Eggs Florentine #FoodieReads

I was inspired to make this favorite breakfast after reading My Grandmother's Inn by Kristin Harper.

On the Page

A year ago I read Lily's Secret Inheritance by Kristin Harper and share shared How the Berry Got Its Name + Cranberry Curd. Harper tends to write very formulaic novels: grieving woman returns to a place that was important to her as a child or teenager...she finds herself and heals by embracing her own history. Okay. They aren't particularly stellar reads, but they are a way to pass the time.

In My Grandmother's Inn by Kristin Harper, Molly Anderson returns to Hydrangea House after her grandmother, Beverly, dies. She asks the Frost family - the inn's owners - to let her run it for one last summer in her grandmother's honor; Beverly had been the innkeeper at Hydrangea House for decades.

An elderly guest checks in and claims to know a secret about Beverly's connection to the Frost family. I won't spoil the book, but let's suffice it to say that Molly gets to keep the inn open after the summer ends.

As Hydrangea House is a bed-and-breakfast, there is plenty of food included in the book.

"By 7:00 on any given morning during the summer, the line at Mainly Muffins snaked out of the store and halfway down the block. Tourists came from all over the island to purchase the shop’s muffins—especially the legendary “dirt bomb,” a kind of round muffin dipped in butter and rolled in cinnamon and sugar. Today the line seemed to be moving slower than usual."

"I remember when Ramona, her three older brothers and her mother came to visit, Dora made lemon meringue pie. It was only supposed to be served to the Frost family, but your great-grandmother set a sliver of it aside for me. To this day, it was the best lemon meringue pie I’ve ever eaten in my life."

"On Thursday morning, Savannah served the guests seven-layer breakfast tacos in the formal dining room. She said they were too messy to eat on the love seat and armchairs in the sunroom and besides. ...Even though serving a full meal in the dining room was more work, Savannah preferred it to offering a continental breakfast."

On the Plate

But what inspired me into the kitchen was this passage...

...everyone had seemed to enjoy sitting down together the previous morning when she’d served eggs Florentine.

Biscuits

• 2 cups flour

• 2 Tablespoons organic granulated sugar

• 1 Tablespoon baking powder

• 2/3 cup heavy cream

• 1/3 cup olive oil

• 1/2 teaspoon oregano

• 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper

Hollandaise

• 2 egg yolks

• 3 Tablespoons lemon juice

• 8 Tablespoons butter, melted

• freshly ground salt, as needed

• freshly ground pepper, as needed

• hot water, if needed

For Serving

• poached eggs

• sautéed spinach

• freshly ground black pepper

Procedure

Biscuits

Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a large baking stone and set aside.

Place all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Stir in the cream and softened butter until a crumbly dough forms. Knead until dough is smooth and elastic.

Roll the dough out to 1/2 inch thickness and cut out biscuits. I used a 2-1/2-inch round.

Place biscuits on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Hollandaise

In the top of the double boiler, whisk together egg yolks and lemon juice. Add the melted butter to egg yolk mixture a couple of tablespoons at a time while whisking yolks constantly. If the hollandaise begins to get too thick, add a teaspoon or two of hot water.

Continue whisking until all the butter is incorporated. Whisk in salt and pepper, if needed, then remove from heat. Place a lid on pan to keep sauce warm until ready to serve. For Serving Place two biscuits on a plate. Top with sautéed spinach, then with a poached egg. Let each diner drizzle their eggs with hollandaise sauce. Serve immediately.

I am adding this to the December #FoodieReads link-up.