French Toast Eggs Benedict – National Egg Week

I love eggs. Such a versatile ingredient. If you have eggs at home then you have a basic meal ready to go at any time. be it an omelette or scrambled eggs or even the simple boiled egg. Perhaps though you like something a little fancier or getting a bit experimental. Then you need my French Toast Eggs Benedict.  For British Egg week I was asked to retreat one of Shay Cooper’s breakfast recipe for The Goring hotel and put my own twist on it. Never neglecting an opportunity to make french toast I knew immediately that would be my twist.

Eggs are a great way to add some extra protein to your meals but did you know all of the extra goodness you get from an egg? Well they are naturally rich in vitamin D, B2 (riboflavin), vitamin B12, iodine, selenium and other essential dietary vitamins and minerals. Not bad right? The high protein makes them great for pre or post workout too.

For British Egg Week 2017 (9– 15 October) British Lion eggs have teamed up with The Goring Hotel to share six of its famous breakfast recipes. The hotel’s Michelin-starred Executive Chef, Shay Cooper, is also providing tips and tricks on how to make the perfect luxurious hotel breakfast at home.

Independent research has revealed that Brits are willing to spend 30% longer preparing breakfast at the weekend than they are during the week. The survey also revealed that the Full English is the nation’s favourite breakfast, with 42% of people saying they always order it when eating out. Also ranking within the top three egg dishes to eat at restaurants were Eggs Benedict and scrambled eggs and smoked salmon.

As well as sharing the six luxurious recipes from Shay Cooper, British Lion eggs are unscrambling Shay’s breakfast classics with simpler versions for busy weekday mornings. Bringing a little bit of luxury to breakfast every day and showing that one or two ingredients can make all the difference when it comes to making delicious breakfasts at home.

Shay Cooper, says: “From our breakfast menu, the egg dishes are certainly the most popular, with the full English being a clear favourite. The Dining Room at The Goring celebrates the best in British food and the breakfast menu is no exception. Our guests expect the highest standards of cooking, but it is also possible to try and recreate these dishes at home to celebrate the most important meal of the day.”
“What better time to celebrate the versatility of eggs than British Egg Week. The great British breakfast would be lost without eggs.”

As well as using french toast I decided to use prosciutto instead of bacon. Now this is not because I dislike bacon..because let me tell you I really LOVE bacon but I cook with it so often and I fancied a change. I also tried making my french toast in a waffle maker, out of curiosity more than anything else. It was a little difficult to remove from the waffle maker but other than it was pretty tasty and I liked how the yolk slipped into the grooves of the toast.

French Toast Eggs Benedict

You will need:
3 large British Lion eggs
2 slices of slightly stale white bread
2 slices of prosciutto or any good quality ham
40ml milk

For the sauce

150g unsalted butter
2 large British Lion egg yolks
100ml white wine vinegar reduced to 25ml

Fill a large deep pan with water and a splash of vinegar and bring to a rapid boil.Crack two of your eggs into individual small bowls. When the water comes to a boil, add in the eggs one at a time, letting them sink down to the bottom of the pan, they should form a teardrop shape. Turn the pan down to a simmer and cook the eggs for three minutes for a runny yolk or five minutes for a harder yolk. Remove each egg with a slotted spoon and drain on a kitchen towel.

Too lazy to poach eggs properly? Me too a lot of the time, so I often line a wine glass with clingfilm, rub it with a little oil and crack an egg into it. Tie the top of the clingfilm to form a small pouch and pop into boiling water, for 3 minutes for a perfectly instagram story worthy yolk.

To make the hollandaise, put the butter into a microwaveable container and heat in the microwave until the solids separate from the fat and the butter is clarified, this should take around 1 minute.
Take the two egg yolks and put them in a round bottomed bowl along with the vinegar reduction and place over a pan of simmering water, whisking the eggs continuously until they begin to become thick and aerated.
Once the eggs are light, fluffy and stable enough to hold a figure of eight pattern when stirred with a spoon, they will be ready (this is known as ribbon stage).
Slowly drizzle the clarified butter into the egg yolk mix to emulsify, take care at this stage, if you go too fast the mixture will split.

For your french toast, beat your eggs and milk together with a little salt and pepper. Now get a large frying pan over a high heat and place a dab of butter and oil in the centre. Whilst your pan is heating lightly soak your bread in the egg/milk mixture before carefully placing in the pan. Cook on both sides until bronzed.

All that is left is to assemble your dish. You could do this anyway you choose but I like the ham on top of the bread topped with the eggs and finally the sauce with a sprinkle of black pepper. Enjoy.

Is there anything more beautiful in the morning than a perfectly poached egg?

For a cheats version of Eggs Benedict including a Cheats Hollandaise check this out.

What kind of egg dishes do you like to create? As well as the above I love super creamy scrambled eggs, eggs cracked and cooked in chopped tomatoes and chilli and so many more.

* This post was commissioned by British Lion Eggs and I was compensated for my time in creating it.