Eggs Benedict

(4 servings)    Printable Version

• 8 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar or fresh lemon juice
• 8 pieces of Canadian-style bacon
• 4 English muffins - split
• 2 Tablespoons butter - softened
• 3 Tablespoons finely chopped chives (optional)
  
• For The Hollandaise Sauce:
• 3 egg yolks
• 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 dash hot sauce or cayenne pepper (optional)

First, prepare the Hollandaise Sauce:

In a blender, pulse the egg yolks, mustard, lemon juice, salt and and optional hot sauce together for about 5 seconds.

Melt the butter over medium-low heat on the stove top. Or for a quicker method that works just as well, melt the butter in glass measuring cup in the microwave - about 1 minute.

Set the blender to it's highest speed and slowly stream the melted butter through the removable-stopper hole in the blender's lid.

Keep the sauce warm while you prepare the rest of the dish by placing the the blender jar in a large pan of warm tap water.

Preheat the oven to broil.

To poach the eggs:

Fill a large saucepan 3 or 4 inches deep with water. Bring the water to a boil and immediately reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Add the vinegar or lemon juice (these acidic ingredients should not effect the taste - they are meant to help the egg white congeal so the egg doesn't spread out in the pan).

Crack each egg into a shallow bowl and slide each egg from the bowl into the sauce pan. This step will prevent the breakage that could occur if you cracked the egg directly into the water.

Cook for 2 1/2 minutes to 3 minutes until the whites are no longer opaque and the yolks are still soft in the center. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and transfer to stacked paper towels to drain.

As the eggs are poaching:

A) Brown the Canadian bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

B) Toast the split English muffins in the oven, by laying them next to each other on a large baking sheet. This usually takes only three minutes. When toasted to your satisfaction, remove from oven and spread a little butter over each half.

To construct each portion of Eggs Benedict:

Place two muffin halves on each serving plate. Top each half with with a slice of Canadian bacon and a poached egg. Drizzle each portion evenly with Hollandaise Sauce. If desired, sprinkle each serving with chopped chives.

Serve immediately.