Broccoli Polonaise with Buttered Crumbs

From the garden

• 2 lb broccoli, stalks peeled, cut lengthwise into long spears
• 3 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

From the pantry

• 6 tbsp butter
• ¾ cup coarse dry breadcrumbs · stale bread torn small and dried in a low oven beats anything from a canister
• 2 eggs, hard-boiled, peeled, pressed through a sieve
• 1 lemon · juice, for finishing
• salt · plus a generous hand for the boiling water
• black pepper

1. Lower the eggs into boiling water and cook 9 minutes, then cool them under cold running water and peel. Press them through a coarse sieve, or chop them very fine; the sieve is what gives polonaise its soft, snowy top.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and salt it until it tastes like soup. Pare the woody skin off the stalk with a knife and cut the head lengthwise so every spear carries stem and floret.
3. Boil the spears 3–4 minutes, until a knife tip enters the stem with slight resistance and the color has gone bright. Drain well and stand them on a towel: wet broccoli thins the butter and sheds the crumbs.
4. Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat, add the breadcrumbs, and toast 3–4 minutes, stirring, until the crumbs are gold and the butter smells nutty. Pull the pan the moment that color arrives, because crumbs go from brown to burnt in seconds.
5. Lay the broccoli on a warm platter, spoon the buttered crumbs down the middle, and scatter the egg and parsley over the top. Squeeze on lemon, season, and serve at once beside roast chicken, pork, or fish.