Italian Eggs Benedict With Pesto Hollandaise Recipes

ITALIAN STYLE EGGS BENEDICT

Steps:

• Combine yolks and juice in a heatproof bowl; set over a pot of simmering water. Rapidly whisk until the yolks are light, thickened with ribbons running through them, and feel quite warm (this will take a few minutes; do not overcook or yolks will scramble). Remove bowl from the heat and set on dampened tea towel so it does not move around. Now very, very slowly dribble and whisk in the butter. Now mix in the pesto. Cover this hollandaise sauce and set aside until needed. You should have about 1 cup of sauce. Fill a very large and wide pot 2/3 full with water. Add the vinegar and bring to a simmer. As the water comes to temperature, set an oven rack 6" underneath your broiler. Preheat broiler to high. Set bread on a baking sheet and brush the top of each slice with olive oil. Now sprinkle each slice with Parmesan cheese. Broil bread until lightly toasted, 1 to 2 minutes, and then remove from the oven. Turn oven temperature to 200˚F. Now top each bread slice with 2 slices tomato and 1 slice of prosciutto. Set the top bread in the oven to warm. When simmering, swirl the water and then crack eggs into it. Poach eggs to the desired doneness (about 3 minutes for soft poached). Set 2 slices of bread on each of 4 plates. Now top each piece of bread with some of the arugula. Lift eggs out of the water, drain well, and set one on each piece of bread. Top with hollandaise sauce and serve, garnishing each plate with a few basil leaves, if desired. Recipe Options: If time is short cheat and use packaged hollandaise sauce mix in this recipe. Instead of proscuitto, top each bread slices with 2 thin slices of pancetta, that you've fried until crispy. You can buy pancetta, a cured Italian-style of bacon that's not smoked, in our Deli Department showcase.

EGGS BENEDICT AND EASY HOLLANDAISE SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Break each egg into an individual small bowl and set aside. Fill a large (12-inch) saute pan about half full with water and bring to a boil. Carefully slide each egg into a separate corner of the pan and simmer for exactly 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the eggs to sit in the water for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, place the slices of prosciutto on a sheet pan and roast for 5 minutes. Set aside.
• Place both halves of each toasted muffin on a dinner plate and, using a slotted spoon, slide a poached egg onto each half. Drizzle hollandaise sauce over the poached eggs and garnish with chives. Serve with a slice of prosciutto.
• Place the egg yolks, lemon juice, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper in the jar of a blender and process on low for 15 seconds. Melt the butter in a small saucepan until it is sizzling hot. Remove the small clear insert in the top of the blender. With the blender on low, slowly add the hot butter to the egg and lemon mixture and blend for 30 seconds, until the sauce is very thick. Use immediately.
• "Barefoot Contessa Foolproof" by Ina Garten © Clarkson Potter 2012. Provided courtesy of Ina Garten. All rights reserved.

EGGS BENEDICT WITH HOMEMADE HOLLANDAISE

Steps:

• For hollandaise sauce, in top of a double boiler or a metal bowl over simmering water, whisk egg yolks, water and lemon juice until blended; cook until mixture is just thick enough to coat a metal spoon and temperature reaches 160°, whisking constantly. Remove from heat. Very slowly drizzle in warm melted butter, whisking constantly. Whisk in pepper. Transfer to a small bowl if necessary. Place bowl in a larger bowl of warm water. Keep warm, stirring occasionally, until ready to serve, up to 30 minutes., Place 2-3 in. of water in a large saucepan or skillet with high sides. Bring to a boil; adjust heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Break 1 egg into a small bowl; holding bowl close to surface of water, slip egg into water. Repeat with 3 more eggs. , Cook, uncovered, 2-4 minutes or until whites are completely set and yolks begin to thicken but are not hard. Using a slotted spoon, lift eggs out of water. Repeat with remaining 4 eggs., Top each muffin half with a slice of bacon, a poached egg and 2 tablespoons sauce; sprinkle with paprika. Serve immediately.

ITALIAN STYLE EGGS BENEDICT

Steps:

• Preheat the broiler on HIGH. Put an inch of water in a skillet, cover with a lid and put it on to boil. (keep an eye on the water).
• Take the English muffin, split it and put it in the toaster on a low setting, just to dry out the bread a little.
• In a cast iron or nonstick skillet, sauté the onion, garlic and tomato with salt and pepper, just until the onion has softened and you can smell the garlic. (2-3 minutes) Add the thyme, rosemary and parsley stir it around. Remove the mixture from the pan to a plate, divide the mixture into fourths for later on.
• Add the vinegar and salt to the pan of boiling water to poach the eggs.
• Gently slid the eggs out of their individual cups into the boiling water and cook through. I like my yokes nice and runny, if you like them this way, undercook them slightly, since everything is being trnsfered to the broiler later on.
• Put another teaspoon or so of olive oil into the skillet where you sautéed the bruschetta mixture. Take the English muffin toasts out of the toaster and place them in the oiled skillet. (Make sure that the heat under the skillet is at medium low.).
• Place the ham slices next to one another on the English muffin, two slices of ham per toast.
• Take the poached eggs out of the water and place one egg on top of each toast.
• Spoon half the bruschetta topping on top of each egg.
• Top each toast with a slice of mozzarella.
• Place the pan under the broiler to melt the cheese.
• Once the cheese has melted, spoon the remaining bruschetta topping onto the mozzarella, TURN OFF THE BROILER, put the pan back in the oven just until everything is warmed through.
• Serve hot (meaning serve it immediately) and enjoy!