By Paul Suplee, MBA, CEC, PC-3

A bead of sweat rolls down my right temple. It is too damn early for this. The sun is still an hour from cracking the horizon, and I am tired, exhausted, but brunch must be served and it is an hour’s drive away. I still have to pack the finishing touches.

My pointer finger trembles with trepidation as I know the end result well before I click. I know what is about to happen, and worse, I can’t do anything about it.

All I want to do is print some menus for this custom repast, but I know my printer won’t work; it never does when I need it to. Unplug, plug back in. Restart everything. Run the troubleshooter. It is all in vain.

I feel like this weekly, if not daily, ritual reminds me that I am rarely in control of the little details of my life. There are larger powers at play, whether they be universal or technological, and I accept that.

But this is a very important brunch for clients and friends of mine in the most stunning kitchen and estate that I have worked in a great while. Alas, I jump ship as I realize that I will have to go without a printed menu today. Someday though, dearest printer, you will be mine. Yes, you will be mine.

It is time to hit the road and get the many moving parts of this buffet set up. At the end of the day, they will be happy. All from scratch, the food will make them happy, and it will speak for itself.

The printer battle will have to wait.

Eggs Kind-of Chesapeake

makes 8 portions

10 ea. Whole large eggs

8 ea. Fried green tomatoes (recipe follows)

Oil for frying (Recipe follows)

Shredded chicken & smoked turkey, as needed

6 oz. Lump crab meat

2 c. Garlic Kale (Recipe follows)

Hollandaise, as needed (recipe follows)

• Poach the eggs in salted water ahead of time, until just done and then shock in ice water.

• Remove from ice water and have ready to dunk in hot water to reheat.

• Fry the breaded green tomatoes and set aside, keeping warm until ready to assemble.

• Heat a pan, and add the garlic kale, meats and crab meat, tossing gently to heat.

• When ready to assemble, arrange the fried tomato(es) on a plate or platter.

• Top with the kale mixture and one egg per tomato.

• Top with Hollandaise and serve immediately.

Fried Green Tomatoes

makes 10 tomatoes

2 ea. Large green tomatoes

4 eggs

1 c. Whole milk

3 c. Seasoned flour (your choice)

3 c. Fine panko bread crumbs

1/4 c. Dried parsley

2 Tbsp. Trimix (Salt, pepper, granulated garlic)

• In first bowl, combine eggs and milk

• In second bowl, place seasoned flour

• In third bowl, combine remaining ingredients

• Following the age-old tenets of the breading station, bread your fried green tomatoes. This can be done ahead of time, and they can be frozen. This helps them to maintain their shape and breading, and also keeps them from getting soggy.

• Fry in oil at 350F until golden brown

• Keep warm until ready to serve

Oil for Frying

makes about 2 gallons

6 qt. Vegetable shortening

2 qt. Lard

1 whole chicken

1 smoked turkey leg

2 sprigs rosemary

4 sprigs fresh thyme

4 Tbsp. Poultry seasoning

• There shall be no frying at this point, sinners. We are going to make a confit.

• Place everything in a pot large enough to hold everything.

• Slowly bring to a heat where you will see small bubbles rise and the chicken starting to cook.

• Maintain this for hours on end until the chicken is cooked and shreds easily.

• Remove the turkey and chicken and shred, setting aside meat in the icebox until needed.

• Cool the oil down, and ladle it from the top. There will be water from the chicken at the bottom and you do not want this! It will be a safety hazard as you heat up your fryer.

Garlic Kale

makes 1 qt.

3 Qt. Fresh kale, cleaned and stems removed

1/2 c. Garlic confit (you should know that from previous articles)

Salt & Pepper, as needed

• Heat the garlic confit in a pan, but do not bring it to smoking.

• Add the kale and cook until soft, maybe 4-5 minutes.

• Season and set aside until service.

Hollandaise (cheater)

makes about 3 cups

2 ea. Farm fresh duck eggs, if you should be so lucky*

1/2pound whole unsalted butter, melted and at `130F

1/2 tsp. Chicken base (concentrate)

dash hot sauce

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Salt & Black pepper to taste

• Place the eggs in a blender and turn on a medium speed.

• Add the chicken base, hot sauce and lemon juice.

• Take your whole, melted butter, and slowly drizzle in to make your emulsion.

• Once the sauce in the blender stops spinning, or seizes up, you are done. You can thin with a dash of hot water if desired.

• Season and keep warm until service.

*Farm fresh eggs are recommended, but seriously, how often do you see those? It is recommended that you use shell-pasteurized eggs for this sauce. There are plenty of techniques available to research to get this done.

—Paul Suplee is a Professor of Culinary Arts at
Wor-Wic Community College and owner of boxcar40 and boxcar on main.
Visit him at www.boxcar40.com; www.boxcaronmain.com