Of all the Thanksgiving goods, stuffing is hands down my favorite. So I’m using it to make a Thanksgiving Eggs Benedict with Béarnaise sauce.
As for stuffing, Mom’s is, in my opinion, the best. It doesn’t have a lot of hoopla- no meat or sausage, no cornbread, nothing with pizzazz- but classic it is, and that is just how I like it on Thanksgiving day. I like it even more on the days after, and rarely eat it as originally intended, aside the turkey, but I’ve added it to soups, stuffed in sandwiches and more often then not, pan crisped it with an egg on top.
Ooh. The runny egg. I love thee so.
I decided to mix it up this year, Benedict style. I’m stealing a bit of an idea that I ate brunching on Eggs New Orleans at Big Jones, a twist on a classic by using popovers in place of English muffins and béarnaise sauce instead of hollandaise (is it still called a Benedict then? Thoughts in the comments). It blew me away, and so I offer this to you in the hopes of doing the same.
I’d never made a béarnaise sauce, but having so much success with the hollandaise, I had some confidence and forged ahead. Epicurious used the same blender method, and while I did prefer that one, I left my blender at work and thus had to do it the old fashioned way.
And it worked, too! No curdles! And the flavor, while seemingly in contrast to the flavors of the stuffing, you may think in your head, complemented it nicely and it would do the same to any traditional stuffing. My advice? Don’t overthink it and you’ll be relishing in your reinvented leftovers.
For breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
- 1/2 TB unsalted butter
- 2 cups leftover Thanksgiving stuffing
- 4 poached eggs
- ¼ cup white-wine vinegar
- 1 small shallot, peeled and minced
- ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon chopped tarragon leaves
- 2 egg yolks
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- Kosher salt, to taste
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- In a small skillet, add 1/2 TB butter and let it melt. Over low heat, add the stuffing and let heat through and crisp up at the bottom.
- Meanwhile, make the sauce. Put the vinegar, shallots, black pepper and 1 tablespoon of tarragon leaves into a small saucepan, and set over a medium flame. Bring just to a boil, and then reduce heat to a simmer until there are only a few tablespoons of liquid left, approximately 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and set aside to cool.
- Fill a small saucepan with an inch or two of water, and set over medium-high heat to boil. Add the cooled shallot mixture into a metal mixing bowl along with a tablespoon of water and the egg yolks, then whisk to combine. Turn the heat under the saucepan of water to low, and put the bowl on top of the pan, making sure that it does not touch the water directly. Whisk the yolks until they thicken, doubling in volume, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Slowly beat in the butter, a tablespoon or two at a time, whisking slowly to combine and emulsify. Remove the bowl from the pan occasionally, so as not to overcook the eggs, and taste the sauce. Season with salt and add the lemon juice. Add the remaining teaspoon of tarragon leaves.
- Poach the eggs.
- Divide the stuffing in between four plates. Add one poached eggs over each pile and top with the sauce.
Written after the packing was done.
Eggs benedict with Béarnaise
Thanksgiving Eggs Benedict with Béarnaise sauce is a creative way to use up holiday leftovers and ditches the hollandaise for a tarragon treat.
Ingredients
- 1/2 TB unsalted butter
- 2 cups leftover Thanksgiving stuffing
- 4 poached eggs
- For the sauce:
- ¼ cup white-wine vinegar
- 1 small shallot, peeled and minced
- ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon chopped tarragon leaves
- 2 egg yolks
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- Kosher salt, to taste
- 1/2 lemon juiced
Directions
- Step 1 In a small skillet, add 1/2 TB butter and let it melt. Over low heat, add the stuffing and let heat through and crisp up at the bottom.
- Step 2 Meanwhile, make the sauce. Put the vinegar, shallots, black pepper and 1 tablespoon of tarragon leaves into a small saucepan, and set over a medium flame. Bring just to a boil, and then reduce heat to a simmer until there are only a few tablespoons of liquid left, approximately 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and set aside to cool.
- Step 3 Fill a small saucepan with an inch or two of water, and set over medium-high heat to boil. Add the cooled shallot mixture into a metal mixing bowl along with a tablespoon of water and the egg yolks, then whisk to combine. Turn the heat under the saucepan of water to low, and put the bowl on top of the pan, making sure that it does not touch the water directly. Whisk the yolks until they thicken, doubling in volume, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Slowly beat in the butter, a tablespoon or two at a time, whisking slowly to combine and emulsify. Remove the bowl from the pan occasionally, so as not to overcook the eggs, and taste the sauce. Season with salt and add the lemon juice. Add the remaining teaspoon of tarragon leaves.
- Step 4 Poach the eggs.
- Step 5 Divide the stuffing in between four plates. Add one poached eggs over each pile and top with the sauce.
Laura would love this
It’s sooo good. I have to go back to Big Jones!