I've been bouncing back and forth a lot about Eggs Benedict. I'll be honest, I've been a little afraid of them. Hollandaise sauce and poaching eggs are two things I've never done. Poaching eggs is always portrayed as being super difficult and I was just imagining the big pot of overcooked scrambled eggs disaster.
I really hate not doing things because they're "too difficult" though, so I decided to give it a try. My first Hollaindaise didn't turn out great. I want to blame it on my whisk, but I'm sure I was also at fault. However, I found a recipe that uses a blender instead of human force and it was amazing. I definitely recommend the blender method, it takes seconds and produces a lovely bright yellow sauce.
As for poaching eggs, it turns out I had no reason to be worried. All my eggs turned out perfect, and after all that stressing it was really simple. I wouldn't recommend poaching more than two eggs at a time though, that's when things get crazy. If something goes terribly wrong though, and your poached eggs don't turn out well, just cook some eggs over easy instead, it'll taste great.
My first poached egg (ever)
Once you've got the Hollandaise and poached eggs out of the way, it's just as simple as toasting an english muffin and sizzling up some ham. I added fresh baby spinach to mine, the color contrast was great and you can pretend that you're being health conscious. It's win-win.
Eggs Benedict2 eggs
2 pieces of ham/canadian bacon/bacon
handful of baby spinach
Hollandaise sauce (recipe below)
1 english muffin
vinegar (any kind will work, except balsamic)
Fill a medium sized pan with water and a tablespoon of vinegar (doesn't need to be exact) and bring to a simmer on a medium heat (you want a simmer, not a boil).
In a pan, fry up the ham.
Split the english muffin in half and toast until golden brown in your toaster.
Once water is simmering, use a large spoon to stir it, creating a vortex or "whirlpool" (the kind you tried to create in pools when you were little). You don't want it to be too strong, but to keep going once you stop stirring.
Then break the egg into a cup or small bowl. (To prevent breaking the yolk or getting shells everywhere).
Slowly pour the egg into the sauce pan and let it sit undisturbed. Don't worry it a little bit of the white breaks off and clouds the water a little.
You can pour the other egg in now or wait and poach it after. The egg should take 3-5 minutes.
When you think it's done, remove it with a slotted spoon and poke the egg white, if it's firm the egg should be done. You don't want to leave the egg in too long because you want a nice soft runny yolk. Once the egg is done let it drain for a moment on a paper towel before assembling everything.
Assembly time:
English muffins first of course.
Then spinach, if you're using it. I like to put it under the ham so the heat wilts it a little.
Ham next.
Then a lovely poached egg.
Drizzle on a nice helping of that rich velvety hollandaise.
Time to enjoy!
Hollandaise Sauce(adapted from
this recipe)
2 egg yolks
6 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional, but you should add it)
1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
Melt the butter on the stove or in the microwave.
Add egg yolks, cayenne pepper, salt and lemon juice to the blender. Blend on a medium speed until the yolks are lighter in color and airier (about 20-30 seconds).
Slowly drizzle in the melted butter while the blender is on a low speed until the butter is incorporated.
Pour over poached eggs (I want to show more of these gorgeous pictures so we'll do that one more time.)
Also on the dessert roster and Star Trek themed, "blood pies". In Star Trek it's an organ pie eaten by Klingons, but that seemed pretty unsavory, so I opted to make tiny portable cherry pies instead. The dough gave me a little trouble, and I wish I could have used fresh cherries, but the end product was very tasty. The only real issue was that the name confused those at the party who haven't watched much Star Trek.
I've had a real love affair with ice cream sandwiches lately, and this time I decided no cutting corners. I made the cookies and the ice cream. Both are made with Earl Grey Tea (the favorite drink of Captain Picard), the recipe for the shortbread can be found here, and the recipe for the ice cream here. I like making ice cream sandwiches, but I feel like they get forgotten by the guests because they're in the freezer.
The dessert menu didn't feel complete though, I was convinced something was missing. Then I stumbled upon this recipe for chocolate tofu pie. I was intigued. I think it's time to start adding a healthy component to the menu, we have so many parties, I don't want to fatten up all my friends. The pie was delicious, who knew tofu plus chocolate equals delicious chocolate pudding? I used bananas instead of strawberries because of budget constraints and I think it was a better choice.
Alright time for savory snacks. I really had some super tasty Arancini (risotto balls), of course they aren't Star Trek, but a quick name change fixes that. I baked them instead of frying, because I hate frying food at parties (big mess, oil everywhere, food sits and gets greasy), so baking was an obvious choice. I think they were a little underseasoned, but I think that's just my over critical nature.
We used to make Taco Dip for our parties all the time, and I thought it needed a revival. If there's one thing I know, it's that people love cream cheese, they just can't get enough of it. However, they also don't notice if you replace regular with fat free (another attempt to lighten up the snacks), served with baked Tostitos Scoops it was practically guilt-free.
Now I don't want you to think I've gone entirely health crazy, the main event were the Photon Torpedos or meatball subs. Homemade meatballs baked and then smothered in marinara sauce in a crockpot. I wish I'd gotten a picture of one of the subs made, they certainly were delicious.
Wait what's that in the corner of the photo? My dad mixed up a big batch of Romulan Ale (a distinctly blue Star Trek beverage). From the tiny sip I had, it seemed pretty tasty. I'm not sure what the amounts were, but I know the mix was Mountain Dew Voltage, Sprite, and Pineapple Parrot Bay. We served it in champagne flutes to give it a more alien look.
Messy slices are just as delicious.
My first poached egg (ever)
In a pan, fry up the ham.
Then break the egg into a cup or small bowl. (To prevent breaking the yolk or getting shells everywhere).
Slowly pour the egg into the sauce pan and let it sit undisturbed. Don't worry it a little bit of the white breaks off and clouds the water a little.
You can pour the other egg in now or wait and poach it after. The egg should take 3-5 minutes.
When you think it's done, remove it with a slotted spoon and poke the egg white, if it's firm the egg should be done. You don't want to leave the egg in too long because you want a nice soft runny yolk. Once the egg is done let it drain for a moment on a paper towel before assembling everything.
English muffins first of course.
Then spinach, if you're using it. I like to put it under the ham so the heat wilts it a little.
Ham next.
Then a lovely poached egg.
Drizzle on a nice helping of that rich velvety hollandaise.
Time to enjoy!
Slowly drizzle in the melted butter while the blender is on a low speed until the butter is incorporated.
