Eggs Benedict a la Foxy

Since school started up, I haven't had as much time for cooking as I might like. I've managed to do a few things (like an awesome BBQ chicken made with a homemade peach barbecue sauce), but one of the best times for me to get some cooking in is Saturday mornings when I wake up. (Sleeping in makes this meal "brunch" for me.) I love to eat breakfast, but I rarely have time to make it during the week... so Saturday is the BEST time to get the culinary juices flowing on the most important meal of the day!

NOTE: This is hardly a 'traditional' eggs benedict, but is just my own twist on a classic. To make a traditional benedict, replace two slices of bread with an English muffin and every couple of slices of bacon with Canadian bacon. However, I rarely have those ingredients on-hand, so I came up with this. Enjoy!

Eggs Benedict ala Foxy

Eggs Benedict
Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 1 tbsp. wine vinegar (I like the flavor of red wine.)
• kosher salt
• 4-8 strips of thick bacon
• 4 slices of wheat bread
• Holladaise Sauce (recipe below)
  
• parsley (for garnish)

Directions:

1. Put 2-3 inches of water in a large non-stick pot. Salt and bring the water to a simmer over medium heat. Once simmering, add vinegar to the water.
2. While waiting for your water to simmer, put your bacon in a nonstick skillet and cook until done. You'll want one or two pieces of bacon per piece of toast, so cook as many as it takes. (I go 'two-per', so I'd cook eight.)
   
3. Crack eggs into individual cups and gently lower them one at a time into the simmering water. Make sure you don't overcrowd the eggs in your pot!
4. Poach eggs in simmering water for 2-4 minutes until they reach your desired level of done-ness. (I like runny yolks, so I usually go 2-2.5 minutes.)
5. While eggs are poaching, pop your bread into the toaster and get it toasted to desired toasted-ness.
   
6. Remove eggs from the poach bath with a slotted spoon and place them on a texture-less rag or some paper towel in order to drain them.
7. Remove bacon from pan and drain the grease off on some paper towels. (Use different paper towels than the ones you drained the eggs on.)
8. Put two pieces of toast down on a plate. Put down one or two strips of bacon on each slice, then top with a poached egg. Drizzle the hollandaise over the whole thing and garnish with fresh-cracked pepper and some fresh parsley (if you want).
   

Hollandaise Sauce (recipe borrowed from Tyler Florence)
Ingredients:

• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tsp. dry mustard (I like to use Colman's)
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• 2 tbsp. water
• 1 c. butter, melted
• lemon juice
• salt & pepper to taste
  

Directions:

1. Combine yolks, mustard, cayenne, and water in the blender. Then, with the blender still running, slowly add the melted butter until completely combined.
2. Turn blender off, then taste and season with salt, pepper, and lemon juice as needed.
3. Keep warm while you poach your eggs. (I put it in a saucepan under low heat until the elements need to be brought together.)

Serves: 2 (or four if part of a breakfast smorgasbord)
Serving suggestions: This dish is certainly not a 'light' breakfast by any stretch of the imagination. A lot of the richness of this dish can be cut by serving it with some fresh fruit (in the summer, fresh peaches, melon, and berries work well; in the fall, apples, bananas, and grapes would be a good decision). Also, serving with orange juice is another great way to cut through the richness. If you're having this for brunch, you might replace the orange juice with a mimosa (if you're into that kinda thing).