Siegel - The totally eggs cookbook

Copyright 1997 by Helene Siegel.

Illustrations copyright 1997 by Carolyn Vibbert.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing.

The Totally Eggs Cookbook is produced by becker&mayer!, Ltd.

Interior illustrations: Carolyn Vibbert

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Siegel, Helene.

The Totally Eggs Cookbook / by Helene Siegel.

p. cm.

ISBN 0-89087-833-1

eBook ISBN: 978-0-8041-5312-6

1. Cookery (Eggs) I. Title.

TX745.S54 1997

641.675dc21

97-20154

Celestial Arts Publishing

P.O. Box 7123

Berkeley, CA 94707

Look for all 24 Totally cookbooks at your local store!

v3.1

F OR A NDREW , WHO IS ALWAYS READY TO EAT AN EGG .

I have never given up on the egg. How could I?

They are as indispensable to good cooking as salt and pepper. Without eggs in the kitchen, puddings and flans would flounder; the glorious French sauces like mayonnaise and hollandaise would vanish; rich, silky ice creams would give way to thin ice milks and sorbets; cakes and tortes would be pale imitations of themselves; and the souffl would cease to rise.

And that is just scratching the surface.

Eggs also play a very special role in our ability to care for ourselves and feed others. They are always available at a low price at the supermarket, and they keep in the refrigerator for weeks. Even a child (or a confirmed noncook) can be taught to scramble or boil an egg if the cook is not at home. The mild richness and high nutritional value of eggs make them ideal for those recuperating from illness or childbirth, and for those who simply want something comforting to eatquickly.

Now that the dust is settling on the great egg and cholesterol scare of the last twenty years, opinions about the consumption of eggs seem to be finding a more sensible middle ground. Eggs are now sanctioned by the American Heart Association, for those without already elevated blood cholesterol levels, at the rate of about four a week.

So dig in. The eggs are lovely.

Where is it written in stone that we always have to be served two eggs cooked the same way?

from The Breakfast Book by Marion Cunningham

BREAKFAST BABIES

How you like your morning eggs is definitely a personal matter, so take this recipe with a grain of salt. (For the slow-cooked French method, see , Scrambled Eggs and Caviar.)

2 eggs

2 tablespoons milk

salt and freshly ground pepper

2 or 3 dashes Tabasco

2 teaspoons butter

cup grated cheddar cheese or 1 ounce cream cheese

In a bowl, beat together eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and Tabasco with a fork.

Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Pour in the eggs, swirl the pan, reduce heat to medium, and cookflipping, turning, and otherwise scramblinguntil nearly done. Sprinkle in grated cheese or crumbled cream cheese, scramble once or twice to melt, and serve.

S ERVES 1

There is always a best way of doing everything, if it be to boil an egg.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

To me soft-boiling is perfect for tender tummies or on the day after an indulgent evening. If you own an eggcup, so much the better!

eggs

water

salt and freshly ground pepper

sliced bread for toasting

butter

Place refrigerated eggs in saucepan and cover generously with cold water. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce to a simmer and cook 2 to 4 minutes to taste. Remove with slotted spoon. Serve in eggcup, or crack and spoon into serving bowls. Serve with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile toast bread, and spread with butter. Cut into -inch-wide strips or fingers for dipping into yolks.

Conceptually cute foods such as this have a place in everyones diet. Why else do we eat, but to feel good?

1 bread slice

1 tablespoon butter

1 egg

salt and freshly ground pepper

Lightly toast the bread. With a 2-inch-round cookie cutter or small drinking glass, cut out a hole in the center.

Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Add the bread to the pan. Crack the egg, and empty into hole, with yolk in center and white overflowing bread. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until egg is done to taste, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer with spatula to plate, and serve with salt and pepper.

S ERVES 1

Oven-baked single servings, also known as en cocotte or shirred, are an excellent choice for serving eggs to a group.

olive oil for coating

4 teaspoons chopped fresh basil

4 eggs

8 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese

freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly coat four 4-ounce ramekins with olive oil, and place in roasting pan. Bring a pot of water to a boil.

Sprinkle basil on the bottom of each ramekin. Crack one egg at a time, and place each in a cup over the basil. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of Parmesan over each. Pour hot water into pan until it rises halfway up sides of ramekins.

Bake about 10 minutes, until yolks are just set. Sprinkle with pepper, and serve with crusty Italian bread.

S ERVES 4

Freshness of Eggs

Before modern refrigeration and distribution, an uncooked egg was always suspect of being past its prime. Nowadays, with proper refrigeration, eggs can keep as long as three weeks once you bring them home. One test for freshness is that an egg should feel heavy in the hand. If you crack it open on a plate, the yolk should stand up high in the center and the whites should form a neat circle and not be too runny. Another method for testing freshness is to place an uncracked egg in a bowl of water: An egg that floats is too olda sinker is fresh.

Here is what I make when my son has a craving for breakfast at a certain drive-through hamburger stand. Use a biscuit or cookie cutter to cut the ham, and substitute poached or fried eggs as you choose.

1 English muffin

butter for coating

cheddar cheese slices

1 tablespoon butter

1 3-inch round, -inch-thick slice honey-cured ham