Check out this $2 duck egg

I couldn’t resist.

During a shop around the 5 Points Community Farm Market on Church Street in Norfolk, I found a few things to take home.

One fat, red, vine ripe tomato – the famer who sold it to me said that it came from Georgia. Fine with me. It was huge for $1.10.

Two jars of Reggie’s Banana Pudding Sauce for friends (I cannot have in my house because it is so good and The Baby Girl refuses to eat it because she is certain that her Nana’s banana pudding is the best and she does not want to betray her grandma).

And an enormous duck egg for $2 – a heavy, thick-shelled egg at least twice the size of the large eggs in my larder.

The elderly ladies shopping at the market remarked that duck eggs are great for baking, that they are richer and make baked goods richer. But I’m not planning on turning on my (temperamental) oven until late September (OK, I’ll make The Baby Girl a birthday cake in July, but that’s it).

So I checked out my favorite egg cookbook, “eggs,” by Michel Roux. “I am very partial to their rich flavor,” Roux said, “which is at its best in soft-cooked and scrambled eggs, omelets and in desserts.”

So this morning, I cracked my egg into a frying pan. I had to whack it a couple of times against the lip of the pan because the shell is so thick. Then out came the biggest yolk I’ve ever seen, and a disproportionately small amount of white, based on what I’m used to.

Roux was right. It has a richness that is absent from the usual dozen. Next time I buy one, I’m going to soft boil it and allow it to grace one of my dinner salads.

The eggs hail from a Chesapeake farmer called Monkey John. I'll soon be checking out his farm.

COMMENTS ADVISORY: Users are solely responsible for opinions they post here; comments do not reflect the views of The Virginian-Pilot or its websites. Users must follow agreed-upon rules: Be civil, be clean, be on topic; don't attack private individuals, other users or classes of people. Read the full rules here.
- Comments are automatically checked for inappropriate language, but readers might find some comments offensive or inaccurate. If you believe a comment violates our rules, click the report violation link below it.