William Rubel, author of The Magic of Fire, told me that he roasts eggs in the oven for several hours, achieving the same delicious results as if he'd roasted them all night buried in hot ash in the fireplace. The egg shells and whites turn golden, while the yolks remain creamy.

“I have been known to use the oven when I need a dozen golden eggs for a party,” he told me. “To more closely mimic the uneven but very beautiful colors you get baking eggs in the fireplace, I stagger the oven removal times, which makes a more beautiful presentation than oven-roasted eggs all removed at the same moment. When roasting eggs in the oven, I can generally tell when they begin to turn deeply golden by the tiny drops of blackened albumen on the outside of the shell, but, of course, you can always take an egg out, run it under cold water, and crack it open to see the color for yourself”

Rubel tells me he likes to serve them with a strongly flavored anchovy vinaigrette made with salt-packed anchovies.