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Easy Eggs Benedict for a Crowd

Make a fabulous restaurant quality brunch with ease

Course Breakfast
Cuisine American, French
Servings 12

Ingredients

  • 12 large fresh eggs for poached eggs
  • 2.5 sticks quality European style unsalted butter for hollandaise
  • 3 large egg yolks for hollandaise
  • 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice extra to taste
  • 3/4 tsp kosher, maldon or fleur de sel salt
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne or more to taste
  • 1 tsp tarragon vinegar or regular- but add chopped taragon
  • 6 English muffins toasted with butter
  • 12 slices canadian bacon or proscuitto or smoked salmon
  • 1 tbsp chopped chives
  • cayenne pepper for finishing

Sides---choices

  • Fruit salad
  • Crispy bacon
  • mixed greens
  • hash browns or sauted potatoes

Instructions

Poached eggs- one day in advance

  1. Fill a large pot three-quarters full with water and bring to a bare simmer

  2. Set up a large bowl of ice water and place near stove

  3. Get a coffee cup or small ramekin- crack one egg at a time. Slip each egg one at a time, not more than 4 eggs in pot, to poach for 3 minutes.

  4. Place each poached egg into ice bath and repeat till all eggs are poached-you may want to make a few extra, if doing it in advance. Place eggs covered in ice water in the fridge for not more than 24 hours.

  5. To reheat the eggs-use hot running tap water and place each egg to warm for at least 2 minutes.

Hollandaise Sauce

  1. You can make this 1-2 hours in advance and keeping it in a warm place or in a thermos

  2. Heat butter in a medium sauce pan- skim off scum and use only the top golden portion- esentially you are using clarified butter- no milk fat or scum

  3. Take a small pot and fill 1/4 up with water, place a heat proof bowl and add yolks- whisk constantly until ribbon like- add vinegar and continue to whisk. If the eggs start to cook, pull it off the double boiler and whisk on the side of stove.

  4. Drizzle or ladle in the melted butter little by little by constantly whisking. Add lemon and continue to whisk. If your sauce separates, start from scratch... use another yolk and whisk in the broken hollandaise to the yolk.

    If your sauce is too thin, adjust with lemon or warm tap water

    Adjust seasoning to your liking- add cayenne- set aside in warm place or thermos

Assembly of Eggs Benedict

  1. Warm oven to 450 degrees- arrange English muffins -cut side up on a sheet try and brush on melted butter- toast for about 6 minutes.

    Place ham on each muffin and place in the oven- turn temp down to 200

    Meanwhile get very hot tap water- not boiling, but warmer than room temp. Place each poached egg for 2 minutes- pull out with a sloted spoon to remove excess water.

    Place each poached egg on ham, season with salt and pepper- spoon on the hollandaise adn then top with chives and cayenne- YUM!!!!