The other day, my brother and I were talking about fish sandwiches. (Weird opening sentence, I know.) He informed me that the café where he works serves a sandwich called the Son of Salmon, to which I replied, “. . . wait, what?!” I spent the next hour brainstorming sandwich names for my future food cart, Killer Sandwiches. The ToasTed Bundy. The Jarls Manson. (Should I be concerned by how much this amuses me?) Anyway, I tried to come up with a similarly-themed name for this sandwich, because “egg in the basket” doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue. And also because I need to counterbalance the lameness I’ve created by doing two Valentine’s Day posts in a row. Alas, I’ve got nothing. (Only so much time can be spent pondering serial killer-themed names before it becomes undeniably disturbing.) So if anyone has suggestions, I’m open to them! Until then, Egg in the Basket it is.
Traditionally, the way to make this is to assemble the sandwich, cut out the center, then crack an egg into the middle once you begin grilling. This leads to a somewhat indiscernible fried egg blob in the middle of the sandwich (and, if you’re not careful, a broken egg yolk). My solution was to grill the sandwich on one side, then cut out the center, flip the sandwich, add the egg, and cook it sunny side up. This method, however, comes with its own set of problems. The main issue: too much egg white. For me, the excess white meant having to cook the egg for a long time, and resulted in a very burnt sandwich bottom. To solve this, I would suggest separating the white from the yolk, adding just enough to cover the surface area of the hole, then adding the yolk. This should yield a properly-cooked egg and an unburnt sandwich. Alternatively, if you use a cookie cutter to cut out the center, you could grill the sandwich normally, cut out the middle, then place the cookie cutter in the pan, crack the egg inside it, and place it in the center of the sandwich when it’s finished. The egg won’t be one with the sandwich, but it will save you from burnt sandwich/uncooked egg anxieties.
Valentine’s Day Egg in the Basket
The ingredients are pretty self-explanatory and customizable, so I’m not going to bother listing them. I made mine with cheddar and fig jam, and you can throw in whatever you (or, more accurately, the lucky recipient) would like. I was definitely jonesing for some ham with this. You can’t go wrong with ham, egg, and cheese!
Assemble your sandwich, then butter one side of the bread. Separate the egg white and yolk into two bowls. Place the sandwich, buttered-side-down, in a pan over medium heat and grill until golden brown, then remove.
Butter the uncooked side of the sandwich. Using a cookie cutter or a sharp knife, cut out the center. Lower the heat slightly, then return both pieces of the sandwich to the pan, uncooked-side-down. Add just enough egg white to fill the bottom of the empty sandwich center, then carefully slip the egg yolk into the center.
Cover the pan (this will help the egg cook quicker and melt the cheese) and let everything cook for a couple minutes, checking regularly after one minute to make sure nothing is burning. Once the egg appears to be cooked, immediately remove the sandwich and serve!
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I just happened upon your blog from Tasteologie! Love this idea!! And such a perfect valentines treat!! :)
Thank you, Katie!
I love this idea! I think I might surprise the hubby with this for breakfast on Valentine’s Day (then it’ll make it look like I did something for him).
Hehe! I know, right? I made this for the boyfriend last year, and he was delighted. Easiest Valentine’s Day ever. :)
I love this! What a simple, sweet breakfast idea for Valentine’s Day.
Thanks, Kare!
If you’re going with the serial killer theme, you could borrow from Silence of the Lambs and call it “It Puts the Egg in the Basket.”
Oh my god. I love it! Bwahaha!
I always called it eggs in a frame! Love the cute heart shape!
I actually looked up this dish on wikipedia because I was curious about its origins, and I was shocked by how many different names there are for it!
Great photos! :) My husband’s dad used to always make something similar to this for him and his brothers, growing up. They’d call it a “bullseye” within their family (because their cutout was a circle, so it looked like a bullseye with the yolk, whites, then bread). On our anniversary last year I made one for him using a heart cutter too..! He loved it. I told him that Cupid shot the bullseye. But I think a cute name for this, if you want to keep it Valentine’s themed, could be “Cupid’s target.”
Anyway, I really enjoy your blog! Thanks for sharing. :)
Thank you, Ruby! Cupid’s Target is such a cute name—I love it! :)
I love this! It is super cute and so easy…You must add this to this list of Valentine’s Day Delights.
Thank you, Jackie!
I call them Eggy Toast! Rolls off the tongue a little better. They are also my and my boyfriends go to Sunday breakfast. Love the idea of adding the heart mold.
Oooo, Eggy Toast—what a cute name!
I may be a little daft, but a few questions I have:
It is a sandwich, so it’s two slices of bread? And then you cut out the center with a heart? Do you put the cutter all the way through both slices of bread?
Looks adorable, can’t wait to try it :)
Yes! It’s basically just a grilled cheese sandwich that I cut the entire center out of with a cookie cutter.
Love it! So adorable!
Thank you, Joanne! :)
I wonder if you can bake this? I make something for my kids we call ‘Dippy Eggs’. I butter one side of bread and cut out a shape with a cookie cutter. Put the bread and shape on a cookie sheet, butter side up. Crack an egg in the ‘hole ‘ and bake at 400 degrees for about 7 minutes. The white will cook nicely and the yolk has just enough runniness to dip the cut out into. It’s delish!
What a great idea! I have been meaning to attempt various baked egg dishes for the past couple years (I literally have 4 different recipes bookmarked), but I rarely make breakfast for anyone besides myself and it’s almost always a rushed process. Thank you, Sophie—this is more motivation for me to give the baked egg a go!
LOL…..you are the first person, other than my neice to call her runny eggs dippy eggs! Love this!!
*Krys*
Instead of “Cupid’s Target” how about ” sniper’s target” to go with your serial killer theme?
Oooo, morbid—I like it!
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I did a Valentines day test run today while my boyfriend was out of town at work, and it went great except that when I cut out the heart, it didn’t make a clean line. Should I cut out from the newly buttered, uncooked side or the already baked side to minimize the blurry heart shape? It looked not
So much like a heart but a blob with a pointy end haha… Guess that’s what a test run is for!
Thanks!!! I LOVE this idea!
Whoops! Sorry, Michelle—I just realized I’m losing my mind and had responded to you as if this was a question about the ravioli I made previously, not the egg in the basket! Anyway, I would suggest using your cookie cutter as a template of sorts by placing it on top of the toast, then cutting out the heart shape with a sharp knife, but making the indent on top a bit more pronounced. (I actually used this same method because my cookie cutter was a little too large for the bread. I hope this helps. :)
Swiss Chard Ramirez?
BTK: Bacon, Tomato, Kale?
John Wayne Tasty?
By God, I would order ANY of these!
I’ll have the John Wayne Tasty! ♥
I found your blog from Foodgawker and I just love this idea. What a simple and sweet treat! I also love the ceramics you used in these photos, a really nice touch.
Thank you, Hillary!
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I don’t get it-when do I add the cheese?
Just assemble it like you would a normal grilled cheese sandwich. Then grill it on one side, make the cut out, flip it, and add the egg.
Love this idea and will have to try making it for my kids for breakfast. Would it work if it was not a sandwich, but just a piece of toast with egg?
Thanks, Yelena! A few people have told me that they make it as a single piece of toast and not a sandwich, so I think that would definitely work. (I actually think I might try it that way next time!)
That’s how they are made in my family and we call them “One-eyed Jenny’s,’ after me. :)
Awwwww. :)
How about Mon Petit Coeuf? (Get it? Oeuf + Coeur = Coeuf!)
Looks delicious! Can’t wait to try it.
Hehe! I am all about the French portmanteau! Thank you, Sheena. :)
Thank you for posting this. Growing up we always ate “eggs in a basket” for special breakfast days. So last year for Feb 14 I wanted to do this idea for my family and it went horribly wrong. Your tips are so wonderful that I will give it a try again this yr!!!
Glad to hear it, Stacey! I made this last year for the boyfriend and it gave me a lot of trouble, but he was so pleased I don’t think he even noticed. :) This year was still a little bit of a learning process, but I think I’ve figured out most of the tricks. Good luck!
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Looks awesome!
Just wanted to add the we have always called it an “Egg in the Nest”.
We just used one piece of toast though, not a whole sandwich. I’m going to try this out!
Grilled cheese sandwiches and eggs are two of my favourite things!
I absolutely love that there are so many different names for this dish! I am also intrigued by the single slice of toast version, as it seems perfect for those days when I’m feeling a little lazy. :)
I love this b-fast so much! When I was really little my dad used to make these for me and my sister! It actually happens that one morning while making these I spoke some of my very first words as a young babe and said “love egg”. To this day my whole family calls me love egg or eggy!!!
Awwww! Oh my gosh, that’s such an adorable story, Stacey. It made my day! :)
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This is pretty funny because I used to daydream about having a breakfast joint that serves many varieties of eggs in the baskets. My favorite thing is to take your typical egg in the basket and then smother the top with goat cheese, pesto, and smoked salmon.
Oh wow, I love the idea of piling tons of other deliciousness in “the basket.” Mushrooms and fontina!
Saw this on pinterest. Very cute! I have an idea for you to work with: The Saint Valentine’s Day massacre (Capone, in Chicago). Google it…. not sure what you would call the sandwich but it is a place to start. Stabbing the egg yoke and all! Thanks for sharing your great ideas ;)
Stephanie
That one actually popped into my head after I’d been pondering the name for a while, but by that time I was so tired of thinking that I couldn’t even bring myself to put more thought into it! I can be terribly lazy sometimes. :P
I loved this! Featured it on my Friday Favorite’s post today, hope you don’t mind:)
Check it out if you wish!
http://agirlnamedleney.blogspot.com/2012/02/friday-im-in-love-valentines-day.html
<3 Leney
Thanks, Leney! :)
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Just thought I’d let you know that there’s a similar thing called Toad in a Hole which is a hole cut out of a slice of toast, with the egg in the middle (: They chuck ham and cheese on it too (: Hopefully this may help with the naming of your dish.
Love the idea! (:
Thanks, Sam! I’m definitely going to try putting other yummy stuff in the middle next time. The possibilities are endless! :)
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We always called these framed eggs! (:
I’ve seen that name a bit too! I like it. :)
Eggs are where the heart is?!
I make this for my kids every year on the first day of school (and of course randomly anytime). We call it “humpty dumpty eggs”
Oooo, that’s a new one! Cute. :)
My mom made those for my brother and me while we were growing up- she called it a bullseye though :)
I’ve heard so many people say that their family made these when they were growing up and/or they make them for their kids nowadays. I love how universal it is!
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I just wanted to say thank you for posting this. I made a similar version of this (though i know yours is already super simple) yesterday, it came out so pretty. My husband loved it. my son loved it.
you are more than welcome to come over to my blog to check it out!
cheers!
Yay! Thanks, Fanny. I saw the pingback and was just about to hop on over and check it out. :) So glad you guys enjoyed it!
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How about be mine foregger?
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Excellent photos….D
Thanks, Dad! Congratulations on what I assume to be the first comment you’ve ever made on any blog in existence. Woohoo!
Love the pics! We call it a “bird’s nest” in our family :) We also do the oven version most often, or use just one slice of bread and crack the egg in it to cook in the pan. Love your blog in general too :)
Thank you, Amber! I really want to try the baked version. :)
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nice idea,
i repost !:)
Thank you, Hanni!
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Your heart shaped egg in the basket is an adorable idea for Valentines day. It is one of the items in my blot post on Valentine’s breakfasts. Your photography is fabulous!
Stacey
http://iwanttomakethis.com/2012/02/breakfast-for-your-valentine.html
Thank you so much, Stacey!
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Monterrey Jack the Ripper
Sirham Sirham
Lean Turkey Oswald
RoasTed Kaczynski
Croaked Monsieur
Jeffrey Edammer
Jimmy Hoffabrau Sausage
There…you almost have a full truck load of death!
Ha! Thank you, Lexi! :)
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I made these for the kids this morning, and at first they were like thanks for the toast. Until they all looked down and one after one they were all like WOW! Mom this is so cool, how did u do this!! This is the best valentines day EVER! They went off to school very happy! Thanks for this idea
Awww, so cute! Glad the kids enjoyed them, Crystal. :)
My trial didn’t even turn out half as pretty as yours, but what a great concept! Plus with a deserving mention on my heart-y collection for the season.
http://sssourabh.wordpress.com/2012/02/13/a-heart-attack/
Thank you! And thanks so much for reposting on your blog. :)
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I’ve heard of these being called Popeye sandwiches.
Another cute name!
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I love the heart shape hole, it’s so cute! wonderful pictures as well. I included a link to this post on my new site called egginabasket.com on the ‘Variations’ page.
Check it out when you get a chnance, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it if you like egg in a basket :D
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My husband’s family always called these “One Eyed Pete’s”. Not sure where that name came from but my kids loved these. The heart shape is an added benefit.
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I can’t wait to try this with a pumpkin for halloween and a leave for fall. Then there’s Christmas. :) Thank you for posting this.
It’s great for all seasons! I’d love to try it with a gingerbread man cut out. :)
I love this idea – so simple but so cute! (And, dare I say it, a little towards the lower effort end of the Valentine’s Day spectrum, which is a good thing as far as I’m concerned…)
I’ve included it in my top 20 homemade Valentine’s round-up on my blog.
Thanks so much for the idea!
Thank you! The low-effort factor definitely makes it a big win. :)