Field greens with a Fried Egg, Lentils, Avocado, Tomato and Lemon Vinaigrette

Poached, scrambled, hardboiled or fried, I’ve yet to meet a dish that I won’t top with an egg. In my kitchen, where there’s a will, there’s an egg white. I will concede cake and ice cream. I do not believe eggs are appropriate dessert toppings. Not yet at least. Of course, when you get down to it, eggs are a cheap, easy solution for transporting many a savory dish from simple to sublime. And nothing tastes better than cheap.

Take salad. More specifically, the salad I had for lunch today. A bed of field greens piled high with buttery, sliced avocado, tender lentils, tomatoes and a drizzling of lemon vinaigrette. Admittedly, this salad doesn’t require much else, unless that certain something happens to be a fried egg. Then you’ve really got yourself a salad. Warm egg yolk enrobes creamy avocado and sweet tomatoes in a luscious emulsion making for a light, satisfying lunch. So if it sounds good, go ahead. Put an egg on it.

Ingredients:

Juice of one lemon

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon ground pepper

½ teaspoon honey

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ cup olive oil

2 cups lightly packed field greens

¼ cup halved cherry tomatoes

¼ cup cooked lentils (I get mine from Trader Joe’s but you can often find them canned as well)

½ avocado, sliced

1 large egg

1 tablespoon butter

For the Lemon-Dijon Vinaigrette:

In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice, salt, pepper, honey and Dijon mustard. Pour the olive oil in a slow stream while whisking constantly. Taste and adjust seasonings.

For the Salad:

Arrange the field greens on a plate and top with the cherry tomatoes, lentils and avocado. Set aside. Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Once the skillet is hot, add the butter and swirl it around to coat the pan. Crack the egg into the pan and cook until the white is solid and edges are lightly browned, approximately 3-4 minutes. Remove the egg from the skillet and place on top of the salad. Drizzle the salad with a couple teaspoons of the Lemon-Dijon Vinaigrette and serve.