Poached egg open-faced BLT sandwiches
If you know me well or are a long-time reader here, you know that I love traditions. A new tradition that we have started is having a BLT weekend brunch. Ever since Jack joined our family, I haven't been a big fan of making a big breakfast...I hate the fact that it seems to rob us of our whole morning, not to mention the whining boy who can't figure out why he's hungry AND why his mama is "ignoring" him. It makes for a frustrating start to the day and, frankly, I have not found any waffles or pancakes that are worth it. I do love those breakfast foods, however, which is why we enjoy going out for breakfast or why we have breakfast for dinner quite often.
With the breakfast BLT tradition, I've found a way to cook a big breakfast without feeling like I'm cleaning up syrup until nap time. We start the morning with fruit...lots of fruit...and an activity- a walk, a football game (games are early out on this coast!), playing in the backyard. Then, around 10, I fry up a skillet of bacon, pop some slices of bakery bread into the toaster oven, slice some tomatoes to toss with lettuce and a lemony vinaigrette, and then cook eggs. It's the perfect meal for a late breakfast and early lunch and we all love it!
Typically, we have our eggs fried or scrambled, but I've spent weeks craving poached eggs...I'm not sure exactly where the craving came from, but I think it has to do with the fact that poached eggs have been popping up all over the blog world lately. The reason I spent weeks craving them? Well, to be perfectly honest, I've never made them before and I was scared. I devoured poached egg recipes looking for the one that could best explain the process, the one that made me feel the most empowered, the one that could calm my fears.
As I tend to do, I pieced several different recipes together and...bam! I got a poached egg! I cooked three and they each turned out to be a perfect egg pillow. Next time, I will cook them about 3 minutes shorter so that when I pile them on top of my crispy sour dough bread I can bust open their yolks and watch their yellow ooze over the bread, dripping over onto the bacon and salad greens.
Poached eggs: This recipe will make up to 4 eggs...don’t crowd the water with more than 4 eggs, or the temperature will drop and they won’t cook correctly. And, I've already adjusted the cooking time in the recipe to give you perfectly runny eggs, if you want yours well done, let them cook for about 6 minutes.
Crack each egg into an individual small bowl or ramekin.
Fill a large, wide saucepan about 4 inches from the top with water, then add 2 tablespoons of white rice vinegar and a pinch of salt. Bring the water and vinegar to a rolling boil, then turn off the heat. Immediately add the eggs ton the hot water, making sure there is about 2 inches between each one (if not, cook the eggs in batches, bringing the water back to to a boil before adding new eggs). Cover with a tight lid, and let the eggs sit until the whites are cooked and the yolks are runny, 3 to 3 ½ min.
Gently, fish the eggs out of the pan with a wide slotted spoon and shake excess water off. Season with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper and serve right away.