Easter, despite what the Christian church might tell you, is really about two things: eggs, and chocolate. (Hmm, you know what, someone should combine those two things. I bet they’d sell really well.) As food bloggers, we’re required to rifle through our egg recipes around this time of year and make sure we have some culinary options for those of you for whom just dipping eggs in food coloring isn’t quite enough of a challenge.
Here are our favorite egg recipes from the blog over the last few years. The first post is one of the most popular posts we’ve ever written: Scotch Eggs with a Perfect Runny Yolk. Scotch Eggs perhaps aren’t as well-known in the US as they deserve to be, but we hope to change that! We explain how this simple picnic snack has become ubiquitous in British shops, why you should make your own, and how to keep the yolk cooked but perfectly runny. We also have some breakfast recipes, such as Baked Eggs with Creamy Greens and Chilaquiles with Salsa Verde, Chorizo and Eggs, as well as options for later in the day: Quiche with Ramps, Bacon and Gruyere (a great way to use spring ramps, if you can find them sustainably) and one of our favorite bread and egg puddings: French Onion Strata.
Finally, we round off the list with some of our dessert favorites which rely on eggs, including Chocolate Babka and Carrot Cupcakes (both great Easter recipes), Seriously Lemony Lemon Bars, as well as some of our favorite curd-based desserts.
If you’re wondering how we keep up with all this egg demand, the answer is this: we keep chickens in our backyard. The current batch has been diligently laying throughout the winter, so we’ve been overflowing with fresh eggs. We’ve given them away to neighbors and local food pantries, but the more imaginative ways we can use them in our own kitchen, the better.
The Science of Eggs
Eggs are blinking amazing. They might be the single most versatile ingredient in our kitchen. They can be the front-of-house star, of course, whether by themselves or playing a supporting role. Stir-fry suppers are always improved by adding a fried or scrambled egg. But they also have magical properties: the proteins in both their yolks and whites are emulsifiers, which bind fat-based ingredients with water-based ingredients (including the water present in the eggs themselves). That’s why, even without doing any cooking, just whisking room-temperature yolks with slowly-added oil will create a thick mayonnaise. You’ll see the same effect in a cooked custard, curd or egg-based pudding. Whisking up egg whites will trap air in those protein strands, creating a light frothy texture central to a meringue or a sponge cake. And of course baking with eggs, as well as using those binding properties, adds leavening, color and a rich flavor.
There’ll be something in this list for everyone, sure as eggs is eggs. Happy Easter!
