Of Eggs...

  It was on a quiet, still morning in Charmé, one spent following sweet neighbor Suzanne about her garden, aiding her with the daily chores, when she stepped away momentarily only to return reaching into the pocket of her apron handing me two small and perfect eggs. Still warm, she  encouraged me to go directly to Katie and have her prepare them. It was a scene played out many time's in our life in France, eggs of an electric yellow yoke and rich, deep flavor as reward.
 This came to mind recently when we were surprised by a generous gift from Douglas of Azalea Spring Farm near Calistoga. No better gift than one unexpected, the brown nuggets were said to be from his Heirloom Buckeye's. We went at them with little delay, Katie and I each offering the other a form of "special breakfast" (see Post: "Special Breakfast", 2.10.2011). Having had for day's a craving for dim-sum, my offering had a distinctly asian influence: Poaching and then setting them on coconut and ginger rice, with a few large shrimp, some dandelion greens sautéed quickly in chili's, garlic, and Meyer lemon. A bit of cilantro tossed about. Katie took a different route: Braising kale before folding in some Great Northern beans,

shallot, a few drops of aged balsamic, and roasted garlic. Adding ricotta cheese she'd made the day before, a crack of pepper, bit of olive oil, and some tartine finished it off nicely. We ate her dish in what has become a pattern this wet Winter, sitting warm and dry in our living room, looking out at a hard rain pounding the rooftops and Golden Gate Park beyond.
 It was several year's back when Katie, wrapped in a serious case of missing her family, talked me into an extended visit to her native Minnesota. A food writer caught wind of her cooking private dinner's, and asked if she had any thoughts on eggs. Reflective of the Charmé scene above, Katie said back then, "...my neighbor comes over with fresh, fresh eggs with the most yellow yolks you have ever seen." She went on to describe a love of  "shirring" (oeufs en cocotte) with créme fraîche and gruyére, a form of baking them rendering them luscious, creamy, and decadent. (http://www.midwesthomemag.com/media/Midwest-Home/April-2006/The-Good-Egg/)

 Funny little things are eggs. So simple, so welcome, so good.
(Recipes on request.)

(http://www.chez-gautier.com)