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Tiffani Thiessen is no stranger to the kitchen, despite never going to culinary school. Growing up, she learned how to cook from her mom, aunt, and grandmother when her family would come together to have a meal and reconnect. Or, as they would say, “pull up a chair,” which later became the tagline of Thiessen’s Cooking Channel show Dinner at Tiffani’s and the title of her first cookbook, Pull Up a Chair ($14). While it’s chock-full of approachable twists on classic recipes (like Stuffed French Toast and Boozy Date Milkshakes), Thiessen revealed that it also contains her go-to weekday and weekend egg recipes. Spoiler: They are easy to replicate. “None of my recipes are hard to do at all,” Thiessen told us at a recent even she hosted with Happy Egg Co.
For her Monday through Friday life, Thiessen usually whips up her poached egg toasts with kale. Her reasons? In her backyard, the family has a garden (with kale growing all year long) as well as a chicken coop with eight egg-laying hens, so both ingredients are readily available. “It’s just easy. We do that one a lot,” Thiessen explains. For the weekend, Thiessen makes her curried deviled eggs, which she loves for snacking with company or post-workout. Here’s how you can make both at home.
poached egg toasts with kale
(Serves 2)
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 cups Tuscan kale, thick ribs removed, leaves coarsely chopped or torn
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 thick slices of bread of your choice, toasted
- 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese, for garnish
- smoked paprika, for garnish
Directions:
1. In a medium sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the kale and lemon juice and cook, stirring, until the greens are wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Divide the kale between the slices of toast and set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan, bring 4 cups water plus the vinegar to a boil over medium-high heat. (There should be enough water in the pot to completely cover your eggs after you add them.) Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Crack each egg into a small bowl, one at a time, and then bring the bowl close to the surface of the simmering water and gently slip each egg into the water. (I sometimes use a spoon to help push the egg whites closer to the yolk to make a nice, round poached egg.) Cover the pot and turn off the heat. Let the eggs cook for 4 minutes, or until the whites are set but the yolks are still bright yellow and runny.
3. Use a slotted spoon to carefully remove the eggs from the water. Lightly tap the bottom of the spoon on a paper towel to remove excess water from the egg and place one egg on top of each toast. Garnish with crumbled feta and a pinch of smoked paprika.
curried deviled EGGs
(Serves 6 to 8)
Ingredients:
- 12 large eggs, at room temperature
- 6 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- kosher salt
- finely chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
1. In a large saucepan, arrange the eggs in a single layer and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and let the eggs sit in the water for 15 minutes. Fill a large bowl with ice water and transfer the eggs to the ice bath. Let them cool for 10 to 15 minutes before peeling. With a sharp knife, cut each egg in half lengthwise and carefully remove the yolks. Set the whites aside on a plate.
2. Pass the yolks through a potato ricer or sieve into a medium bowl. Add the mayonnaise, shallot, curry powder, mustard powder, lemon juice, and cayenne to the bowl and stir to make a smooth paste. Season with salt.
3. Arrange the whites, cut-side up, on a clean kitchen towel. Fit a pastry bag with a 1/2-inch French star tip (or cut the corner off a zip-top bag) and fill the bag with the yolk mixture. Pipe about a tablespoon-size rosette of the yolk mixture into the hollow part of each egg white.
4. Sprinkle with finely chopped parsley and serve.
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(Reprinted from Pull Up A Chair. Copyright © 2018 Tiffani Thiessen. Photography © 2018 by Rebecca Sanabria. Reproduced by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.)
