Eggs Florentine

When Chris and I spent new years 2007-2008 in Stowe we stayed at a little B&B called The Gables Inn. Ever since I was young they were known for doing the best Eggs Benedict in town. But now under new ownership would they still be the best in town? I was concerned because I love Eggs Benedict. Its, hands down, my favorite breakfast dish. Finish it off with a little fruit salad and coffee and I'm ready for anything the day has to throw at me, after a nap of course.

We narrowly avoided a major breakfast crisis because they were just as wonderful as I had remembered, if not better. But one can't eat only Eggs Benedict every morning for a week. So I went out on a limb and mixed it up with what they called "two on a raft" which was essentially Eggs Florentine with a slice of fresh tomato snuck into the stack.
I certainly can't imagine hitting the gym in an hour with a belly full of eggs and hollandaise sauce so to keep me motivated: my version of Eggs Florentine; slightly adapted to agree with my goals. Its a compromise I can be happy with!

Here is what you will need:

Two eggs
2 fistfuls of fresh spinach
1 small shallot
a few slices of fresh juicy tomato
2 teaspoons olive oil
whole wheat fresh loaf, sliced or English muffin
reduced fat cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Depending on your appetite this will feed 1 very hungry person or two for a light breakfast.

Shallot: a marriage of onion and garlic. The perfect sidekick to spinach.

this package had two rather large shallots so I'm only using half of one, sliced up fine.

In a pan with 1 teaspoon of olive oil, saute the shallot over medium heat until soft.

Fresh spinach: the bag says its a super food. I believe it.

Drop about two fistfuls of spinach into the pan and reduce the heat to med-low. Add a sprinkling of salt to keep the leaves bright green. Cover and saute for just a few minutes until wilted. Remove from heat and set aside.

Slice your tomato, not too thin, you want it to hold its integrity in the pan.

Drop the tomato into a saute pan with 1 teaspoon of olive oil and heat until soft. Remove from pan and set a side

Whole wheat crusty loaf. My Achilles heel.

Toast, lightly, two slices. If you want to go crazy you can put a light spread of butter on there...

Top the toast with the tomato

Crack two eggs into the pan you had the tomato in.

Easy now, beeee careful!

Phew. Two eggs over medium, salt and pepper to taste.

Top the tomato with the egg

and the egg with the spinach.

Instead of hollandaise, top the spinach with a small slice of reduced fat cheese. I'm using provolone.

I popped the whole plate under the broiler to melt the cheese quickly.

Fiber, protein, iron, vitamin C, calcium... this is an excellent way to start your day. And it doesn't taste like a compromise at all.