Eggs in a Basket

I've been playing with focaccia for the past few weeks. And when I say playing, I do mean playing. I have made it every week for the past month, testing different recipes and different combinations of flours. Including a container that contained a mixture of what might have been originally used for pasta (00 flour and semolina, at the least) or for an earlier batch of focaccia (all-purpose flour, white whole wheat flour, salt and yeast). It seemed safer to throw it in the next focaccia mix than to risk adding yeast to my pasta.

I have not yet found the perfect recipe, but I have been enjoying all of the results so far. Unlike my whole wheat bread, which takes pretty much all day to make, if I get started early enough I can make this in the evening after work, which makes it pretty darned convenient.

But it makes a lot, and I always have a few pieces left over at the end of the week that have gone beyond stale. It occurred to me that making eggs in a basket would be a good way to freshen them up.

And it was. Each rectangle of bread is the perfect size to frame an egg. You do have to be careful not to overcook it, though. If the heat is too high the bottom of the egg and the yolk will cook long before the top has set. It took a few tries for me to get it right, but as with the focaccia experiments, I sure enjoyed eating all of the mistakes.

EGGS IN A BASKET1 Tbsp butter
2 pieces of focaccia, roughly 3 by 4 inches
2 large eggs
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

With a sharp paring knife, cut a small rectangle in each piece of focaccia, leaving about a half-inch frame.

Heat the butter over medium heat in a 10-inch non-stick skillet. Place the focaccia pieces top-side down in the skillet and cook until just golden, about 3 minutes. Turn the pieces over and reduce the heat to low. Crack an egg into each frame, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook until the tops of the eggs have set, anywhere from 3 to 5 minutes.

05/27/2012