EASY EGGS BENEDICT

 Mounds of thinly shaved ham sitting on toasted English muffins, topped with poached eggs and a tangy homemade hollandaise sauce…

SURPRISE YOUR FAMILY AND IMPRESS YOUR FRIENDS WITH THIS EASY EGGS BENEDICT.

Every time I make this EASY EGGS BENEDICT recipe I feel like the wannabe chef I aspire to be. By all means, if going out to a favourite restaurant to enjoy this classic dish is your thing, go ahead and raise a Mimosa to our health when you do. 

But in canvassing our family and friends about Eggs Benedict we kept hearing two things: “I could never do that!” and “Isn’t it complicated?” We soon realized the challenge would be making this recipe easy. Our big picture goal: create an EASY EGGS BENEDICT recipe that anyone can make. Oh, and in case you missed it, that “anyone” includes you!

LET’S MAKE EASY EGGS BENEDICT! HERE’S EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE WITH A CLASSIC RECIPE:

BIG PICTURE

Don’t let the photo of the ingredients make you nervous. Lots of things are brought together to create the stellar flavour combinations of this rich, memorable dish.

As you continue reading, we’ll comment on the various components that make up Eggs Benedict. They’re in no particular order, so make sure to reference the full recipe and instructions at the bottom off this post. We’ve also provided links for a few kitchen utensils and appliances that helped us get the job done like pros.

Last thing, don’t forget to click THIS LINK and watch the full recipe video before you begin. It gives you a sense of the steps we followed and why.

ENGLISH MUFFINS

A few summers back I had a friend visiting from the U.K. Our Sunday brunch that weekend was nothing like this recipe; I had cooked off some bacon and a few eggs and was just getting ready to slice open a few English muffins when my friend stopped me, “Oh no dearest, we never cut our muffins, rather you coax them open with a fork.” Rather!

I know this might sound silly but you’ll see how coaxing an English muffin open leaves the surface all rough and craggy. Once it’s toasted with a swipe of butter, it becomes a solid base for the Eggs Benedict. The ham and poached eggs stay put and cling perfectly!

HAM IT UP

What about that ham? Select a favourite, whether it’s deli-bought Black Forest, honey-baked, smoked, cured or even slices of leftover OVEN-BAKED HAM! We are adding a “heat the ham” step in this recipe so having it sliced as thinly as possible is a must. You may notice we didn’t give you options on omissions and substitutions; for Eggs Benedict, it has to be made with ham.

GOOD EGGS

The main thing that made everyone nervous was poaching the eggs. Truth be told, I used to avoid making them too, but, with a little research and a whole lot of testing (thankfully poached eggs are healthy, quite a few were eaten) our step-by-step guide works each and every time.

As you follow the instructions below just remember: fresh eggs, drain away the watery liquid of the egg white, the boiled water is simmering but completely still and 3 minutes is the exact poach time. Oh, one last thing (one more time)… you can do this!

HACK JOB

The second thing about Eggs Benny that made people shy away from making it is the hollandaise sauce. We heard tons of stories of people scrambling and overcooking their sauce and we get it, the sauce has gotta be perfect otherwise the whole thing is a flop.

All of you thinking “I’ll show you, Nik!”, go HERE to watch out 1-Minute video on the old-school way of making homemade hollandaise sauce, and good luck. Everyone else, make this HOLLANDAISE HACK. It comes together in under 5 minutes (no, I’m not joking) and it tastes just as tangy and zippy as the real stuff!

ALL TOGETHER NOW

Once the English muffin is toasted, ham is steaming, eggs are poached and the hollandaise is zipped up and at-the-ready, it’s time to plate. SPOILER ALERT: you are going to feel great and the final few moments of pulling everything together is an absolute joy. Having a friend or family member join in making our EASY EGGS BENEDICT is a ton of fun too!

GARNISH

We took a cue from the many times we’ve enjoyed this meal in a restaurant and went with traditional garnishes of paprika, black pepper, chopped chives and twisted slices of navel oranges. It’s a colourful and impressive presentation no matter how you look at it.

Speaking of looking at it, we’re hoping you might feel inspired to share a pic or two of your EASY EGGS BENEDICT when you make it at home. Post them to Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram and remember to tag #weekendatthecottage when you do. We’re so excited to see them!

SERVICE PLEASE

The beauty of Eggs Benny is the fact that it’s a complete meal. If you are feeling like you might want a tiny bit more, try serving it with our HEALTHY FRUIT SALAD and its luscious cherry, lime and mint dressing. You can also serve a refreshing flute of bubbly or a Mimosa if you’re so inclined – twist my arm, right?!

source: https://weekendatthecottage.com/easy-eggs-benedict/