making a french press with bulletproof beans each morning and while it was delicious, I just couldn't take the extra time to get that coffee made. So, I went back to our trusty Nespresso machine. Two lungos per person does the trick beautifully. If you're brewing your own coffee, my only word to the wise is, make it strong. The stronger the coffee, the better it will stand up to the rich flavor of butter.

What can you expect when you start your morning with super-charged coffee? I'm sure individual results will vary, but I noticed a buzz of energy and increased productivity my very first day. I also didn't experience that mid-morning or early afternoon crash that used to send me running for the candy jar or looking for some other carb-focused quick fix. More energy and fewer sugar cravings? That's a win-win.

Start off with no more than 1 tbsp of butter and oil (less if you're sensitive) and work your way up. Before long, you'll be dreaming of this coffee as you get into bed at night. It is that good.

Bulletproof Coffee

1 mug of strong coffee

1 tbsp grass-fed butter (I use Kerrygold)

1 tbsp of MCT oil

Place all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth and frothy. Enjoy.