This post was written and photographed entirely on my iPhone 4S sitting on the deck at the cottage. Apps used for photos are: PS (Photoshop) Express and Art Studio Lite.
We’ve been enjoying our time at the cottage but sadly the lazy days of summer are quickly coming to an end so we’re savouring every bite minute. Many of you have suggested that I write a cookbook/manual about the cottage and I’m going to seriously consider it. Thank you for being so very complimentary, I am very touched by your kind words and voices of encouragement.
Cottage life to me means taking the time that is normally not available in the city; take things low and slow. It’s been incredibly hot up north and humid! This morning it was 20C (68F) at 8am, projected humidity throughout the day is 97% which makes the 20C feel like 27C (81F)! Now that’s a scorcher for sure. Our little cottage is a heat sink powered by the low and slow moving sun on the horizon with inside temperatures in excess of 32C (90F) so I’ve been focussing on easy, lighter summer meals some with grilling instead of roasting. Yesterday’s lunch was a reinvention of a delightful salad I’ve enjoyed many times at a local place where I used to work. What’s incredibly delicious is the poached egg with a runny yolk on top which, when broken into flows all over the salad making a warm, creamy and delicious dressing. It’s not really a recipe as such, but mere suggestions; I urge you to try this wonderful dish at the earliest opportunity. Don’t be fooled by its simplicity – it will impress your taste buds for sure.
Poached Egg Smoked Salmon, Endive, Roasted Sweet Potato on Baby Arugula and Baby Kale Salad:
Serves 2
Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 2 handfuls each of baby arugula and baby kale
- 2 large or 4 small endive
- 100 g smoked salmon
- 1 sweet potato
- juice of half a lemon
- 1/2 tsp chopped dill
- 2 tbsp EVOO
- 1 tsp Dijon Mustard
- 2 tbsp capers
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Directions:
- Peel and cube the sweet potato into about 2.5 cm or 1″ cubes and roast on the BBQ (or oven) with a 1 tbsp of olive oil until soft.
- Add a handful of the greens to each bowl. Slice endive and divide into each bowl.
- Add about 50 g of the smoked salmon to each bowl.
- In a small measuring cup, add the juice of half a lemon, 1 tbsp olive oil, the Dijon mustard and dill and mix well, drizzle onto the greens.
- Poach two eggs so that the yolks remain runny. Add one egg to each bowl and divide the warm roasted sweet potato between each bowl.
- Add the capers and season to taste. Serve immediately.
This is such a lovely salad…..the yolk and the smoked salmon combo makes my mouth water. Yumm!
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Thanks so much Minnie, it’s one of my all time favourite salads.
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Haha, now I’m reading your blog posts in “reverse” order and see you’ve had heat and humidity (don’t know where I got the idea you had rain)! I’m so glad you had a few last days to savor at the cottage.. I love cottage life, there’s nothing like it and a cookbook about a cottage would be a real hit! I think that’s a great idea, Eva! Love your recipe.. I’m all about flavors and simplicity, this looks fabulous! xx
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Thank you kindly Barbara, we did have an awful lot of rain, and then it turned cold and now it’s hot again, not sure where it’s coming from but I’ll take the heat any old day!
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I love this salad! I’ll have to keep the recipe on hand for cottage season next year!
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Hi Amber, this salad is lovely for a brunch with friends too; since it’s getting chillier, I would serve it starting with a warm soup.
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Mike and I would most certainly enjoy this salad! I bet even Mr. N would like it as well. Miss A would probably just eat the egg. 🙂 Still, something for everyone! I hope you’re enjoying your season at the lake cottage. I know that feeling of getting away from distractions so well. It’s refreshing. Soak it up Eva!
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Hi Kristy, indeed we have spent a lot of time at the cottage and this coming weekend our dear friends Paul and T from Illinois are coming up! It’s so relaxing, I’m sure I’ll be ready with bells on when I find my dream job!
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Looks like this has a LOT of great flavors – I’m sure it all comes together wonderfully, too.
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Hi Bill, welcome back and thank you for the lovely compliment. The poached egg really makes this dish.
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I adore poached eggs – this looks a winner – will be giving it a go for sure!
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Thank you Keith, the poached eggs really make this dish.
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32C INSIDE?? Yikes… I don’t blame you for going after something lighter. My living room is a bit like that. One wall is entirely windows, floor to ceiling. Lovely to stand next to and look out, but brutal in the summer, especially as it catches all the late morning, afternoon, and early afternoon sun!
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That reminds me of our first apartment in the city, we were on the 21st floor facing south west, the afternoon sun was incredibly brutal, so hot and relentless. We would intentionally stay away until the sun had gone down so we wouldn’t cook in the place.
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This dish sounds wonderful and life at the cottage sounds grand! What I wouldn’t give to get away for a while. You did a great job on your iPhone!
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Thank you kindly Betsy, it’s a bit of a challenge formatting the recipes because you have to do it in code, it’s not wysiwyg, so it generally takes quite a while to do. And the 3G network is choppy in those parts — I lost a complete section at one point!
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What an interesting recipe
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Thank you, it’s very tasty.
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That’s a wonderful light and elegant summer dish.
Love the pictures. I take mine as well on my IPhone 4S and find it quite practically because it’s always at hand.
Cheers.
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Thank you for your kind words Daniela, the iPhone is certainly a handy tool.
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I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying your time up at the cottage this summer Eva — those renos must feel more and more worthwhile every moment :). Well, I’m all in favor of low and slow and your salad looks delish – I’m one of these rather odd people who prefer my eggs well-cooked (very gauche I know) – love the sweet potato!
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Hi Kelly, I’m sure the salad would be very tasty with a fully cooked egg yolk, I might add a bit more lemon juice and olive oil to the dressing so it’s not overly dry.
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Wonderful rich salad! I love the poached egg on top (I have eggs almost everyday and the older I am the more I become dependent on them!). I often put fried eggs on top of my salads (no patience for poaching 😉 ).
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Thank you so much for your lovely words Sissi; I’ve had this salad with a fried egg too, but to be honest I much prefer a poached egg, so delicate in texture and flavour. I too love eggs the older I get, they are such a versatile ingredient for sure.
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LoL,
nice savoury salad my friend,
i think you did’t really need to write the recipe, i can know all the ingredients from the title…..hehehe
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I had thought about shortening the title Dedy but I cross reference my recipes on the blog so I thought the more info the better. It’s a very tasty salad which I hope you will try.
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such a creative salad. I love the endive with that texture and crunch it has to it alongside the texture of the egg! Lovely
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Thank you kindly Jessica, it’s one of our favourites.
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Great job doing this on the iPhone! I love a good runny yolk too 😀
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Hi Lorraine, I had read about your experience with Charlie and Celia, too bad, a runny yolk is essential for this salad.
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Ah, cottage life sounds heavenly…I hope you at least had some breezes when it got toasty. And your salad sounds wonderful…so many delicious components!
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Hi Liz, we had a cold front come through on Monday and by Tuesday we were thinking about putting on the heat. This week is warming up but we’re back in the city enjoying civilization.
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This is a lovely recipe. This blog has given me tips on how to blog on my 4S as well. I’ll have to look at those apps.
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Thanks so much Virginia and welcome to my blog. The apps are absolutely fantastic and are very similar to the real software (Photoshop and Illustrator) so much of the functionality is easy to figure out. I haven’t bought the full version yet, but it’s just a matter of time.
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I used to use Photoshop all the time. It got pretty expensive though. I use Gimp which is free but doesn’t working smartphones or have filters. So I’m looking for other options.
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Perfect summer salad in the beautiful weather you’ve been able to enjoy.
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Hi David, thank you we’ve been rather fortunate with the weather.
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You both worked so hard on the cottage at the start of the season, it’s nice that you’ve been able to enjoy it, too. When the humidity is that high, though, it’s almost impossible to get comfortable and roasting anything is out of the question.This salad is tailor-made for those days/evenings. Easy to prepare, pretty to look at, and delicious. Perfect! I hope there’s a break in the weather so that your remaining time at the lake is under far less humid conditions.
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Hi John, indeed the weather broke yesterday and a cold front came in with a crazy storm with thunder and lightening. Fortunately we didn’t lose power, which we normally do at least once during a weekend! We even thought about turning on the heat believe it or not; ridiculous to the sublime. I would enjoy this salad even in the middle of winter truth be told.
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Great looking salad, but am I missing something? I do not see any instructions.
Know what you mean about summer coming to an end. Time is passing by so quickly, hard to believe it is September hoping for a late frost.
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Hi Norma, the instructions must have gone a-wall on my phone, will look into it shortly thank you for the head’s up. I too am hoping for a late frost, I’m just not ready for winter yet.
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They disappeared from my phone, damn! I’ll retype them tomorrow. Thanks for letting me know.
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All is OK now, thanks.
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That is one perfectly cooked egg.
I couldn’t agree more about the cottage cookbook. What a perfect niche! Summer, easy and laid back. Brilliant idea and you’d be the perfect one to write it.
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Thank you Maureen, I’m quite excited about the prospect!
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You sure had a great summer at the cottage, Eva. The salad with poached egg and salmon looks so inviting!
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Thank you so much Angie, it’s such a tasty salad, I could have it almost every day!
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It sounds like you’ve had the most wonderful summer and a great time at the cottage. I would love to see a cookbook of your cottage recipes. This egg salad looks amazing and perfect for the humid conditions xx
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Hi Charlie, thank you for your lovely words of encouragement, I’m going to begin writing an outline for the book! I’m really quite excited about it.
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The salad sounds delicious … especially as everything in it is something I would eat. 🙂
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Thank you Maria, it’s a surprisingly delightful meal.
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