I have a lot of thanks for Nora Ephron. Not only was Sleepless in Seattle a major catalyst for the spontaneous start of my pre-marriage bliss, but her 2009 film Julie & Julia still continues to inspire.
Julie & Julia = food, Paris, food, blogging, food, New York City & more food! What else could I possibly ask for in a film? Both Julie Powell and Julia Child (well, the actresses who brought these fabulous women to life) certainty are influential in my cooking journey. Alors, today, I cooked my first proper poached egg.
Poached eggs are all I order when I go for my ritualistic Sunday brunch with future Hubby. Soft, poached eggs. Sometimes I branch out with museli, fruit salad or avocado on toast (that always seems to disappoint) but, I always come back to my poached eggs. I just loved them!
The question remains why I have I never really attempted to cook these little specimens before. I don’t have an answer.
However, today with help of Julia Child I attempted to poach an egg. Although I didn’t have the vinegar like the recipe calls for, the eggs eventually seemed to poach. With my darling friend standing next to me, I cracked the egg into simmering & swirling water. Together we watched, much like a familiar scene from Julie & Julia as the egg white splattered into the pan and cooked into tiny little pieces which, was far from appetizing. But beneath this strange simmering liquid appeared a tiny poached egg. Success! The next egg decided to rebel it’s destiny to be poached and ended up spilling on the bench, the oven, the floor and me. Oops! Four out of five ain’t that bad at all. We ended up having four delicious soft poached eggs, which we shared with simple olive bread and sautéed mushrooms.
Despite learning a new ‘skill’ today, Sunday brunch will always involve someone else cooking my oeufs pochés.
*A note on the mushrooms; they had to be cooked in two lots, as ‘mushroom must not be crowded in the pan’ or else they will not brown. Merci beaucoup Julie and Julia. In no specific order.