"God, Check the old guy"

I've gotten into a really bad habit lately.

I like eggs Benedict . . . so it is breakfast

Every Saturday morning

Literally without fail when I wake up on a Saturday and realize that we have both eggs and asparagus (or in this case turkey and stuffing left over from yesterday) I just have to have it.  I first tried it when my sponsor mum in Colorado made and - OMG - it is literally the most delightful thing I have ever tried - or mastered.

It's pretty simple really.  I got the recipe for the Holandaise sauce from James Peterson's Sauces cookbook that I randomly acquired off of Amazon probably a year ago because the guy I was dating at the time had a real taste for good food - and a good sauce can easily dress up almost anything. So far I've used it for . . . Holandaise sauce.  It's huge, a text book really - but it is FULL of crazy awesome ideas. I'm just stuck on this one for right now.

As far as poaching the eggs, well that's been a little more of an adventure.  I forgot at first that adding salt to the water is important - raises the boiling point so the water is hotter without movement when you add the eggs - and I never really got around to researching the real process - but I think we've got a pretty good system going.

So here it is, Eggs Benedict with homemade Holandaise Sauce over Asparagus (because that's my favorite way to have it)

Holandaise sauce (recipe for 2-4 servings depending on how much you like it)

2 egg yoks (separated)
2 Tablespoons water

- Place in a small saucepan and whisk together until tripled in volume
- Place over medium low heat and whisk continuously until you can see the bottom of the pan on most passes - be very careful not to overheat or to leave standing on the heat as the eggs will cook too quickly and curdle rather than remaining smooth and saucy.

4 Tablespoons clarified butter, melted (I've never gone to the effort to clarify it and haven't had any problems so far)

Lemon juice to taste (enough to add a light, subtle tanginess)

Set aside; don't leave over heat unattended

I've used an electric whisk on a number of occasions out of sheer laziness, but unless it has a relatively low setting, I find that the egg yolks take on a less desirable consistency than when done by hand.


Poaching eggs:

Heat a pot of salted water to just below boiling; should be as hot as you can get it without the motion of boiling water; I usually either place the temperature just above medium when I am making a large number of eggs, otherwise bringing the water to the boil and then removing it from the heat until it is motionless works as well.

Crack eggs into the water, holding them as close to the surface before dropping them in as possible.  This will prevent them from spreading out significantly before they are slightly cooked.  Once the eggs will hold their shape they can go back on the stove to finish cooking.  In my experience, 4 minutes yields a very runny though golden yolk.  6 minutes is my preference so that all of the white is cooked and the yolk, though still runny is slightly thickened.


The Asparagus bed

Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Cut asparagus to desired lengths and coat with olive oil.  Lay flat in an oven safe dish and sprinkle with lemon pepper seasoning and about a tablespoon of lemon juice.  Cook uncovered until they offer only slight resistance to a fork (or desired tenderness).

Serve on classy plates with classy accouterments and feel super fancy.

Parsley and Parmesan cheese are usually the perfect addition.