cheesecake eggs with shortbread soldiers

/

i found the town bookstore!! this whole entire time i thought that the closest bookstore was an hour and a half away in fargo, but it turns out that i just assumed that because of eggboy's barnes and noble obsession. (every time we go to fargo, eggboy does not allow us to leave until we have spent ample time at the barnes and noble.) but so on valentine's day, when the sunday political shows ended and after we'd had our cake, he suggested that we go to the university of north dakota book store to get some fiction for some upcoming trips and it blew my mind! i mean, it's not a full blown barnes and noble, but it had enough to keep us occupied for the afternoon until we got hungee. i bought room. 

and then we made zucchini noodles and watched the terrifying season one finale of jane the virgin. so that was our valentine's day! how was yours? did you eat enough chocolate?

we are spending the next few days in some warmer climates. not that i don't like the beautiful snow that has melted just enough so that macaroni have enough courage to take their little field trips out the tree in the yard and the other tree in the yard. but some vitamin d could do me some good right about now. 

oh, and before i get to this egg recipe! some bits and bobs:

-i will be speaking at sxsw this year! i've never ever been, so i am equal parts nervous and excited. come say hello if you are there!

-there are just a couple more spots available for the australia workshop that i am hosting with luisa and sophie, so if you want to come make cake and hang out with koalas*, sign up now! (*i don't actually think koalas are coming to the workshop, but i'll be arriving in sydney early to go meet some and you are invited to come to that too.)

how many dollars do you think i could make if i bred macaroni to start laying eggs filled with whipped cheesecake and lemon curd? do you think willy wonka would want to be my friend? could he loan me an oompa loompa or 12??? whoa that escalated fast.

eggboy and i are officially freaking out over these cute little eggies, which are from aimee twigger's new book, love, aimee x. this is definitely something you should bookmark for your easter table, but i wanted to show you now because her book just came out in the states and it is such a gem! everything in it is as cute and creative as these eggs, it's like a crafting book on steroids where everything is edible. there's chocolate salami, eton mess cupcakes, and bakewell tart ice cream!!! if ever you feel like you're in a dessert rut, get this book because it is all sorts of inspiring. congratulations, ms. aimee!!!! 

cheesecake eggs with shortbread sliders

slightly adapted from aimee twigger's love, aimee x

makes 12

ingredients

12 eggshells

cheesecake:

1 c whipped cream
3/4 c cream cheese, softened
1/4 c confectioners' sugar
zest of 1 lemon

1/4 c lemon curd or marmalade

shortbread:

1 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c cornstarch
1/3 c sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 c unsalted butter, cold and cubed

 

 

clues

pull out the filmy part from your eggshells and wash them in boiling water to kill any germs. allow to air dry.

to make the cheesecake, put the whipped cream and cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer and fold in the confectioners' sugar. whip until thick and fluffy and stir in the lemon zest. 

spoon the mixture into a piping bag and pipe some into each eggshell. add a teaspoonful of lemon curd or marmalade for the egg yolk.

to make the shortbread, preheat the oven to 350ºF and line an 8" square baking tin with parchment. 

combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor. add the butter and pulse until the dough comes together. press the mixture into the baking tin. slice into rectangles, poke with a skewer, and bake for 30 minutes. remove from the oven, re-cut the rectangles, and cool on a rack. 

dip the shortbread soldiers in the eggs and enjoy! 

(ooh! and i added just a teensy bit of nutmeg on top to look like black pepper!)

-yeh!

za'atar + labneh breakfast panzanella

/

i think i am at the point in this book-writing marathon that’s equivalent to when actual marathon runners start peeing themselves (that is an actual thing that happens in marathons, right? or no?) since every missed bathroom break is a chance to pull ahead.

ok, no! i am not sitting on my couch with my laptop and peeing in my pants, but it’s gotten to the point where every time i look away from my manuscript* i feel the imaginary magnetic stress-induced pull to come back and edit this bagel dog recipe or find a better way to tell the eggboy fart story. 

*to pee/to look outside at the snow and macaroni/to check peach! omg, peach. i don’t even get it at all but booping people is so fun. come find me, @molly is my user name (!) cha-ching. 

and it’s ironically gotten to the point where i forget to actually eat until halfway through the day when i staaart typinh all the words liek this. 

so that’s when i make this za’atar labneh breakfast panzanella using the leftover za’atar bread that’s going in the book and eggs from macaroni right out of the most kickass chicken egg holster that stoopie and stoopie husband got us for chrismukkah. is this an actual panzanella? no, that’s just a fancy way to say that this salad-type-thing is heavy on the ripped up bread. i’ve had to splurge on some out of season mint for some recipe testing purposes, so my version of this thing has had some fresh summery feelings going on. but if you don’t have access to fresh mint, you can use parsley or cilantro or just skip the herbs altogether. there is nothing precise about this! adjust it to your liking, make a big batch if you’re hungry and a small batch if you’re not. this dish is refreshing and bright while being 💯 satisfying and comforting, thanks to a pile of squishy fried bread. 

za'atar + labneh breakfast panzanella

serves 1

ingredients

olive oil
a handful of bread, ripped into chunks
za’atar
kosher salt
black pepper
an egg
a plop of labneh or plain greek yogurt
about 1/4 english cucumber, diced
a few leaves of mint, chopped
a sprinkle of crumbled feta, optional
a squeeze of lemon juice

clues

heat a nice even layer of olive oil in a skillet over medium until hot but not smoking. add the bread and cook, stirring occasionally until it’s lightly fried and browned. cover it with za’atar and some salt and pepper and either remove it from the skillet or scoot it off to the side to make room for the egg. crack the egg in and cook until the white is firm but the yolk is still runny (covering the pan will help move this process along).

spread the plop of labneh or yogurt into a shallow bowl and top with the cucumber, mint, feta (if using), a squeeze of lemon, salt, pepper, and a good drizzle of olive oil. top with the bread and egg. salt and pepper the egg, and enjoy!

 

-yeh!

macaroni's first egg!!!!!!

/

we hyperventilated for five minutes straight. and then omg-ed for five more. it was the greatest hanukkah present ever in all the land! one teeny tiny egg, too small for most of our egg cups and very lightly speckled. everything we've waited for since june (they grow up so fast!). we cuddled it and stared at it and finally decided that we should eat it ceremoniously, out of the egg cup we bought on our honeymoon.

we wanted a six-minute egg, but with such a dainty little specimen we reduced the time to five and it was perfect. firm whites, a yolk the thickness of honey. and its color! we kvelled so hard, we've never been prouder. is this what having an honor roll student is like? can i get a bumper sticker about all this? 

we spread our little egg onto buttered toast and sprinkled it with salt while the snow came down outside. it was tasty and bucolic af. now we're researching how to bronze the shell so we can keep it on our mantel forever and ever. 

we're so proud of you, macaroni!!

-yay!

cornbread french toast with caramelized onions and cream cheese

/

yay, thanksgiving week! clappy hands, clappy hands. i was going to be sad about our fun-filled weekend* coming to an end, but then i realized that another weekend is going to start the day after tomorrow. yay!!! 

*pizza night on the town with eggsister and eggsisterman! a ride on a ferris wheel! the new hunger games! cookies! tacos and nacho with fellow chicken parent friends! ooh and adele on snl. yessss.

so i'm gonna go hurry off to get my thanksgiving grocery shopping ducks in a row so that i can have first pick of the brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes.

this is a super simple recipe that works best when it's made with day-old cornbread (ahem, as in leftover-from-thanksgiving cornbread). corn, caramelized onions, and cream cheese are all things that can hang so nicely on the borderline of sweet and savory, and you know me, i *love* a savory breakfast, so i like finishing this off with a sprinkling of salt, pepper, and paprika or harissa powder. but! if you want to take this in a sweet direction, there is no shame in nixing the onions here and topping this with powdered sugar or syrup! 

cornbread french toast with caramelized onions and cream cheese

this makes enough for about 2 slices of cornbread, but it can easily be doubled/tripled/etc.

ingredients

unsalted butter, for the pan

1/2 small onion, thinly sliced

1 large egg

2 tb whole milk

two 1/2" slices day old cornbread

salt and pepper

2 dollops of cream cheese

hot sauce or any spicy seasonings, optional, to taste

 

clues

heat a small pat of butter over medium heat and cook the onions, stirring occasionally, until they're very soft and brown.

meanwhile, heat another pat of butter in a skillet over medium-medium high. beat the egg and milk in a bowl and soak both sides of the cornbread in it (i keep mine in for 15 seconds per side, but depending on how sturdy/fluffy your cornbread is, you might find it needs more or less time), brown both sides in the skillet, season both sides with salt and pepper, and then top with onions, a dollop of cream cheese, and a sprinkling of hot stuff, if using. enjoy!

-yeh!

thank you so much to the american egg board for sponsoring this post! check out their site for information on things like all of those symbols on egg packaging and how to decipher the numbers are printed next to a sell by date. (do you know what a julian date is?!) their site also has tons of fun egg recipes which i'll certainly need once macaroni start laying. follow #recipeeggchange for recipes and holiday hacks to use in the kitchen this season!

pictured: pan // towel // bowl