Cooking Basics: Hollandaise Sauce

As part of my Cooking Basics Series, I’ve included a simple Hollandaise Sauce. Hollandaise sauce can be used in so many ways and transformed into other sauces.

Ingredients:

1 Egg Yolk

1 tbsp Water

½ tbsp Lemon Juice

4 tbsp Butter cut into small pieces

1/4 tsp Better than Boullion Chicken

If you don't want to or have this chicken boullion then add 1/8 tsp salt

⅛ tsp White Pepper

½ tsp Cayenne Pepper (optional)

Method:

Method:

Mix together egg yolk, water, lemon juice and the chicken bouillon in a cold sauce pan.

Add the cold butter.

Put pan over medium low heat to melt the butter. Consistently mix. Do not walk away.

Once the butter is melted add the white pepper and taste for additional seasoning.

Serve immediately over eggs, asparagus, or your favorite combination.

To keep the sauce warm while plating, keep on a very low heat and stir frequently. I would not keep this more than 20 minutes.

Notes:

• The Better Than Boullion give the sause a depth of flavor that is slightly untraditional, but yummy just the same.

• If you are nervous about cooking directly in the sauce pan, you can make this sauce in a double boiler (place a heat proof bowl with the ingredients over a pan of simmering water)

• If your sauce splits but the eggs aren’t scrambled, Julia Child recommends whisking a tablespoon of water into the sauce drop by drop.

• Jamie Oliver has a unique way to keep sauces warm, use a small thermos!

Eggs Benedict:

English Muffin slightly toasted

Poached Egg

Canadian Bacon warmed

Hollandaise Sauce

Eggs Benedict can be very trickly to serve warm for a large group. Here is my process:

1. Split English Muffins and place in a warm oven.

2. Fill a shallow pan with water and begin heating to a simmer for the eggs. Depending on the size of the group you might you a large sautee pan for this to poach more eggs at the same time.

3. Begin the Hollandaise sauce

4. Once the Hollandaise sauce is finished keep it warm over very low heat or in a warmed thermos as mentioned above.

5. Begin poaching eggs. Poach for no more than 4 minutes.

6. While eggs are poaching, warm Canadian Bacon in microwave.

7. Assemble Eggs Benedict:

   1. English Muffin

   2. Canadian Bacon

   3. Poached Egg

   4. Hollandaise Sauce

You can top your Eggs Benedict with green onions as in the picture, minced chives, or even a small amound of mince tarragon. Prepare these before you start the process.