Two Tasty Recipes From How to Boil an Egg Etc.

Zoomer | April 22nd, 2013
Eton Mess

Eton Mess

Courgette & Tomato Gratin

Note: You will need 4 pretty cups or heatproof bowls and a steamer or a large casserole pan with a lid.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
Butter, for greasing
2 garlic cloves, mashed
7 courgettes, thinly sliced
6 ripe tomatoes, thinly sliced
olive oil, for drizzling
5 eggs
5 tablespoons heavy cream
½ teaspoon curry powder
pinch of ground cumin
pinch of grated nutmeg
pinch of ground cinnamon
pinch of sugar
salt and ground black pepper

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6.

Great an ovenproof dish with butter and rub with a little of the garlic. Alternate the courgette and tomato slices in concentric circles in the prepared dish, drizzle with olive oil and bake for about 30 minutes, until the vegetables are soft.

Remove the dish from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 190°C/375°F/Gas Mark 5.

If a lot of liquid has been released by the vegetables, carefully drain off.

Beat the eggs with the cream, spices and remaining garlic in a bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Pour the mixture over the vegetables, return the dish to the oven and bake for about 30 minutes, until golden.

Remove the dish from the oven and let stand until the gratin is warm rather than hot, then serve.

Next recipe: Eton Mess

Eton Mess

Traditionally served at the annual public picnic on 4 June at England’s famous Eton College, this ‘mess’ is a fabulous mixture of crushed meringue, whipped cream, and fresh strawberries. Note: You will need 4 pretty cups or heatproof bowls and a steamer or a large casserole pan with a lid.

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:
8 egg whites
pinch of salt
2 ¼ cups superfine sugar
dash of vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cream of tartar (optional)
4 ¼ cups heavy cream
2 ¼ pounds strawberries or other berries, sliced or lightly crushed

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 120°C/250°F/Gas Mark ½.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Beat the egg whites with the salt in a spotlessly clean metal bowl until firm.

Gradually drizzle in the sugar, beating constantly, at medium speed until very firm and glossy.

Add the vanilla and fold in the cream of tartar, if using. (Cream of tartar is intended to add more volume and stabilize the meringue, but I don’t think it’s really necessary.)

Using a large spoon, drop big heaps of the mixture onto the prepared baking tray and let bake for 2-3 hours, until crisp on the outside but slightly gooey on the inside.

Remove from the oven and let cool.

Whip the cream, then add the meringues, crush them and fold together with the cream.

Add the strawberries or your choice of soft fruits and stir until the ‘mess’ is achieved. (We usually use a mixture of strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries.)

How to Boil an Egg Etc, is a collection of simple and unusual recipes for cooking eggs from Rose Bakery. Rose Carrarini and her husband Jean-Charles set up the original Rose Bakery, a small Anglo-French restaurant, shop and bakery, tucked away in a street near the Gare du Nord in Paris in 2002. Serving simple, fresh and healthy meals, their food blurs the boundaries between home and restaurant cooking. Serve this Courgette and Tomato Gratin for an elegant brunch, while the Eton Mess makes an sumptuous and simple dessert.

Win a copy of the Rose Bakery’s How to Boil an Egg Etc.