Green Eggs and Lamb

"You do not like them.
So you say.
Try them! Try them!
And you may.
Try them and you may, I say."

Okay, yes, I am taking liberties with Dr. Seuss here, but I think you'll like green eggs with lamb. And if your eggs and lamb (and onions and garlic and parsley and cilantro) are locally produced the earth will like you, too.

So it's the middle of the week and there are odds and ends needing to be used up before the next CSA pick-up on Saturday. Why not make a big hash of potatoes, leeks, and kale, flavor it with charmoula and crown the glorious mess with a merguez sausage and a poached egg?

Green Eggs and Lamb
serves 2

about 8 small new potatoes, cut into pieces and cooked
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 leek, cleaned and sliced into thin disks
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/4 cup charmoula (recipe below)
a large handful of kale, roughly chopped
2 mergeuz sausage patties
2 eggs
more charmoula, for garnish

Bring about 3 inches of water to a high simmer in a large skillet (this will be your poaching water).

While the water is heating, saute the leeks with the olive oil in another large skillet until soft and translucent over medium heat. Add the potatoes and garlic and let them heat for a minute or two and then add the charmoula, stirring gently to combine. When everything is nice and hot, push the potato mixture to the side and add the mergeuz patties.

Once you've turned the sausage, you'll want to be sure your poaching water is ready to go and get the eggs ready by breaking them one at a time into a ramekin or coffee cup. When you're sure your sausage is ready it's time to poach the eggs. Slide each egg gently into the simmering water. Let them poach about 2 minutes for runny yolks-- longer if you are so inclined.

In the meantime, plate up the hash and sausage. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and let the water run off before gently transferring them to the top merguez patties. Garnish with charmoula and dig in.

Charmoula

1 clove garlic
1 small hot red pepper cut into chunks
2 bunches fresh cilantro, rinsed and most of the stems cut off
1 bunch parsley, rinsed and most of the stems cut off
juice of 1 lemon
cumin powder, to taste
4 - 6 tablespoons olive oil

Drop the garlic clove and peppers into a food processor and whirl. Add the cilantro, parsley, lemon juice and cumin and pulse a few times. Then add the olive oil while pulsing until the consistency looks right. It shouldn't look quite as runny as pesto does.

Left-overs can be frozen in plastic bags and used later to flavor fish, soups, and all sorts of things.

Comments

[frenchtart]

yum! looks really good!

i still have a lot of produce from last saturday's csa share. i'm going to have to make a big stirfry tonight or something before going to pick up the next one tomorrow.

[ilva]

Oh now I am hungry again and I just had my so called lunch...what will I do?!! Despair!!!

[Ben]

Now that looks interesting. But I guess I'd have the egg or the lamb, the two together is a little too much protein for me. But still sounds great ;)

[Manggy]

Ooh, excellent presentation, very Michelin-starred ;) I am one of those deathly afraid of cilantro though, haha! :)

[Bellini Valli]

Will I eat it on a boat, will I eat it with a goat, will I eat it here or there will I eat it anywhere. I will, I will eat it Sam I am:D

[Lydia (The Perfect Pantry)]

What wonderful bits and pieces you have left in your fridge! Love how you have combined them.

[Bonbon Oiseau]

i know what i'm picking up at the farmer's market tomorrow! great post!

[Lore]

Huh, how could I possibly not like them? And what a great choice with new potatoes as a side. Am I strange for noticing them first?

[grace]

a glorious mess indeed! as an ardent cilantro-lover, i'm particularly fond of the charmoula. nicely done!

[ann]

Which magazine used to do that "Why Don't You...?" feature? Like "why don't you wear a hot pink miniskirt... To CHURCH!" or "why don't you... take a naughty picture of yourself and... put it in your husbands briefcase!" or "why don't you... turn the lights off and serve a simple, sexy Middle Eastern dinner... and eat with your HANDS!"

This would be the perfect meal for that. And given my examples, I'm thinking it was Cosmo in the HGB days that had that feature... Regardless of who it was, this sounds awesome and would be a good "Why Don't You..?" feature in any mag!

[emiglia]

Wow... that sounds great! And it looks amazing too... I love lamb... but I don't know if I could do without the typical mint sauce as well!