Asparagus, Smoked Salmon and Goat Cheese Oeufs en Cocottes (Eggs inPots) 法式燻鮭魚蘆筍烤蛋杯

 

When I first saw the name, œufs en cocotte (Eggs in Pots), I was thinking, is this some kind of fancy French classic egg dish? Only after I looked it up did I realize that it's actually quite simple, yet also a very elegant dish that is perfect for either your weekly or holiday brunch. You basically crack the egg in a ramekin, then bake it with your favourite vegetables or cheese. Not so difficult, right? Since it's (finally) the beginning of spring, I thought I'd use some asparagus here, as it goes so well with the smoked salmon and goat cheese. It'll be perfect for your spring Sunday brunch!

 

 

Asparagus, Smoked Salmon and Goat Cheese Oeufs en Cocottes (4 servings)

4 organic eggs
 
3-4 oz/90 g asparagus, rinsed

4 T heavy cream

4 pieces of smoked salmon You might need to cut into smaller pieces

2-3 oz/60-85 g goat cheese (optional)

extra virgin olive oil

sea salt

1/2 lemon, cut into 4 wedges


*T = tbsp, t = tsp

1. Bring two small pots of water to a boil. In the meanwhile, trim off and discard about 1 1/2 to 2-inch rough bottom stems of asparagus, then cut asparagus into 1 to 1 1/2-inch long pieces.

2. Blanche the cut asparagus in one of the pots of boiling water for thirty seconds to one minute, depending on their thickness. Drain, season with a little sea salt and set them aside. *My asparagus were really thin, so I blanched them for even less than 30 seconds.
 
3. Preheat the oven to 375 F/190 C. Grease four ramekins or cups (about 6 oz capacity) with a little bit of extra virgin olive oil.

4. Pour 1 T of heavy cream into each ramekin. Divide half of the blanched asparagus into 4 equal portions in each ramekin, then crack 1 egg in each. Season with a little bit of sea salt. *Be careful not to season too much, since the smoked salmon is already salty.

5. Top with goat cheese, smoked salmon, and the rest of the asparagus (equally distributed among the 4 ramekins). Place the ramekins in a baking dish on a baking sheet, then set the whole thing on the oven rack. Pour the other pot of hot water into the dish. The hot water should come up to about half the height of the ramekins.

6. Bake for about 15 minutes or until the egg whites are just set but the yolks are still soft. Serve right away with lemon wedges.

Variations:

1. Try it with different type of smoked fish or even replace it with some prosciutto.

2. Try it with cashew milk instead of cream.

3. Try it with any other cheese, but I don't recommend something that's on the salty side.

4. Add some capers.

                                                                                               - Yvonne

 

第一次看到 œufs en cocotte 這個名字，想說到底是什麼複雜的法式雞蛋料理，結果看了食譜之後才知道其實它算是法式的蒸蛋，也就是把完整的蛋放入烤杯裡，加入自己喜愛的蔬菜、起司等食材，再放入烤箱半蒸半烤至半熟，就這麼簡單！現在正好剛步入春季，我就在這食譜裡加了些蘆筍，與燻鮭魚吃起來超搭的，經典又簡易，是非常適合這個季節的早午餐料理！

法式燻鮭魚蘆筍烤蛋杯 (2 人份)

土雞蛋 4 顆

蘆筍 3 oz/90 g

鮮奶油 4 大匙

醺鮭魚 4 片 （小片）

羊奶酪 2-3 oz/60-85 g  (可省略)

冷抽橄欖油 少許

海鹽 少許

檸檬 半顆


1. 將水分別倒入兩個鍋子裡煮滾。煮水的同時，將洗淨的蘆筍底部切除約4-5 cm， 然後切成3-4 cm長。

2. 將切好的蘆筍在其中ㄧ個鍋中以滾水稍微燙ㄧ下 (約半分鐘左右就好)，瀝乾後撒上ㄧ點海鹽放置ㄧ旁。

3. 將烤箱預熱至 190 C/375 F，並將四個烤杯塗上ㄧ點橄欖油。

4. 在每個烤杯中倒入1大匙的鮮奶油，再將一半的蘆筍分別放入。將蛋打入烤杯中，撒上ㄧ點海鹽調味。*請注意不要加太多鹽，因為燻鮭魚已有鹹度。

 
5. 最後分別放上剩下的蘆筍、羊奶酪與醺鮭魚，將烤杯置有深度的烤盤中。將烤盤放在烤箱的鐵架上，然後在烤盤內倒入燒開的熱水，水位約為烤杯外圍的ㄧ半高度即可。*若沒有烤箱，也可以使用蒸的方式。

6. 烤約15分鐘或至蛋半熟，趁熱馬上食用，食用時擠ㄧ點檸檬汁在上面。*可以與麵包或馬鈴薯ㄧ起食用！

變化： 1. 以不同的燻魚或甚至義大利火腿來代替燻鮭魚。 2. 以自製的素奶(如腰果奶)來代替鮮奶油。 3. 以一般口味較淡的白色起司來代替羊奶酪。

                                                                                               - Yvonne

Don't be afraid to play around with the ingredients. Here, I used smoked trout, vegan milk, and some mild melted cheese, and it still come out just as delicious! With a salad and some homemade bread, it looks like an impressive brunch!  

我在這照片中使用的是燻鱒魚、腰果奶與口味較淡的起司。只要加個沙拉與ㄧ些自製的烤麵包，就感覺是豐富又美麗的早午餐！