Works for Me Wednesday: Baked Eggs!

My friends J and S had baked eggs for breakfast one morning when we were in Chicago, and I think I almost died of jealousy. They looked so pretty in their little ceramic dishes, done but not too done and a yummy, eggy yellow. The possibilities seemed endless–eggs with goat cheese and basil, spinach and fontina, tomatoes and parmesan. I wanted to see if I could recreate the dish at home–how hard could it be, right? You take eggs and bake ‘em. 

Turns out I was right, which was nice, since when I usually go into a recipe thinking ‘how hard can this possibly be?’ I wind up curled in a ball weeping on the kitchen floor. Kris at Cheap Healthy Good has a fantastic step by step guide here, as usual, but the basic idea is this: layer any non-cheese ingredients (I used cooked bacon, but ham, leafy winter veg, or seeded tomatoes would work just fine) in a small, buttered baking dish (side note: I used some Corningware I inherited from my mom and as I was doing it I had the most VIVID memory of being three and playing with my plastic Corningware set in my grandmother’s garage in Middle Village, Queens. My grandmother’s name was Evelyn and her yard was covered in AstroTurf). Crack three (or more) eggs on top, grate a little cheese onto those bad boys, and stick the whole thing on a baking sheet in the oven at 375 for 15 minutes or so. 

The result–a really easy, really elegant brunch that is just lovely with some multi-grain toast (and a giant bucket of coffee, as most brunches are enjoyed here at kitchendoor). The best part? I had time to jump in the shower while it baked. Works for me, you guys.