Dinner for One

The Husband works in retail and while I am of course grateful that in this economic climate he has a job, his work schedule often requires me to eat alone. This requires a lot more ingenuity then cooking for two or more because I don't really want to use any produce that might come in handy for future meals, I don't want to dirty too many plates and I don't want to be slaving over a stove just to please little old me. In the bad old days I often fell victim to the over processed, rubbery food that was the low-calorie frozen dinner. However, since we started getting The Box every week The Husband and I have been trying to cut back on on foodstuffs that can't fairly be called "food."  So on the days when he has a late shift, I think back to my years in law school and pull those fast, easy, one person recipes I invented that allowed me to let loose some creativity and still get back to the books in a reasonable amount of time. This week, when I saw the Fava Greens beginning to wilt in their bag, I knew exactly what to do with them.

Warning, dear readers, this recipe is, for the first time ever on this blog.... a SALAD. I know, blasphemy. But sometimes you just want something fresh, and, let's be honest, nothing requires less cooking then a salad. Also, I made this salad with the Fava Greens because the Google Machine suggested that they were similar in spiciness to arugula, my usual green of choice. But really you could probably do this dish with any leafy green, spinach, kale, even mixed greens. I just would probably stay away the harder greens like Romaine or... shudder... iceberg.

First, take a Red potato (or really any kind of potato we just happen to have some reds in the house right now) and cut it into bite sized pieces.  Toss, on a sheet pan covered with tin foil for easy clean up, the potato pieces with  a tablespoon of olive oil, a teaspoon of dried thyme, a teaspoon of dried rosemary, salt, pepper and a tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese. Stick the pan into a 425 degree oven and roast for about 30-45 minutes or until the potatoes are tender and look brown and crispy.

Next wash, dry and prep your greens. Since the Fava Greens consisted of big flat leaves, I gave them a quick chop after washing and drying them to make them easier to eat. I then tossed them with about 2 teaspoons of red wine vinegar, and some salt and pepper.

The final step to this salad, before bringing it all together, is to fry an egg. I do mine sunny-side up, but any egg preparation that provides you with a still runny yolk would probably work in this situation, sunny-side up just happens to be, in my opinion, the easiest.

The Final Result:

THE VERDICT

First off the Fava Greens, they do NOT taste like arugula, they taste like Fava Beans, which was not un-appealing in the dish. They also have a texture more similar to baby spinach then anything else. It worked.

As for the dish itself. It's really a very simple and kind of fancy looking salad that will satisfy your need for starch, protein and greens all in one go. I've made it for The Husband before and he's always eaten it happily. I suppose you could fancy it up with some extra cheese or even some crunchy bacon, but I like the simplicity of the dish as is.  I usually cut right into the egg, chop up the whites and mix the runny yolk into the greens which contrasts nicely with the vinegar already there. Overall, it's healthy, it doesn't take to long and it only really requires dirtying a single fry pan. It's the perfect dinner for one.