Julia’s Eggs by Marene Gustin
If summer clouds were made of eggs they would taste like Julia’s Eggs, a dish on Bistro Menil’s brunch menu.
Bistro Menil is the charming eatery on the grounds of The Menil Collection, one of Houston’s most famous museums, nestled in a verdant park setting and featuring the main collection of world art, a bookstore, the drawing institute, two other galleries, the Rothko Chapel and its reflection pond, the Byzantine Fresco Chapel, beautiful towering oak trees and many 20th century bungalows that house administration and support staff, all on a 30-acre campus in the middle of Houston. It is peaceful and soothing, and so are those eggs.
The bistro reflects the sleek and simple design of the main gallery and inside it is all white and airy with modern art. The food reflects the European travels of chef/proprietor Greg Martin and qualifies as food art: the delicate savory crepes, the crispy eggplant fries with a touch of anchovy aioli, steaming bowls of mussels swimming in white wine and a duck confit. And, or course, Julia’s eggs every Friday through Sunday.
“They are an homage to Julia Child,” Martin says. “A simple, perfect egg dish.”
Back in the ‘90s, Child had a PBS show called Cooking with Master Chefs and one of the chefs featured was local celebrity chef Robert Del Grande of the then Cafe Annie. Martin was chef de cuisine there at the time and was tasked with bringing lunch to the Del Grande home everyday during the shooting.
Martin remembers that Child, in her 70s, insisted that the entire crew break bread together and that she was very generous with her time and talents. One of the things they talked about was cooking eggs. Eggs, Martin explains, seem so simple, fresh and nurturing, but preparing delicious eggs can be challenging. “Often when chefs audition they are given a pan and eggs and asked to cook an omelet,” he says. “It’s a true test, it takes a skill set.”
And so he and Julia Child talked about the perfect scrambled eggs. She told him that they need to be soft scrambled, not overly agitated and that the butter should not be in the pan but folded into the eggs after they start to set. “You want to taste the butter, you don’t want to waste it,” says Martin.
“She said, ‘I don’t understand why Americans eat margarine, why not eat real butter every other day?’ and I agree,” says Martin. She told him to use a cooking spray in the pan, and add the butter directly into the eggs so it adds weight back as the eggs lose 10 percent of their mass while cooking. “They end up being big and fluffy as opposed to mealy,” he says. They are plated onto a warm dish, topped with crème fraîche, sprinkled with fleur de sel ( a French, gray sea salt) and a healthy dollop of caviar and served immediately. Bistro Menil’s three-day weekend brunch offers the dish with a side of breakfast potatoes or a small salad. It’s best washed down with a carafe of blood orange mimosas.
The Best Recipe for Scrambled Eggs
And you can make this dish pretty easily (maybe after a few tried) at home. And it’s also simple enough to make your own crème fraîche. Martin takes a cup of heavy cream and two tablespoons of buttermilk, mixes lightly, covers the bowl with a cloth and sets it in a warm, draft-free spot. Let it set overnight and in the morning just stir and refrigerate. It will keep for up to two weeks. Bon appétit!
Julia’s Eggs
From Bistro Menil’s chef Greg Martin
Serves four
Ingredients:
12 fresh eggs
ground pepper
cooking spray
4 tablespoons butter (room temperature)
1/2 cup crème fraîche
2 tablespoons chopped chives
fleur de sel
1-ounce paddlefish caviar (it is sustainable and pairs well with eggs)
Directions:
Pre-heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Season the eggs with pepper. Spray the pan and pour in the eggs. As the eggs set, gently fold the uncooked egg under the cooked egg, do not overwork the eggs. Once the eggs have just set, distribute the butter evenly on the eggs and gently fold the butter until all the butter is incorporated. Divide the eggs evenly between four warm gratin dishes. Garnish with crème fraîche, chives, fleur de sel and caviar. Serve immediately.