Who wants Mediterranean Eggs Benedict for breakfast?!?! You do?! Awesome because I have the perfect recipe for you!! Eggs Benedict is a fun splurge for me and preparing it with a Mediterranean flare gives this classic breakfast a delicious twist. Why did I choose to make Mediterranean Eggs Benedict’s? Simple! I had leftover chorizo and feta cheese from last week’s dinner recipes and thought, hot damn, these ingredients would make a crazy good version of Eggs Benedict!
And I’m happy to report hot damn I was right, Mediterranean Eggs Benedict is the shit!
Dude, no joke, I have eggs for breakfast 99.9% of the time and Eggs Benedict has whisked egg yolks on top of poached eggs, so how can I resist that double eggy goodness? But have you noticed I’ve only posted one other egg recipe and no waffle, french toast or pancakes recipes yet? There are 2 reasons for that:
1. I can’t eat sweets first thing in the morning, I must have protein. If my mouth bulldozes a plate of donuts, pastries, waffles, french toast, or pancakes first thing in the morning I’ll feel sick an hour later. If I eat eggs the protein gives me energy, so I don’t feel shaky and ill.
2. I’ve been counting calories to lose and maintain weight. I normally scramble 1 egg and 2 egg whites each morning which clocks in at 106 calories. I admittedly drool over other blogger’s breakfast posts but calorie count on sweet breakfasts can be through the roof!!! Why would I want to eat 500 plus calories just for breakfast, when I can consume 106 calories worth of eggs, and save the remaining calories for rum? That’s iron clad logic!!
But this week I wanted to splurge on a higher calorie breakfast that wasn’t sweets. Real talk, I’ve been maintaining my blog for over a year and this is my first serious breakfast post. I’m like the illegitimate blogger in food blog land! I haven’t made you readers any pumpkin flavored pancakes, or strawberry stuffed waffles, or maple glazed french toast puffs filled with some cream cheese and sugary filling. Holy fuck, I just reread that last sentence now I have a major hankering for something smothered in butter and hot maple syrup. #amirite
You’ll probably see me experiment with breakfast more in the upcoming months. I’ll just plan to eat some protein with my sweeter breakfast on a scheduled workout day, then I won’t feel bad breakfast consumed 1/4 of my calorie budget. Problem and my cravings solved.
Enough about sweets, let’s talk about this badass Mediterranean Eggs Benedict.
Remember how I told you when Kieran loves a recipe he’ll shower me with, “Fuck this is good” and “Goddamn you woman”? Whelp, Mediterranean Eggs Benedict got a handful of each phrase!! Kieran’s sweet swear words brought tears my eyes, I’m one lucky girl.
I’m happy I experimented with chorizo and feta cheese in this recipe, combine those with spinach, tomato, red pepper, and poached eggs (drenched in Hollandaise sauce) made for a satisfying breakfast. It was like a fun little carnival for my mouth, especially since I usually eat plain scrambled eggs for breakfast every morning!
My mouth was like, “Yo, what’s this strange but robust jolt to my tongue? She’s eating something different, bold, adventurous, wait! WHO IS THIS WOMAN AND WHAT DID YOU DO WITH THE REAL CHRISTINA (my mouth totally has my back like that)!?!?!?
I feel like mastering Eggs Benedict is a real accomplishment because even though the recipe is easy, multi-tasking the ingredients to finish cooking around the same time, and keeping them warm, can be complicated. Unless of course, you’re a Master Ninja in the kitchen, but I’m more like this guy:
The way I see it if you can conquer Eggs Benedict you can conquer life. #themoreyouknow
Once I got a system down, the multiple steps in this recipe were easy, and the meal came together pretty quick. Here’s how I timed the components of this recipe:
- First get the ingredients chopped, prepped, measured out, and ready to go.
- Get all of your equipment out. I used 1 skillet for the chorizo mixture, 1 smaller pot to make a double boiler for the hollandaise, 1 larger pot to poach the eggs, a metal bowl (for the hollandaise), a handful of plates (to rest finished food on), a toaster, a ladle, and a slotted spoon.
- I started the recipe by cooking the red pepper, then the tomato (in the same skillet I used for the chorizo mixture rather than dirty another pan).
- When the red pepper and tomato were done I moved onto the chorizo mixture using the same skillet. Once finished, I turned off the heat leaving the ingredients in the skillet, the mixture was reheated again later.
- After the chorizo mixture, I tackle the hollandaise sauce.
- Once the hollandaise sauce was finished, I start to simmer the water for the poached eggs and begin to toast the English muffins.
- Once the eggs are poaching, I set my timer for 4 minutes, finished toasting the English muffins and begin reheating the other ingredients.
- Working quickly (eggs cool fast outside the water) I ensured the other ingredients were warm then began assembly.
This method kept me organized and less stressed out while I made breakfast. If you have your own methods for cooking and assembling eggs benedict please share! A cool trick I learned on poaching eggs was cracking the egg into a ladle, then dunking the ladle into the simmering water. If you crack an egg directly into the water there’s a chance you’ll break the yolk. The ladle method worked like a charm and all 4 eggs stayed intact.
Whelp, that’s enough for today folks. I encourage you to make this Mediterranean Eggs Benedict if you’re looking for a fun twist on this classic breakfast. The flavors pair tremendously well together and its a fun way to change up your breakfast repertoire.
Thanks for stopping by,
Christina
- 2 egg yolks
- 4 tablespoons of melted butter
- ½ tablespoon lemon juice
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- Lemon zest from 1 lemon
- Pinch Cayenne
- 4 eggs
- 2 English muffins, cut in half and toasted
- ½ tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 red pepper, cut into 4 large pieces
- 4 slices of tomato
- 2 big handfuls of baby spinach
- *1 chorizo, precooked cut into bite-sized chunks
- *2 oz of feta cheese
- Olive or Avocado oil
- Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
- Pinch of garlic powder (optional)
- Pinch of turmeric (optional)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Paprika for garnish
- Fresh dill for garnish
- Brush a little oil and sprinkle a little salt and pepper inside the rep pepper pieces and on each side of the tomato slices. Place the tomatoes on a paper towel lined plate and the peppers on another plate. Once the tomatoes are salted, they will release water, so you're using this time to draw out the excess water before cooking.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place the red peppers in the skillet, and cook them on both sides until they start to soften and blacken and blister in spots, approx 5-7 minutes.
- Remove red peppers from the skillet and set aside, and now add the tomatoes to the skillet. Cook the tomatoes on both sides for a minute or so, you want to give them a good sear without breaking down. Remove the tomatoes from the skillet and place them on a plate, set aside.
- Now onto the meat, spinach, and cheese. To the same skillet (which is still over medium-high heat) add the chorizo. Since the chorizo is already cooked, you'll need a few minutes stirring it around to warm them up. Once the edges start to brown, add your spinach, red pepper flakes, onion powder, garlic powder, turmeric, and additional salt and pepper to taste. Stir the ingredients together, once the spinach has wilted turn off the heat and stir in the feta cheese. Let the ingredients sit in the skillet while you prep the hollandaise sauce.
- Vigorously whisk the 2 egg yolks with the lemon juice until the mixture thickens and doubles in volume. Making a double boiler, place the bowl over a pot of water that's got a slight simmer. Be sure the bowl does not come in contact with the water. Continue to vigorously whisk the yolks as you slowly drizzle in the melted butter. The sauce will continue to thicken and double in volume. You want to ensure you watch the sauce, if the water gets too hot your eggs can scramble, if you see that happening, turn down the heat right away and continue whisking. Remove the bowl from the heat and stir in the salt, pepper, cayenne, and lemon zest. Set aside and cover to stay warm.
- Once the sauce is finished I begin to toast my English muffins and start the water for my poached eggs in another pot.
- Bring the water in the pot to a simmer and pour in the vinegar. Crack your first egg into a ladle, then carefully drop the ladle into the simmering water, this will help the egg yolk stay intact. Repeat with the other 3 eggs and set a timer for 3-4 minutes. Gently stir the eggs once or twice to ensure they're not sticking together. While the eggs cook I turn the burner on under the skillet with the meat, spinach, and cheese to reheat the mixture and I finish up toasting my English muffins. Once your eggs are cooked, fish them out of the water with a slotted spoon, and gently place them on a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Top with a small pinch of salt and pepper
- Check your hollandaise sauce, if it's too thick add a few drops of water to loosen the sauce to the consistency you prefer.
- Put the toasted English muffin face up on a plate. Top with ¼ of the meat, spinach, and cheese mixture. Then top with the tomato, then the red pepper. Then place the poached egg onto of the red pepper. Lastly, pour a ¼ of the hollandaise sauce on top of the egg. If the mood strikes you, garnish with a sprinkle of paprika and fresh dill. Repeat with the rest of ingredients to make 4 individual portions which can feed 2-4 people.
- Enjoy!
*The chorizo I purchased came in a pack of 3. Don't let it go to waste, use it up for one of your dinners in the upcoming week! It would be a wonderful addition to my One Pot Pasta dinner! Cut up the chorizo and throw it in the pot with all the other ingredients!
A cool trick I learned on poaching eggs was cracking the egg into a ladle, then dunking the ladle into the simmering water. If you crack an egg directly into the water there's a chance you'll break the yolk. The ladle method worked like a charm and all 4 eggs stayed intact.
Calorie Breakdown:
Hollandaise Sauce:
2 egg yolks – 34
4 tablespoons of melted butter – 407
½ Tablespoon Lemon Juice – 2
Salt to taste – 0
Pepper to taste – 0
Lemon zest from 1 lemon – 0
Pinch Cayenne – 0
The Rest:
4 eggs – 288
2 english muffins – 234
1/2 tablespoon white vinegar – 0
1 red pepper – 43
4 slices of tomato – 12
2 big handfuls of baby spinach – 14
1 chorizo – 273
2 oz of feta cheese – 150
Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional) – 0
Pinch of garlic powder (optional) – 0
Pinch of turmeric (optional) – 0
Salt and pepper to taste – 0
Paprika – 0
Total calories if you eat all…
4 portions – 1,457
2 portions – 728.50
1 portion – 364.25
*Note, I am not a nutritionist, nor am I pretending to be. I found the calorie counts by reading the nutrition labels on the food I purchased, searching Google, and using my Lose It! app on my phone.using my Lose It! app on my phone.
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