When my husband and I first started dating he was working very strange hours, so we went on a lot of breakfast dates. We still like to go out for brunch, or at least have a “fancy breakfast” on weekends. My schedule allows me to eat a more leisurely breakfast during the week, usually poached eggs and toast. This morning, I decided on something a little bit fancier to use up some random ingredients.
2 eggs | 1 clove garlic, minced
1-2 cups spinach (roughly chopped) | 2-3 tablespoons cream cheese
Coffee, for fuel.
This ingredient is very important.
Crack the eggs into a bowl and break up the yolks with a wire whisk or a fork. Add a few tablespoons of milk and whisk until combined. I used to think you wanted to whisk as much air as possible into the eggs, but I later learned that is wrong! Foamy bubbles actually cook faster, leaving you with dry bits. So whisk gently!
In a medium non-stick (I used cast iron) pan, melt some butter over medium-low heat. Pour in the egg mixture. When the bottom begins to set slightly, sprinkle the minced garlic into the eggs.
If that’s too garlicky for you, you can also start by melting the butter, sauteing the garlic, then removing it from the pan before pouring in the eggs. I just live with garlic fire dragon breath. To each their own.
As the eggs start to set, stir gently to ensure even cooking. When they are still fairly moist, scrape the eggs away from the center of the pan to clear a space for the spinach. I chopped my spinach a bit to help it cook faster and to avoid giant globs of it in my scramble (I prefer a more even distribution).
Clearing the center area gives a nice hot surface for the spinach to cook faster. Let the bottoms layers wilt a bit before stirring it up some more.
Once the spinach had deepened in color and wilted considerably, it’s time to add the cream cheese! Make sure your eggs are cooked to your desired level of dryness, because it’s a slippery slope from here. Get your plate ready (and toast your bread now, too!).
To avoid a giant lump of half-warm, half-cold cream cheese, I like to cut mine up into small cubes before adding it to the pan. Turn off the heat and toss in the cream cheese.
Stir the whole mess about two times, just long enough to fold the cream cheese bits into the eggs and spinach. Too much stirring just gives you a melted puddle of cream cheese goo in your pan and not enough in your food! Scoop your scramble onto the plate and top with salt and pepper.
Serve with toast and breakfast potatoes! Or just eat it by itself, like I did. Check out the warm, creamy bites of cream cheese nestled in there:
Yum.
Other delicious things I would have added if I had them: roasted cherry tomatoes (sliced in half, 10 minutes in the toaster oven at 400F), pieces of smoked salmon, leftover rice (!), caramelized onions, eggplant…. Mmmm. So many options. I might have to have another one tomorrow!
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Ya know, I was just sitting here trying to figure out what to do for a quick lunch. I think I’ll add a side of tomatoes with basil. Thanks for sharing.