An Ode to My Father

As a child (and still occasionally when I visit), my father made/makes me poached eggs on buttered toast.

This is my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE home cooked breakfast!!

The Original Dad Style

Bring a large pot of water to rolling boil

Crack eggs straight in*

Gently remove from water with slotted spoon

Pile on buttered toast slices

Sprinkle with salt-n-pepper

*Plan to do a few extras in case the yolks break or some get over cooked.

*

*

I LOVE poached eggs, but not very good at making them. Occasionally trying to recreate my Dad's breakfast leaves much to desire...it never quite comes out as good as his!

*

One summer as a hostess, I was informed by a wise Chef of the Shelburne Farms breakfast crew that the addition of vinegar would help keep the egg together. I trusted him very much since I watched him crank through the busy mornings producing delicious dish after delicious dish...including their killer eggs benedict.

*

In case you have never had the privilege of breakfast at the breathtaking Shelburne Farms Inn let me tell you about this work of art.

*

The stack consists of a toasted VT Bread English Muffin, sliced Miskell Tomato (a very special tomato, so good words cannot explain their deliciousness), a perfectly poached egg, and buttery hollandaise decadence. Simply put, it's killer!!

*

The guy knew what he was doing, so I've tried adding vinegar to the rolling pot of water. No matter how little I put in, I could always taste the pungent vinegar flavor in the eggs...so that won't work.

*

Another attempt for the perfectly poached egg at home was with those silicon egg poaching basket things. Yeah, nothing special there either!

*

NOW I give you the newly discovered 4-Minute Egg...

This cooking method is so easy, clean and delicious!

Bring a saucepan of water to a rolling boil.

Gently place un-cracked eggs into water (works well to use a slotted spoon)

Allow eggs to cook for 4 minutes.

Transfer eggs (with slotted spoon) into a bowl.

Run cold water briefly over egg to cool enough for handling.

Tap egg with a knife and carefully remove the shell.

Place eggs on buttered toast and sprinkle with salt-n-pepper.

The egg whites are a bit firm, which is not so bad, and the middle is the perfect runny saucy loveliness. Oh yeah, and for this particular dish the bread is my leftover New Year's Eve baguette!

Usually reserved for my weekend mornings, this is an event about relaxation and reminiscing...the flavors remind me of childhood. While I am pretty sure it will never taste the same as when my Dad makes it for me...this is a suitable substitution.

This 4 minute egg dish is for you Dad!!