Eggs Benedict are a very special breakfast in our home, a breakfast that my husband and I make for each other on our birthdays. It started with mine a few years ago. He asked what I wanted on my special day and I wanted nothing more than to challenge him with something that I thought he couldn’t pull off. I requested smoked salmon Eggs Benedict over latkes. So not only did he have to poach eggs, make hollandaise, and have it all come together at the same time, he also had to make latkes from scratch first thing in the morning. Happy birthday to me!
I had to rescue him on the last minute hollandaise sauce, but his efforts were really impressive, especially for someone that’s never made Eggs Benedict before. We now make them together, regardless of whose birthday it is. I don’t get to watch him struggle, but the results have been getting better and better. Eggs Benedict take a little practice and patience, but it’s a very special breakfast that’s worth getting right.
Today’s Eggs Benedict with Garlic Rapini recipe a little simpler and adds a bonus dose of greens to your breakfast. How many of you are rapini fans? I personally love the bitter taste and pungent flavour, but if you’re not into rapini (a.k.a flowering broccoli or broccoli rabe), some garlic-sautéed spinach or kale will work just as well. The bitterness of rapini will vary, with younger rapini harvested earlier in the season being milder. The bunch that I had already started to flower, which wasn’t ideal, but I liked the extra bitterness and full flavour. Keep an eye out for bunches with bright green leaves, tender stems, and tightly bunched florets, especially if you’re new to rapini or prefer it a little bit milder.
The first time I discovered my love for rapini was in Italy, where it’s blanched and sautéed with a generous amount of olive oil, garlic, chili flakes, and anchovies. It’s delicious with nothing more than a slice of crusty bread, but today I’m kicking it up a notch by adding a poached egg and some of that delicious hollandaise sauce on top. The anchovies won’t be detectable as fish, but add a flavour dimension that’s worth trying (just like in Caesar salad dressing). If you’re not a fan, leave them out and add a little bit of crumbled sausage or extra salt to the sautéed rapini instead.
What’s your favourite version of Eggs Benedict?
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