savory french toast benedict
Serves 4
- 8 eggs, divided
- Salt to taste
- 4 slices day-old French bread, thick cut on bias
- 10 ounces unsalted butter, additional for coating pan
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 sprig thyme + more for garnish
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1½ tablespoons lemon juice
- Poaching liquid (recipe to follow)
- 12 asparagus spears
- 4 slices prosciutto
Poaching Liquid
- 4 cups water
- ¼ cup vinegar
- ½ teaspoon salt
Separate the yolks from 3 eggs, keeping the whites. Crack another whole egg into the whites, whisk, and season with salt. Soak French bread slices in the mixture, flipping to coat both sides. Preheat a skillet on low heat, coat pan surface with butter, and cook the egg-coated bread until golden brown on both sides.
To create the hollandaise sauce, in a saucepan, melt 10 ounces butter. Add 1 clove crushed garlic and sprig thyme. Bring to a simmer and skim off the milk solids, clarifying the butter. Remove the thyme and garlic clove.
Add 1 inch of water to the bottom pan of a double boiler and bring it to a boil. Remove from heat, cover with a towel, and place the top boiler pan over it. Stir egg yolks with 1 tablespoon lemon juice in the top pan. Whisk until the mixture is ribbon-like. Gradually add clarified butter, starting with a few drops and increasing until fully combined. Add remaining lemon juice and season with salt to taste.
To create the poaching liquid, in a separate saucepan, bring water, vinegar, and salt to a simmer. Swirl the water and crack 1 egg into the pan. Cook until the white is firm and the yolk is runny. Repeat for all 3 remaining eggs. Blanch the asparagus in the poaching liquid for 3 to 4 minutes, remove from the liquid, then wrap in prosciutto. Plate the French toast, followed by a poached egg, hollandaise, and prosciutto-wrapped asparagus. Optionally garnish with fresh thyme.
