Name: Eggs Benedict
Yield: Serves 2
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 6 tbsp white wine vinegar, reduced by two-thirds in a small saucepan with a slice of onion, a bayleaf, a few peppercorns and a couple of crushed parsley stalks (to release their flavour); 4 large egg yolks; 4 large eggs, poached; 2 muffins, split and toasted at the last moment – toasted too soon, the muffins turn; 4 slices of the best ham; 8 oz/225 g butter, cut in bits

Preparation info

Serves
2

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

The Claire Macdonald Cookbook

By Claire Macdonald

Published 1997

About

I first ate this most delectable of all brunch food on a far too brief visit to New Orleans what seems – and is – an age ago, in 1967. As with everything you cook, the very best ingredients make the difference between an ordinary result and a superlative one. I like to use unsmoked roast (or boiled) ham, trimmed of all fat. There is no denying that Eggs Benedict is a last-minute concoction, and there just can’t be short cuts. This makes it a special brunch for 2–4 people but it isn’t practi