Today was the first time Edie and I ever cooked together, and I'm a little sad it's taken this long to do it! We decided to cook brunch today for no particular reason except that brunch is the best meal in the world. I picked a savory, and she picked a sweet, and we went to town. Edie made coconut macaroon pancakes (recipe courtesy of 101cookbooks.com), and I made a prosciutto, tomato, fresh mozzarella, and basil frittata (courtesy of foodandwine.com). Here are the recipes:
Coconut Macaroon Pancakes:
1 14-ounce can of coconut milk
2 tablespoons honey (or agave nectar)
1 /4 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or all-purpose or regular pastry flour)
3 cups unsweetened dried shredded coconut
Scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 large eggs. whisked in a medium bowl
1/4 cup natural cane sugar or brown sugar
In a small saucepan heat the coconut milk and honey, bring barely to a simmer.
In a separate large bowl combine the flour, coconut, salt and baking powder. Stir the coconut milk into the flour mixture.
Whisk about 1/3 cup of the coconut mixture into the eggs. Now quickly mix the eggs back into the large bowl of coconut batter. Stir until well combined. You can do this the night before if you like.
Heat your favorite non-stick (or very well-seasoned) skillet, pan, or griddle to medium-hot and brush it with a bit of butter. Test for the right temperature. If a drop of water dropped onto the pan starts to dance, you are in the ballpark. Drop a heaping tablespoon into the skillet, sprinkle the top with a bit of brown sugar. Wait until the pancake bottom is deep golden in color, then flip with a spatula and cook the other side until golden and cooked through. Repeat with the remaining batter.
Makes dozens of silver dollar sized pancakes, or a dozen or so larger ones.
10 large eggs
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 tablespoons chopped basil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium shallots, thinly sliced
1 medium tomato, cut into 1/2-inch dice
4 thin slices of prosciutto, cut into 1/4-inch strips
4 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into 1-inch cubes
Preheat the oven to 350°. In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Beat in the milk, grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, parsley and basil. Season with salt and pepper.
In an 8-inch nonstick ovenproof skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the shallots and cook over moderate heat until softened, about 7 minutes. Add the tomato and prosciutto and cook, stirring, until warm, about 2 minutes. Pour in the eggs and cook until beginning to set on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Poke the mozzarella cubes into the eggs. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake the frittata for about 20 minutes, until just firm when lightly pressed.
Set the skillet over high heat and shake the frittata until it releases, about 10 seconds. Place a large, flat plate over the skillet and carefully invert the frittata onto it. Let cool for 5 minutes, then cut into wedges and serve.
Serves 6
We added fresh sliced strawberries to the pancakes (no they're not latkes), which was a nice touch. Both these recipes turned out perfectly as written, no complaints!
