A Winter White Brunch

This weekend's massive snowfall and freezing temperatures inspired the wintry-warm brunch I whipped up at home yesterday...wasn't really feeling inclined to brave the outdoors just yet. I've been recently craving the kale salad at one of my favorite neighborhood restaurants, Northern Spy...my version, though a bit different, might just be a close second.

Poached Eggs with Kale-Sweet Potato Salad

The Goods

2-3 cups kale (about 1/2 bunch), thinly chopped

1 small sweet potato, diced

2 tsp olive oil

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp garlic powder

pinch of cayenne pepper

salt to taste

1 Tbsp chopped roasted almonds

1 Tbsp Champagne vinaigrette *recipe below

2 Tbsp fresh grated Pecorino Romano cheese

2 eggs

1 tsp white vinegar

The Breakdown

Place kale in a steamer basket over a medium saucepan on medium-high heat and cover. Steam kale just slightly, about 1 to 2 minutes to keep it a bit crisp and crunchy.

Heat olive oil in a medium skillet and add in diced sweet potato (I wanted to speed things up a little, so I popped the potato in the microwave first for 2 minutes). Add in spices paprika through salt and saute until crispy (almost like baby hashbrowns) for about 6 to 8 minutes on medium-high heat.

Vinaigrette: Whisk together 1 tsp Dijon mustard, 1 tsp minced shallot, 1 Tbsp Champagne vinegar, 3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.

Toss kale with sweet potatoes, almonds and 1 Tbsp vinaigrette. Sprinkle with Pecorino Romano.

Poached eggs: Bring a small pot of water to a simmer on medium-high heat. Add 1 tsp white vinegar (I used white wine vinegar) and a touch of salt. The vinegar will help hold together the whites of the eggs. Gently slide in two eggs and poach for about 4 to 5 minutes.

Add a mimosa or bloody Mary and you've got a great wintry brunch!