The Soaked Bean

Seeking Nourishment, Finding Traditions

Equinox Uovo-Margherita (or Egg-Pizza)

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eggpizza

Happy Autumn Equinox, friends!

If your September has been flying as fast as ours has, then this dish is for you.  Call it a frittata or tortilla or just plain ol’ egg-pie, the combination of potatoes + assorted vegetable + eggs + cheese has seen me through many a hectic day.  It’s my kind of fast-food: one whose ingredients can be found in even the emptiest fridge, that takes five or less minutes of active preparation and can be eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner and mid-night snack.

Last week I happened to have a few beautiful (and slowly turning) heirloom tomatoes on hand, so I arranged them on top of the potato and zucchinni frittata I was making.  I only had six eggs to fill my very broad skillet, so I added a whack-load of parmesan cheese to bulk it up.  When I took it out of the oven, I realized it totally belonged to a different genre of egg-pies–namely, the pizza one.  I added some freshly plucked basil and a good glug of olive oil and presto: the uovo-magherita (or egg-pizza) was born.

tomatoes slicedtomatoes zuchinnis

The Autumn Equinox is the official start of Fall, a farewell to Summer and a welcoming of cooler days, longer nights, and also sweaters, wool socks, sweet cider, and what is slow-cooked, brothy, roasted, stewed.

Saying farewell to Summer means a farewell to zucchinis and heirloom tomatoes and fresh basil, too.  That’s why I’m sharing this egg-pizza w/ you.  Let’s send off Summer in style.  Fast-food one, at that, to enjoy these still not-too-cold evenings and this waning Summer light.

moi eggoven uovomargherita

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Equinox Uovo-Margherita (or Egg-Pizza)

My cast-iron skillet has a 15-inch diameter. The amount of ingredients you use will depend on the diameter of your pan. Egg-pie, for me, is totally intuitive --use what you have on hand and let go of precision! If you've never improvised on a recipe before, this is a safe place to start.

Ingredients

  • knob ghee
  • two handfuls of new potatoes, peeled and sliced in half then sliced thinly
  • 2 small zucchinis, sliced in half then sliced thinly
  • 6-8 eggs, whisked w/ salt
  • 1-2 heirloom tomatoes, sliced thinly
  • a generous chunk of parmesan, grated
  • few leaves basil
  • glug or two of olive oil
  • course celtic sea salt

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 300F (150C). Place skillet or pan on stove and heat on medium. Add ghee once skillet is nice and hot and let melt.
  2. Add potatoes, distributing them evenly. Let cook undisturbed for 5 minutes so that they brown. Add pinch salt.
  3. Add zucchinis and stir. Let cook for a few more minutes.
  4. Whisk eggs in large mixing bowl w/ pinch of salt. Pour over zucchinis and potatoes.
  5. Let cook on stove for 5 minutes. Arrange half of your heirloom tomatoes on top. Take off heat and transfer to oven.
  6. Let cook for 12-15 minutes. I like my eggs to be wobbly, so I take mine out on the early side.
  7. A few minutes before you take your pie out of the oven, add the parmesan cheese.
  8. Let cool and add other half of the heirloom tomatoes, the basil and the good glug of olive oil and sprinkle w/ salt. Enjoy!

 

Wild Nettle Pesto

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nettlepasta

Spring is the season of the (green) witch– my favorite herbalist’s way of describing those folks familiar with the way of the weed.

No, not that kind of weed, y’all.  The other kind, that shoots up between cracks in the  sidewalks, spreads across unattended swaths of green, blesses the backyards of city and country-folk, alike.

That’s right.  Yard full of weeds? #Blessed.

When your eyes open to the wonderful world of so-called weeds, you open yourself up to a world of nourishment, 100% gratuit.  Whoever said that there’s no such thing as a free lunch, clearly missed his introduction to Spring-time foraging.

Free Spring-time eats are plentiful, almost everywhere.  One of the more recognizable ones is dandelion, whose greens provide a deliciously bitter base to any salad bowl and whose flowers can be fermented into pink wine.

Nettles are a particular favorite of this here weed lover.  And, as they’re a perennial, meaning they grow back in the same place every year, they’re not terribly difficult to find, with the help of your friendly neighborhood forager, of course.

nettle

When I harvest nettles, I dry the majority to make this nourishing nettle infusion, freeze some to make nettle soup in the Winter, and make a whack-ton of pesto.

Nettle pesto may be one of my favorite foods because it’s so simple to prepare, so incredibly nourishing and its main ingredient is, literally, a free gift, no proof of purchase necessary.  #Blessed.

startingpesto

I’ve spoken about the high mineral content of nettles before — including calcium, magnesium, and trace minerals like iron, but did you know that nettles also contain oodles of chlorophyll?

green

Chlorophyll: Because “Plant-Blood” Sounds Too Freaky

Chlorophyll is the basic component of plants.  It’s molecular structure is virtually identical to the molecular structure of hemoglobin (red blood cells), except for their central atom (hemoglobin’s is iron, chlorophyll’s is magnesium) and that’s why some refer to chlorophyll as a sort of plant-blood (#vegans, #sorrynotsorry).

It plays a major role in photosynthesis, allowing plants to absorb the sunlight that’s necessary for their growth.  In humans it’s been shown to have a revitalizing and refreshing effect, perhaps due to its ability to aid in the absorption of iron which, in turn, aids in our production of red blood cells, which, in turn, bring more nutrients and more oxygen to our systems.  #Plantblood.  (Last hashtag, I swear).

Chlorophyll is the pigment that makes plants green.  The deeper green the plant, the more chlorophyll it contains.  Nettles are very, very green, my friends.

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I made this pesto the traditional way, with a mortar and pestle but feel free to use a less photogenic more modern device.

Any other foragers out yonder?

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Wild Nettle Pesto

Stinging nettles, well, sting! If this is your first time handling them, you may want to use gloves or tongs to handle them before you've steamed them.

Ingredients

  • Nettle Pesto
  • 100 grams (or 2 cups) nettles, roughly chopped
  • 2 tablespoons pine nuts
  • 4 stalks wild garlic, chopped
  • chunk of Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
  • 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • pinch salt

Directions

  1. Rinse nettles in cold water. Bring half-a-pot-full of water to a boil. While your water is heating, fill a large bowl with ice water. Add nettles to boiling water, stir, and let cook for 1-2 minutes. Strain and immediately add to ice-bath. Swoosh around until they've cooled, then drain. Place nettles in clean tea-towel and wring out any extra liquid.
  2. Add pine nuts to mortar and pestle. Crush. Add nettles. Crush, crush, crush. Repeat steps with garlic, salt, olive oil and lemon (in that order).
  3. Serve with whole-grain pasta, rice, or spread on sourdough bread.

Keeps well in the fridge for 1 week, if topped off with olive oil. If you foraged lots of nettles, multiply the recipe and freeze for some Spring tidings next Winter.