This past weekend we took a trip to Houston to explore. We found a neat boardwalk, the Space Center and a tremendous restaurant by a renowned chef.

The Kemah Boardwalk was a scenic carnival, outfitted with a wooden roller coaster, merry-go-round, ferris wheel, and several other attractions all on the Gulf of Mexico. The evening was completed with musical acts and street performers. And given another chance, we would probably choose to stay right on the premises at a very cool looking hotel. My son, Declan, particularly got a kick out of the feeding frenzy of catfish right on the docks.

The space center was very cool, especially if you are a space exploration enthusiast such as my son. Although he did not necessary understand the gravity of what he was taking in, no pun intended, he certainly appreciated videos of the moon and planets, and models of the various space crafts.

But we wound up saving the best for last. We visited Hugo’s a modern Mexican restaurant that manages to combine the enjoyment of comfort food, with the elegance of an upscale restaurant. Hugo Ortega, writes books about capturing the feeling of a place in his food. He aims for his food to transport you to the region in which the dish is based, and he certainly delivered.

We discovered first hand with his ceviches, oysters, paella, and numerous other dishes. But one dish stuck out in my mind and we attempt to recreate the feeling that this extraordinary dish gave us. He called it Heuvos Poblanos. One might think of this dish as a breakfast dish, but I would even serve this for dinner.

And here is the Declan and my interpretation of this dish.

We start with a cornbread-ish type of base. The idea here is for it to be very moist, and tasty, not too bread-like. We start with your favorite cornbread base, and then add minced poblanos, onions and creamed corn, and then we make sure to error on the side of undercooked before pulling out.

Next, we poach or soft boil eggs. I like to sous vide my eggs, but that is worth an entirely separate post. I believe even a fried egg will go will with this dish.

Place the egg on top of your Mexican cornbread, and place a spoonfull of your favorite salsa over the top. Enjoy!