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Restaurant owners look forward to Mother’s Day, which is Sunday, because they know their reservation books will be filled with families.
We never dine out on this special day because eateries are too crowded and noisy, and service can be iffy. Instead, we like to féte my 92-year-old mom Berthe with Sunday brunch.
Although May is a pretty month, the weather sometimes misbehaves. After all, the groundhog got it wrong — really wrong — this year. I am going to play it safe and serve a variety of foods that can be savored in 60- or 90-degree weather.
Smoked fish is a Sunday brunch staple in Jewish homes and restaurants. I grew up on nova lox; regular lox (which is salty); kippered salmon; smoked chubbies (whole, small whitefish or trout purchased with the head and tail intact); chicken carp, which has nothing to do with chicken, and is smoked; sable; and sturgeon. When I was a girl, sturgeon was not expensive, but today you have to mortgage a house just to buy a pound.
A basket of bagels, sliced Russian pumpernickel and bialys will be set on the table, along with softened butter and whipped cream cheese.
I also will prepare a dish of scrambled eggs, sautéed onions and bits of nova lox, which Jewish delis always have on their menus.
Since our Mother’s Day brunch will salute deli favorites, I happened upon a recipe for cheese Danish in "Barefoot Contessa at Home" by Ina Garten. We’ll enjoy a fresh fruit salad to accompany it (the pineapples have been very sweet recently) and we’ll sip on Bloody Marys before the meal.
Lox, Eggs and Onions
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of butter, plus 2 more
1 small onion, chopped
12 extra-large eggs
6 tablespoons of cold water
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 ounces of nova lox, sliced thin and cut into strips
Directions:
Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter over medium-low in a skillet at least 12-inches wide. Add the onion and sauté for about five minutes.
In a large bowl, beat the eggs, water, salt and pepper. Add to the skillet and cook over medium-low for about five minutes, stirring frequently with a rubber spatula or spoon. Toss to cook evenly.
Remove from the heat, but let the eggs continue to cook in the hot skillet. Add the remaining butter and nova. Mix well and serve immediately.
Serves four.
Note from Phyllis: Adding water to scrambled eggs is a Julia Child tip. It keeps the eggs fluffy. Some add milk, cream or half-and-half, but I prefer water.
Easy Cheese Danish
(From "Barefoot Contessa at Home" by Ina Garten)
Ingredients:
1/3 cup of sugar
2 extra-large egg yolks, brought to room temperature
2 tablespoons of ricotta
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt
1 tablespoon of grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
2 sheets (1 box) of frozen puff pastry, defrosted
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon of water, for egg wash
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Place the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and cream on low until smooth. Add the egg yolks, ricotta, vanilla, salt and zest. Mix until just combined; don’t whip.
Unfold 1 sheet of the puff pastry onto a lightly floured board and roll slightly with a floured rolling pin to make a 10-by-10-inch square. Cut into quarters with a sharp knife. Place a heaping tablespoon of the cheese mixture into the middle of each quarter. Brush the borders of each with the egg wash and fold two opposite corners to the center, brushing and overlapping so they firmly stick together. Brush the top of each with the egg wash. Place on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan.
Repeat with the second puff-pastry sheet and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Bake for about 20 minutes, rotating once, until puffed and brown.
Serve warm.
Makes eight Danishes.
