Crepes

1 2/3 cups pastry four, not self-rising
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups milk
8 Eggland's Best large eggs
1 Eggland's Best large egg yolk
2 tablespoons clarified butter, melted, plus more for brushing pan

1. In a medium bowl, sift together the four and salt. Make a well in the center. Whisk together the milk, eggs, and egg yolk in a medium bowl. Pour the milk mixture into the center of the well, slowly whisking in the flour from the sides of the well. Add 2 tablespoons clarified butter, and whisk to combine.
2. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a mixing bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes.
3. Remove the batter from the refrigerator. Heat a 6-inch crepe pan or nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. Brush with clarified butter, and heat until very hot. Add a couple of tablespoons of batter, turning and swirling the batter in the pan to completely coat. Cook until brown on the bottom, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip the crepe with a spatula, and cook until golden brown on the other side, about 1 minute. Repeat with remaining batter. As you continue, you will need to use less butter in the crepe pan.

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VEGETABLE DYES FOR
EASTER EGGS

The colors traditionally used for dyeing eggs were symbolic: red for love and the color of ChristÕs blood; yellow for spirituality and sunlight; green for nature; blue for good health; pink for success; orange for desire; and black for remembrance.

1 cup water
Pink: 1/2 cup cranberries, beets, cut-up radishes or frozen raspberries
Yellow or Orange: 1 tablespoon ground turmeric
Orange: 1 cup packed yellow onion skins
Pale Green: 1 cup packed trimmed spinach
Blue: 1/2 cup canned or frozen blueberries or chopped red cabbage
Brown/Gold: 2 tablespoons dill seeds plus 1/2 cups walnuts 1 tablespoon white vinegar Hard-cooked eggs or blown-out eggs

Combine the water with one of the color choices listed above in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the water is the desired color, 10 to 20 minutes. Strain into a deep bowl and add the vinegar. Using a tablespoon or wire egg holder, lower each egg into the hot liquid and let stand, turning gently, until it is the desired color. Transfer to a rack to dry.

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Pecan Orange French Toast

4 Eggland's Best eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup orange juice concentrate
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup finely ground pecans
1/8 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg
10 1-inch-thick slices of French bread
Garnish:
Unsalted butter
Maple syrup
Powdered sugar

In a shallow bowl, beat together eggs, orange juice concentrate, milk, pecans, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg. Dip bread into egg mixture, coating both sides (soak for 30 seconds on each side). In a skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter and cook the read on both sides over medium heat for 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden. Serve with butter, syrup, or powdered sugar.

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Eggs Benedict

8 slices Canadian bacon
4 English Muffins 1/2 split
2 teaspoons white vinegar
8 Eggland's Best eggs
Salt & pepper to taste
Hollandaise sauce recipe
Fresh chopped parsley for garnish

1. Brown the bacon in a medium skillet and toast the English Muffins, cut sides up, on a baking sheet under the broiler.
2. Fill a 10-inch nonstick skillet half full of water. Add white vinegar to the cooking water. This will make the egg white cook faster so it does not spread. Bring to a slow boil. Gently break 1 of the eggs into the water taking care not to break it. Repeat with remaining eggs. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cook 3 1/2 minutes until the egg white is set and yolk remains soft. Remove with a slotted spoon, allowing the egg to drain. To assemble: lay a slice of Canadian bacon on top of each muffin half, followed by a poached egg. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon hollandaise sauce over the eggs. Garnish with chopped parsley

Yield: 4 servings

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Hollandaise Sauce

Recipe Summary
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 1 Cup

4 Eggland's Best egg yolks
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted (1 stick)
Pinch cayenne
Pinch salt

1. Vigorously whisk the egg yolks and lemon juice together in a stainless steel bowl and until the mixture is thickened and doubled in volume. Place the bowl over a saucepan containing barely simmering water (or use a double boiler) the water should not touch the bottom of the bowl. Continue to whisk rapidly. Be careful not to let the eggs get too hot or they will scramble. Slowly drizzle in the melted butter and continue to whisk until the sauce is thickened and doubled in volume. Remove from heat, whisk in cayenne and salt. Cover and place in a warm spot until ready to use for the eggs benedict. If the sauce gets too thick, whisk in a few drops of warm water before serving.

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Making an Omelet

1 tablespoon clarified butter (recipe follows)
3 Eggland's Best large eggs
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Heat clarified butter in an 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Whisk eggs, slat, and pepper together very well. Pour eggs into hot skillet. Quickly jiggle skillet while cooking. Using a spatula, pull eggs away from side of pan to allow uncooked eggs to set. Sprinkle fine herbs over eggs.
3. Run a rubber spatula along the sides of omelet to loosen eggs from skillet. Slide spatula under left side of eggs. Fold 1/34 of omelet into the center. Lightly press down on folded omelet to seal.
4. Lifting the pan to the plate, place spatula under right side of omelet. Lift and slide remaining unfolded part of omelet onto the plate. Using the edge of the pan, flip folded eggs over. You should have a three-fold omelet with the flap on the bottom. Serve immediately.

Clarified Butter

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

Place butter in a small saucepan and melt over low heat. Remove from heat and allow milk solids to sink to bottom. Skim any foam from surface, and then carefully pour off clarified butter, leaving solids behind.

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Perfect Hash Browns

2 large Colorado russet potatoes
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
Kosher slat and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Scrub the potatoes well and dry with paper towels. Poke several holes in them with a skewer to allow steam to escape. Place the potatoes on a small baking sheet and bake, uncovered, until tender, about 1 hour.

Allow the potatoes to cool to room temperature. Refrigerate in a plastic bag with a reseal able closure overnight.

Peel the potatoes and cut into 1/3-inch dice. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat and add the onion. Cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the onion to a small bowl. Add the vegetable oil to the skillet and heat until almost smoking. Add the potatoes and leave to form a crisp crust. Do not disturb the potatoes until the crust is formed, about 5 minutes. Check to see if a crust has formed; if so, give a quick stir. If not, continue cooking for another 1 to 2 minutes, until the crust has formed. With a spatula, turn over large chunks of the crusted potatoes. Season with salt and pepper and continue cooking until golden brown. Stir in the onion, season again with salt and pepper, and stir until the hash is heated through, about 3 minutes. Serve hot.

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Créme Brulee

Yield: 6 Each
Egg Yolks 8 Each
Heavy Cream 1 Quarts
Sugar 3/4 Cup
Vanilla Bean 1/2 Each
Salt Pinch

1. In a mixing bowl, gently whisk egg yolks from fresh eggs, salt and add 1/3 cup of sugar Don't let it get too foamy.
2. In a sauce pan over medium heat add heavy cream, remaining sugar and vanilla bean (split in half length-wise a scrape seeds into cream).
3. Bring mixture to a simmer, but do not boil.
4. While whisking, slowly pour hot (but not boiling) cream mixture into egg mixture
5. Pour mixture through a single cheese cloth into another bowl.
6. Fill ramekins with custard and place on a sheet tray.
7. Fill sheet tray with warm water halfway up the side of ramekins.
8. Turn oven on to 280degF. Place sheet tray in oven and bake for 40-50 minutes.
9. Remove ramekins from sheet tray and cool for 30 minutes. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

CARAMELIZED SUGAR GLAZE

(The final touch to the perfect Créme Brulee)

Sugar (Beet or Brown) 1/4 Cup
Yield: 6 each
Special Equipment:
Blowtorch (household or industrial) and butane fuel

1. Sprinkle a pinch of sugar over entire surface of custard.
2. Take flame of blowtorch and pass evenly over sugar surface until sugar is caramelized as a hardened coating with a brownish hue (take care not to burn sugar or custard).
3. Add a second thin layer of sugar over the first, repeat step 2.

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PERFECT POACHED EGGS

The first key to success when poaching eggs is to use the freshest eggs possible. A freshly laid egg has a thick viscous albumen and a rounded yolk, which will poach into a perfectly plump oval with the yolk sitting pertly on top. But as an egg ages, the white becomes thinner and the yolk flattens. When the egg is lowered into hot water---especially if it is boiling rapidly---the thinner portions of the white will disperse and cook into lacy, featherlike strands. Therefore, I usually don't poach eggs unless I have bought them guaranteed "farm fresh" at my local farmers' market or from a supermarket that I know has only the freshest eggs. I add a bit of vinegar and salt to the poaching water, which helps the whites to coagulate, and keep the water at a bare simmer, which also helps prevent feathering. If you are uncertain about the age of your eggs, be sure to read the tip below about "preboiling," but you may want to try cooking them in a metal poacher, a mold or a coddler.

1. Fill a deep 10-inch skillet or a saute pan with water, adding 1 tablespoon white vinegar and 1 teaspoon salt for each 2 quarts of water.
2. Heat the water to a bare simmer.
3. Use cold eggs straight from the refrigerator, because a chilled white is thicker and will be less likely to feather than a warm one. Break the eggs one at a time into a cup or saucer and slip gently into the water (I usually poach no more than 4 at a time). Add the eggs in a clockwise pattern, so that you can remove them in the same order, ensuring equal cooking times.
4. If using older eggs, you can give them a "preboil" in the shell before poaching to set the whites slightly and help control feathering. Bring the water to a boil and lower each egg (still in the shell) into the pan---immerse the eggs for only 8 seconds, then remove. Reduce the heat, and proceed to crack each egg into a cup and slip it into the simmering water.
5. Adjust the temperature as necessary to maintain the simmer, but do not allow the water to boil, as the turbulence would cause feathering and toughen the egg whites.
6. Cook the eggs for 1 minute, until partially set, then gently loosen them from the bottom of the pan with a spatula. If necessary, gently shape the whites into ovals.
7. Poach until the yolks and whites are cooked to the desired doneness, 3 to 5 minutes.
8. Remove the eggs one at a time with a slotted spoon in the order that they went into the pan. Drain each egg by holding the spoon on a cloth towel or paper towels for 2 seconds, then slip it onto a plate.
9. If necessary, trim any ragged edges of white with a small knife or scissors.
10. To hold poached eggs for later use, slip them directly into a bowl half-filled with cold water when you remove them from poaching liquid. To reheat the eggs, carefully remove them from the water with a slotted spoon and lower them into a pan of very hot water for 1 minute before serving.

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FABULOUS FRIED
Sunny-Side Up, Over Easy or "In the Shade"

1. Choose the right size pan: Select a heavy pan, preferable nonstick, with sloping sides, which make it easier to reach in with a wide spatula. For 1 egg, use a 6-inch pan; for 2 eggs, use an 8-inch pan; for 3 or 4 eggs, use a 10-inch pan. For more than 4 eggs, fry in batches.
2. Use a small amount of cooking fat: 1 teaspoon of butter or oil for each egg is usually enough. I prefer to fry eggs in butter, but when I am serving them with an olive oil-based garnish, I use olive oil as the frying medium, to match the flavors. To reduce the saturated fat, you can fry with nonstick cooking spray, vegetable oil or a mixture of half vegetable oil and half butter.
3. Heat the pan slowly: Typically, I heat the pan over medium-low heat just enough so that I can feel the warmth (not searing heat!) of the pan when I hold my hand about 1 inch from its surface. Then I add the butter or oil and reduce the heat to low. (If using cooking spray, coat the cold pan and then begin to heat.) Butter is hot enough when it begins to sizzle; oil is hot enough when a drop of egg or a bread crumb sizzles gently when added.
4. Add the eggs carefully: Breaking an egg on the side of the pan and flopping it into a hot skillet can risk broken yolks, shell fragments and burned fingers. I like to crack each egg into a small bowl or cup so I can remove any bits of eggshell or blood spots. (Use the tip of a knife or a teaspoon-sized piece of the broken shell.) Also, if the yolk breaks when placed in the cup, the egg can be saved for another purpose. Pour each egg from the cup into a clear spot in the hot pan.
5. Fry the eggs over low to medium-low heat.

Sunny-Side Up

Cook the eggs until the white begins to set, about 1 minute. For a very delicate white and a thick, creamy yolk, cover the pan and cook the eggs over low heat for about 5 minutes. Alternatively, cook the eggs entirely uncovered, adjusting the heat between medium and medium-low, for 4 to 5 minutes total time. This method produces a creamy yolk that is gently set on the bottom and a white that is lightly browned on the bottom.

Over Easy or Over Light

In this method of frying, the film of white that covers the yolk is set with direct heat. Cook the eggs as for sunny-side up, but flip each egg over during the last 15 to 20 seconds of cooking. The challenge here is to turn the egg over and then out of the pan without breaking the yolk in the process. It's easiest to use a wide spatula. As in everything, practice makes perfect.

Basted

This is the name for a method that lightly cooks the thin layer of white covering the yolk but doesn't involve flipping. Fry the eggs following the procedure for sunny-side up, covering the pan after the whites are set. During the last 2 minutes of cooking, lift the lid and quickly sprinkle the eggs with 2 to 3 teaspoons of water. Immediately cover the pan and continue cooking. The steam will "baste" the eggs and set the film of white around the yolk.

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