This is a dinner that looks fancy but is actually the easiest thing to make. It involves mixing Greek yogurt with lemon and frying an egg. It can involve burning toast, but it doesn’t have to.

I saw this recipe when I was browsing cookbooks on Amazon. A cheap trick is to open all the cookbooks and read them without buying them. It’s great for lazy days when you don’t want to go to the library, or for days when you’re strapped for cash.

I was attracted to the title of the cookbook: Small Victories. Sometimes, that’s all you can ask for. In the kitchen, as in life, almost anything is possible. Taking it little by little makes daunting tasks seem easier.

Which brings me back to these eggs. They’re easy enough to repeat multiple times and quick enough to be ready in a hurry. But they’d still be good as a main course to impress friends, or as a way to dress up a plain fried egg.

As Julia Turshen explains in her book, everything tastes better with an egg on top. I’m still thinking about an idea I had for fried egg-topped ice cream…

Anyway. Before I get too carried away, here’s the recipe. And here’s a good song for egg frying.

Fried Egg with Lemon Yogurt Sauce (from Small Victories)

Ingredients

1/4 cup plain yogurt (I used nonfat Greek yogurt)
1/2 a lemon
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 eggs
1 tbsp roughly chopped leafy fresh herbs (I used parsley)

Directions

In a small bowl, combine the yogurt and most of the juice from the lemon half (don’t discard the lemon half) and whisk together. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer the mixture to a plate and use a spoon to spread it so that it covers most of the plate.

In a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Crack the eggs into the pan and sprinkle each egg with a bit of salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Sprinkle a few drops of water (less than 1 tsp) into the skillet, being sure to let the water hit the bottom of the pan and not the eggs, and immediately cover the skillet with a lid.

Let the eggs cook until the whites are cooked through but the yolks are still a bit wobbly, just a minute or two. Transfer the eggs to the prepared plate, setting them on top of the yogurt. Squeeze whatever juice remains in the lemon half over the eggs and scatter over the herbs. Serve immediately.