Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Comfort food deux: Joe's Special


I got home from work this evening, courtesy of my co-worker, The A Team, as it was snowing 2 inches an hour. No need for Mr. Puffy Pants for my walk with Ben. Despite the volume of snow, it was strangely warm. We busted out into a thick, marshmallow mush about 3 inches deep since most neighbors hadn't revved up their snow blowers yet. Despite my unshakeable devotion to winterphobia, it WAS beautiful, especially the Christmas lights (I know, I know) slowly becoming encased in a soft, white snow duvet.

But back at the ranch: Cold. Must eat.

Why, of course. Joe's Special.

It's not beautiful. It's not glam. It's just straight-up uber comfort food.

Pretty much if you've eaten at a good diner, you know what Joe's Special is: A magical mix of meat, eggs, spinach and parmesan cheese. Here goes my take:

1/2 onion rough chopped *
1 lb Italian sausage, hamburger, or a mix of the 2
1 t garlic in a jar (See? perfect for a work night)
1 t pesto in a jar (I rest my case)
1/3 lb fresh baby spinach
3 eggs, whisked
1/2 c (or more) parmesan cheese
Italian seasoning, if needed
Salt and pepper to taste

Start the onion first, salting a little so they sweat and get soft. Next add the sausage and cook till browned. Add garlic, pesto and other seasonings at this point.

* Note: Here's the beauty of Joe's Special. Tonight, I added 3 leftover Marzano tomatoes I had lurking around the fridge. Think about leftover potatoes, fresh mushrooms. . . you get the drift. Just cooked them thoroughly so they absorb the meat/onion mojo.

Now add spinach and cook thoroughly so it also absorbs the meat/onion/seasoning wonderfulness.

Once spinach is cooked, add eggs and scramble dry. Don't go all soft-scrambled crazy on this recipe. Trust me, it's better dry scrambled.

And finally. Finally. Add the parmesan, toss well till everything is blended. Taste and season with salt and/or pepper (it will probably need more pepper, than salt)

No comments:

Post a Comment