herbed-baked eggs

Oh, people.  I fear I may be boring you with my droning on and on about the joy that is cooking yet another successful recipe from the indelible Barefoot Contessa.  She writes exceptional recipes that inspire and require little to no tweaking to make perfect.  If you cook with any regularity I know you understand what a gem this makes her.

Yesterday, on the most beautiful day in San Francisco, Ryan and I kicked off in the eating season with a Thanksgiving potluck in Golden Gate park.  Under a periwinkle blue sky we drove across the Bay Bridge with a clear view of the Golden Gate and made our way to the wafts of one of the three fried turkeys on the picnic potluck menu.  I sampled a memorable and unusual cranberry salsa, a Peroni or two, and feasted on an unbelievable spread of turkey, side dishes, fixings and bourbon pumpkin pie.  Not to be undone, we were invited to a soup-off competition that evening that included posole, butternut squash soup, lamb borsht and cream of asparagus soup with a cashew butter swirl — to name a few.  Needless to say, I went to bed last night impressed and embarrassingly full.

Around 3:00 this afternoon my stomach was audibly grumbling as it demanded the fine treatment my friends’ food had given it the day before.  The cupboard and refrigerator shelves were noticeably bare but after watching Ina make an entire Thanksgiving meal in 30-minutes on her show I recalled one of her recipes I used to make over and over.  Baked eggs feel fancy but are are cheap, filling and require only pantry staples and 10 minutes to prepare.  Today I only needed one serving, but these can be made up to six portions at a time if you have a standard broiler — perfect for breakfast, brunch or a light lunch.

herbed-baked eggs
adapted from Barefoot in Paris
yields 4 servings

If you only need one serving, broiling in the toaster oven is the perfect cooking vessel.

1/2t minced fresh garlic
1/2t minced fresh thyme leaves
1/2t minced fresh rosemary
2T minced fresh parsley
2T freshly grated Parmesan cheese
12 extra-large eggs
1/4c heavy cream
2T unsalted butter
Kosher salt
black pepper
toasted french bread

Move the oven rack 6-inches from the broiler element. Preheat the broiler.

In a small bowl, combine the garlic, thyme, rosemary, parsley, and Parmesan cheese. Crack eggs 3 at a time into 4 small bowls taking care not to break the yolks (you won’t be cooking in these bowls, but it is important that you use them so everything is ready in advance).

On a baking sheet, place 4 individual gratin dishes and add 1T cream and 1/2T butter to each. Place under the broiler for about 5 minutes until hot and bubbly. Then, pour the eggs into the gratin dish, repeating four times. Sprinkle each with the herb mixture and season with salt and pepper. Put back under the broiler for 5-6 minutes until the whites are set and the yolks are still soft. Remove the eggs from the oven, toast the bread and let the eggs set up for about a minute before serving.