Happy Mother’s Day! ~ Egg Roulade

My mom said she was up for something new this year, so for Mother’s Day brunch I tried an egg dish unlike anything I have ever tried before …An egg roulade. The original idea was from America’s Test Kitchen Light & Healthy 2011 magazine. They do such a nice job testing recipes at that magazine, and this was already a lightened recipe, so I followed it pretty closely. Don’t want to mess with a good thing! 😉 It turned out to be an exceptional dish, we thought…It was both delicious and the presentation was impressive. Plus it was really quick and easy to make. That’s a combination I thought I would pass along on this blog! 🙂

Egg Roulade

5 oz fresh baby spinach

¼ cup water

¼ skim milk

2 tbsp unbleached all purpose flour

10 large egg whites (You can find egg whites already separated in a little carton near the egg section at the grocery store…It saves discarding 10 yolks)

5 large eggs

1 garlic clove, pressed to a paste

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

2 oz grated Gruyère cheese

Place your oven rack in the middle position and preheat to 375. Coat an 18 by 13 inch rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray. Then cover it with parchment paper, taking care to make sure it goes up the sides as well. Then spray the parchment liberally. Set aside.

Place the spinach and water in a microwave safe bowl, cover, and microwave on high for about 3 minutes, or until the spinach is wilted. Transfer the greens to a colander, and press out the excess liquid.

Whisk the milk and flour together in another bowl. In a third bowl, whisk the egg whites, eggs, garlic, salt and pepper until well combined. Then whisk in the milk and flour mixture.

Pour the combined egg mix onto the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle evenly with the spinach and cheese. Bake until the eggs are just set, about 11 minutes, rotating the pan once half way through the baking process.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Beginning at the short end, use the parchment paper to roll the eggs over in a tight cylinder (like a sushi roll.) Then use the parchment to transfer the eggs to a cutting board, and slice it crosswise before serving.

PS. Instead of bacon, we like to cook thin slices of prosciutto in a sauté pan on the stovetop. It gets crispy just like bacon. If you haven’t tried it before, it’s a nice alternative! Much leaner, too :).