New-ish to the kitchen, Johnny Golding is my daughter Sara’s boyfriend. Sara and I met him the day she moved into her freshman dorm in college, precisely August 2012. His personal introduction was unforgettable. “Johnny. Johnny from England,” he said as we exchanged hellos, his hand outstretched. I brought a box of individually wrapped espresso blondies from my kitchen to move-in day, offered them around, and made my way back to West Virginia.

Fast forward, Sara’s NYC job moved her temporarily to London the equivalent of five semesters after graduation. She got in touch with Johnny who had moved back to England and college friendship became international romance. When we traveled to London to visit Sara, Johnny was our tour guide, interspersing laughter into all dialog. He revisited the brownies from move-in day!

We always enjoy hosting him in our home and kitchen where he chops like it’s a lifelong skill. In his youth he attended boarding school in England and spent summers and holidays at home with his family in Portugal.

What’s your 20 minute recipe? Cast iron sausage, mushrooms, and kale topped with a poached egg. It’s really perfect for any time of day and you can use that extra bit of cooked sausage or bacon that you’ve got hanging out in the fridge from the weekend. It really feels meaty with the mushrooms. It’s good for when you want to feel healthy, yet it’s also hearty.

What’s your favorite city? LONDON.

What’s your favorite restaurant in your current city? Casse-Croûte in Bermondsey. It’s done by some fancy famous French chefs, a less expensive version of an authentic French meal.

Treasured find in the back of your fridge? Definitely a 2 liter bottle of ice cold semi-skimmed organic milk. I drink too much milk to be dealing with all those hormones. Also it must be noted that I take offense to people keeping their milk on the door of the fridge, too much temperature variability.

Who taught you to cook? Sara taught me. I made cakes with my mum when I was young, but I didn’t really take it seriously until it became ‘a stipulation.’ Sara wouldn’t agree to a date if I didn’t eat vegetables. So vegetables it was. But I’ll never eat cucumber.Never never. A man must have a code.

What’s your go-to dish for company? Beer can chicken. I serve it every time when friends come around. I LOAD it with spices and bake it in the oven.

What’s on your cooking playlist? Leon Bridges

Coffee, tea, or Kombucha? TEA, Irish breakfast, strong brew. Dash of milk. No sugar.

Date night—at home? or out? First pub, then home.

Most stained cookbook? Peter Reinhart’s Artisan Breads Every Day

Indispensable kitchen tool? Dough scrapers. Perfect for everything.

Staple childhood comfort food? There’s two. In England it’s the ‘eggy cup with toast soldiers’ — a semi-soft boiled egg loaded up with butter and lots of pepper and salt, kind of mushed up in a mug and served with sticks of toast. In Portugal it’s Feijoada.

Who would you most like to share a meal with? past, present, or fictional? Randy Moss

Go-to olive oil? I don’t particularly have one. My housemate brought back a tasty one from Lesbos. She’s a chef and I like trying the ones she keeps around.

Best thing you’ve ever eaten in an airport? Chicago style nachos.

How do you like your toast? Blackened, with lots of butter. Anyone who scrapes off the charcoal is a monster.

Ideal grilled cheese? Hands down, sourdough grilled with pimiento cheese.

Favorite pizza topping? fried egg with a runny yolk. Game changer.

Where would you want to take a cooking class? Bread Ahead, specifically their donut class at their cooking school in Borough.

What’s your Counter Intelligence cooking tip? freeze a portion of your bread dough before the second rise. Coat them with neutral oil and freeze them in ziploc bags. Then you can bake off fresh bread any time. Some doughs work better than others. I’ve been experimenting.

Healthy and hearty all in one pan, this quick and delicious dish makes the case for keeping a bit of extra cooked sausage or bacon on hand (pancetta pictured here)

Johnny’s Cast Iron Mushroom-Kale Masterpiece

cooked bacon, sausage or pancetta, half a palm full
large handful of sliced mushrooms
2 large handfuls of torn up kale, tough stems removed
1 tablespoon water
salt & pepper
1 egg, poached to desired doneness

HEAT a small skillet over medium heat and add the already-cooked meat. Stir to heat through and render a bit of fat into the skillet. Removed the meat and set aside.

ADD the mushrooms to the hot skillet, season with some s&p and cook until browned and tender. Remove from the skillet and set aside with the reserved meat.

ADD the kale to the skillet, sprinkle with a good pinch of salt and drizzle with the water. Cover the skillet and steam the kale until tender. As Johnny would say…chuck it all back in to the pan and top it off with the poached egg.