Cooking Out Of The Box

One of my most favorite restaurants in Madison is Lombardinos.  It takes Italian cooking to a whole new level, and it is easily one of the top restaurants in the city.

The last few times that we’ve gone to Lombardino’s they’ve had items served “Milanese” style.  This seems to signify that there will be a fried egg on the top.

I know what you are thinking - “What?  A fried egg on top of a salad?  Ewww!”  Well, we thought the same thing (minus the Ewww!).

Turns out, this is darned good.  So one recent night found me in the kitchen with a bag full of nice, crisp, fresh spring greens from the Farmers Market.  And I thought, “Why not?”.  Preparation was simple.  Take the freshest spring greens you can find, toss with olive oil, a touch of Balsamic Vinegar, Salt, Pepper, add some crisp sliced scallions (bulbs and greens), and then add the Pièce de résistance, an egg, fried in olive oil sunny side up.  Grate some fresh asiago cheese and pepper over the yolk before serving.

Lombardino’s does a similar amazing preparation with asparagus.  Coincidentally, I have some asparagus in the refrigerator as we speak.  Don’t be surprised to see this pop up on the blog soon!