The other day I took an Instagram picture of my breakfast, which was pretty much this very concoction, sans the bacon, and it really got my thinking about egg salad. That and the fact I had 2 dozen Easter eggs to do something with.
I'm a huge egg salad fan anytime of the year and have created my ultimate recipe for this classic. Lots of herbs, not too much mayo, some cornichons & microgreens to make it a little fancy and some bacon to make it amazing.
Serves 6
3 slices nitrate-free bacon
6 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
2 ribs celery - finely chopped
1 t. fresh tarragon - minced
1 t. chervil - finely chopped
2 T. chives - finely chopped
2 green onions - whites only, finely chopped
2 T. finely chopped cornichons
1 T. Dijon mustard
2 T. mayonnaise
1/2 t. celery salt
fresh ground pepper
3 English muffins - split
a handful of micro greens or arugula
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place bacon in a single layer on baking sheet. Bake 12-15 minutes or until cooked to desired crispness. Remove from oven & drain on a paper towel.
Cut hard-boiled eggs in half. Crumble yolks into a large bowl. Place whites in a food processor & pulse in one second intervals until finely chopped. Add white to yolks in the bowl.
Add celery, herbs, green onions, cornichons, dijon mustard, mayonnaise, celery salt & pepper to the eggs. Mix together with a fork mashing lightly.
Toast English muffins. Top each half with a generous amount of egg salad. Break bacon slices in half and place on top of each open face English muffin/egg salad combo. Top with a garnish of micro greens or arugula.
This bright & beautiful salad is a real show-stopper. The colors are obviously incredible...I recommend using multiple varieties of both beets (red, yellow, pink, candycane/chioggia) and oranges (navel, blood, cara cara, mandarins) for a maximum color & flavor experience.
Oranges & beets are delicious together and they are especially tasty topped with a simple vinagrette, fresh herbs and crunchy, toasted walnuts. I used chervil & chives in the recipe, but feel free to get creative with your herb choices...you really can't go wrong. Plus this salad is totally healthy & 100% vegan, so you can feel great about eating it!
Serves 6
1 1/2 pounds medium beets
3 oranges
1 shallot, minced
1/4 c. white wine vinegar
1/8 c. olive oil
1/8 c. blood orange olive oil
large pinch kosher salt
fresh ground pepper
1/4 c. toasted red (or regular) walnuts - chopped
2 T. chervil - chopped
2 T. chives - chopped
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash beets and wrap in aluminum foil. Roast beets for 45-60 minutes - until tender when pierced with a paring knife. Remove from oven and foil and cool to room temperature. (Beets can be roasted up to 2 days ahead - store in refrigerator until ready to assemble).
Using a sharp knife, cut skin & pith away from the entire orange. Cut orange crosswise into 1/4 inch thick round slices.
Combine shallot, white wine vinegar, olive oils and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk to combine.
To assemble, peel beets and cut into 1/4 inch slices. Place orange and beet slices on a serving platter, or individual salad plates, a single layer, slightly overlapping each other on the edges. There will probably have more beets than oranges, so space out the oranges evenly among the beets.
Spoon dressing over salad. Sprinkle with chopped herbs & toasted, chopped walnuts.
