Scrambled Eggs and Smoked Salmon

“Right food, right place, right time.” So begins Nigel Slater’s The Kitchen Diaries. Notes from the Larder: A Kitchen Diary with Recipes
He goes on to describe meals reliant upon time and space – a crab sandwich by the sea in summer or roast goose and roast potatoes for Christmas. “These are meals whose success relies not on the expertise of the cook but on the more basic premise that this is the food of the moment – something eaten at a time when it is most appropriate, when the ingredients are at their peak of perfection, when the food, the cook and the time of the year are at one with each other.”  I have read and re-read The Kitchen Diaries many times – Slater is a brilliant writer on top of all the fabulous recipes. This should be on the top of your wish list. [Here’s a tip – order it from the UK rather than the US and save lots of money.]

We all talk a lot about eating seasonally and shopping at the Farmers’ Market to get produce at its peak – and yes you know I’m all about that. But today I want to share with you a recipe that transcends time and place – scrambled eggs. They can be whipped up on a Sunday morning for a quiet breakfast in bed at home, they can be served at a brunch with friends with lots of crunchy hot buttered toast or a little later in the day for a lazy lunch accompanied by a lettuce salad and they make the perfect supper by the fire in the middle of winter. Eggs any time of day or the year, anywhere in the world – really.

2 organic eggs – vegetarian fed (Super important so as not to get a fishy taste – yes they do feed hens fish to pack protein into eggs – gross)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
wild smoked salmon
micro greens, optional
1 slice of bread

I like to make my scrambled eggs in a small non-stick frying pan.

1. Crack the eggs directly into the frying pan, season with a pinch of fleur de sel and some freshly ground black pepper and place over a low to medium heat. Using a wooden spoon mix the whites and yolks together into a yellow batter. As the eggs cook gently mix the cooked in with the uncooked egg until a rich yellow consistency is reached.

2. Just before the eggs reach the perfect state of doneness add the butter, which arrests the cooking process. Transfer to a plate. You don’t want them to get too dry. Top with pieces of smoked salmon and serve immediately with slices of thick hot buttered toast.

I like to place the eggs on a bed of microgreens or serve with a salad – depending on the time of day.