Grilled Endives & Potatoes Topped with Fried Egg

While watching one of my favorite celebrity chefs, Giada de Laurentis, on the Cooking Channel over the weekend, I was inspired by a dish her and her husband tried in San Francisco for brunch. It looked utterly delicious, simple and completely different from my usual brunch items, so I thought I would try to interpret it in my own way. 

Serves 2

INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp olive oil
2 red potatoes, medium diced with skin on
1/2 medium-size onion, chopped roughly
3 cloves garlic, minced roughly
1/4 tsp herbes de provence (or whatever herb you have on hand)
2 belgian endives, halved length-wise with end cut off
2 eggs
1 tsp finely chopped parsley
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
Salt & Pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat olive oil over medium heat for a few minutes. The pan should be hot before adding potatoes. Add salt and pepper to taste over potatoes.
2. Cook potatoes for 5 minutes, then add onion, garlic and herbes de provence. Stir occasionally for 2-3 minutes. Do not let the garlic or onion brown otherwise it will be bitter.
3. Bring heat down to low and cover potatoes to steam and cook through. Let cook for 10-15 minutes until potato is soft, stirring occasionally so the potato does not stick to bottom. During the last few minutes, uncover the potatoes and raise to medium-low to brown potatoes.
4. While potato cooks, add 1 tbsp of olive oil to another pan and grill endives over medium-low heat. Add a pinch of salt and pepper over the halved endives. Cook on each side for 5 minutes. 
5. In a small saucepan over medium heat, add the balsamic vinegar and add a pinch of black pepper. Bring to a boil and then lower to heat to low. Cook down for 5 minutes or until the balsamic vinegar is reduced by half and thickened slightly. It should have a consistency similar to honey.
6. Take endives off the pan and put to the side. In the same pan, crack both eggs and fry over medium heat for 4-5 minutes until egg is no longer translucent and yolk still runny.

TO PLATE

1. On a large plate, place half of potatoes in the center of plate. Top with one fried egg.
2. Place a halved endive on each side, flat side up.
3. Drizzle a small amount of reduced balsamic vinegar over egg and endives.
4. Garnish with the chopped parsley.
5. Repeat with second plate.