Eggs Benedict with Hollandaise Sauce Recipe

The beloved spousal unit takes particular delight in eggs benedict and so I decided to try my hand at that after many, many years. Years ago, I was a line cook at fine dining restaraunt. I worked with actual trained chefs, so I picked up quite a bit and still love cooking.

Here's how I made the eggs benedict. I began by bring water to a boil in a deep pan and then put salt and lemon juice in it. (Next time, I think I'll add vinegar--saw that on the Food network). I used ham instead of canadian bacon, on the Uncle Thomas english muffin. Break open the eggs into the boiling water and remove at appropriate consistency.

Now the Hollandaise sauce is the tricky part. I had to make these every morning at the restaraunt I worked at. A quick note: at a previous family style restaraunt I worked at, we used cheese sauce for eggs benedict. Anyway, making Hollandaise sauce is tricky because everything can go very well but the hard part is at the end and that's when you find out if it holds together or falls apart.

Melt about a cup of butter. Skim off the froth and pour out into a bowl, leaving the chunky thick stuff at the bottom.

Bring a pan of water to boil and then simmer. Isolate egg yolks in a metal bowl: I use 4-6. Add a couple tablespoons of cold water and stir and whip until eggs are frothy and light. Then hold over simmering water and begin to stir. You have to be careful not to let the eggs cook and you kind'a have to stir like crazy for a few minutes until it thickens. At this point you can add in lemon juice to taste and I like to put in hot sauce for that extra flavor kick.

Now, this is the very tricky part. You now have to add the hot melted butter. But if it is not done delicately, the sauces breaks up and you have crap. Pull the butter close to you and add slowly to eggs (I use a laddle). Keep stirring and keep the sauce over the heated water. Don't add too much butter at once. Keep adding the butter until you are satisfied with consistency and taste. Some people add white wine to the sauce, but again do it gently. If you get to this point, then you are all set. You have your sauce.

Since, I was going from memory, I had a couple of false starts so I consulted this food network eggs benedict recipe which juggled my memory. I wanted to take a picture, but it would have been rude to delay consumption any further. Suffice to say, you want me making your eggs benedict. (I've been told that my humility is my most saintly attribute.)