Poached Eggs & Hollandaise sauce

SO, today I was inspired to try something that I have never made before. I only had 5 eggs in the house, so I knew I had to make the best of it. I also have a child that is home sick, and she thought it sounded pretty good too. So, into the kitchen I went, armed with a little knowledge and a big thirst for learning. And learn I did!! My first order of business was to make the hollandaise sauce. This required 2 egg yolks, so I was down to 3 eggs for poaching, which made me nervous! What if I goofed and was left with one egg?? Well, the sauce came together beautifully...one thing I did discover however, was that once the sauce is together, remove it from the heat! I did not do this, and what happened was that the sauce starts to separate again. It still tasted wonderful, but did not look as pretty as it should have. Now it was down to poaching the eggs. You do not want to boil the water, you want it to simmer. I used a large skillet type pan (I despise non-stick cookware, so I use stainless) in which to simmer the water. Here is a tip that helps immensely....put about a tablespoon of vinegar in the water when it simmers. This will help your egg whites to coagulate and cover the yolk more easily. Also, it helps to crack your egg into a tiny bowl and then slip the egg into the water instead of plopping the egg directly into the pan. So, the moment of truth was here....my water was simmering with the vinegar, and my egg was cracked into the little bowl. I gently slipped it into the water and waited with great anticipation for the end result. I did help the egg whites a little, but not as much as I thought I would have to....they folded themselves onto the egg yolk in a fine fashion! While the eggs were cooking, I toasted a couple english muffins (purchased at the health food store to avoid the partially hydrogenated oils that I avoid like the plague). Once the eggs were done, I dried them a little on a towel, placed them on the english muffin and topped it with the lovely hollandaise sauce. Then it was time for the moment of truth....the taste test. My daughter & I sat down at the table, and simultaneously took our first bites. WOW......a taste explosion. Who knew that butter, eggs and wheat english muffins could taste SO good!!?? I think the kids will be dining on poached eggs with hollandaise sauce on lots of mornings to come!
Below is the recipe for hollandaise sauce....good luck!!

Hollandaise Sauce

2 TB white wine vinegar (I used rice vinegar)
1 TB water
2 egg yolks
4 oz unsalted butter
lemon juice
salt & pepper

Pour water and vinegar into a small pan and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes, or until reduced by half. Remove from heat and cool.
Put egg yolks in a heat proof bowl and beat in the cooled vinegar water. Set over a pan of gently simmering water. Cook, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon, until mixture thickens and coats the back of the spoon.
Keeping the water simmering, add butter, a piece at a time, until the sauce is thick. Add a bit of lemon juice if you think it is too thick. Season to taste with salt & pepper. Remove from heat if you are not using immediately.


Poached Eggs Perfecto

There is really no recipe for this, just some tips. Add some vinegar to the simmering water to help coagulate your egg whites. Use a large skillet type pan. Crack your egg into a small bowl and then slip the egg into the water instead of cracking and plopping the egg directly into the water. Cover and simmer for a few minutes. Your yolk will be harder the longer you cook the eggs, so this part is personal preference. Bon Appetit!!