At every brunch I face the same internal question and subsequent inner turmoil: sweet or savory? I’m pretty sure I’m not alone here… I think this is a fairly widespread weekly dilemma. Right? It can be a long drawn-out decision making process, but at least it ends deliciously one way or the other.
When I spent an overnight at Hayley’s recently we went savory with this smoked trout open-faced breakfast sandwich inspired by the original creation of our good friend Ellen. She would never tell you this herself but she’s absolutely brilliant in the kitchen, no recipe required. A while back I wound up in her kitchen for an impromptu brunch and she whipped these up out of thin air.
As with all recipes of the “just whip something up” nature, the ingredients and seasonings are flexible.
Smoked Trout Open-Faced Breakfast Sandwich (serves 2)
2 whole-wheat English muffins
1 fillet smoked trout
4 eggs
Asiago or other hard cheese, sliced
Olive oil
1 tomato, sliced about ¼ inch thick
2-3 cloves of garlic
½ onion, sliced
½ medium sized zucchini, shaved with a vegetable peeler
3-4 leaves of kale, rinsed and torn
In a sauté pan over medium high, heat a drizzle of olive oil. Add the garlic and onion and cook until soft and fragrant. Add the shaved zucchini and torn kale. Cook until the zucchini is soft and the greens are wilted. We seasoned with salt, pepper and a pinch of crushed red pepper. Choose your favorite herbs and/or spices and toss ‘em in! Once the greens are wilted turn the heat to low and set aside.
Toast the English muffins and lightly butter each half, if you like. Divide the greens over the four English muffin halves. Lay a nice thick slice of tomato on top, followed by a couple pieces of shaved Asiago cheese. At this point, pop the sandwiches into a 350-degree oven and get to work on the eggs. You can poach them as we did here, but this would also be delicious with a fried or scrambled egg.
To assemble, place a warmed English muffin stacked with vegetable goodness and melty cheese on a plate, crumble some smoked trout over everything and place the egg on top. Finish with a tiny pinch of sea salt and a grind of black pepper. Enjoy!
Happy brunching! Blair
