The Cheshire Inn's Kale Salad with Soft-Boiled Eggs

A couple weeks ago, my family went to The Cheshire Inn Restaurant for a combination of birthday celebrations. The Cheshire is literally just a couple blocks down from our house, and it also happens to be the place my parents spent their wedding night nearly 35 years ago.

The food is amazing. I had the smoked salmon platter to start, followed by the rotiserrie-roasted duck with whipped sweet potatoes and pomegranate seeds. Justin started with the black kale salad with soft-boiled eggs and anchovy dressing, and his entree was the prime rib with Yorkshire pudding (something I'd heard of from the odd Harry Potter novel, but never tasted -- lemme say, bloody brilliant).

Not a single one of us left that restaurant with less than glowing reviews. Of all the meaty and starchy goodness, though, to me, the winner was this strange little salad. The flavors were pungent yet balanced: creamy, bitter, deep, and earthy.

Ingredients
3-4 cups baby kale
2 anchovy fillets
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 lemon (juice)
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
pinch red pepper flakes
Salt + Pepper
2 eggs

Preparation
1. Mix the dressing: In a mini food processor, whir up the anchovy, olive oil, the juice of half the lemon, the Dijon, red pepper, salt and pepper. Season to taste. If you want it a little more tangy, add some vinegar.
2. Soft boil the eggs: Place eggs gently into boiling water and boil for 5 minutes flat. Take out of the boiling water and put the eggs in a cold water bath (cold water + ice); let them cool for 10 minutes. Peel very gently.
3. Toss the kale with the dressing, top with an egg, and split the egg gently with your fork to let the yolk runneth over. Oh yeah.

Get out and try something strange - you may just like it.

-Katie