80 Breakfasts

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Breakfast #62: Bacon and Eggs en cocotte

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I’ve always been a touch shameless when it comes to adapting inflections and expressions from other cultures.  I take what I like and use it without thought to the language police that may soon come knocking at my door for blatant misuse of material that does not, rightfully, belong to me.  Sometimes, I don’t even know where a certain pronunciation comes from…I just like the way it rolls off my tongue, and so, just like that, it is mine.

I know grammar teachers and English language purists may very likely be shaking their fists at me right now, but in truth, I’m happy with my choices.  I’m (looong) done with school, I know the rules, and to the best of my knowledge, I’m not truly breaking any of them.  Just being a bit of an irritating borrower ๐Ÿ™‚

For example: I love the way Australians say “eski” instead of “cooler” — so much sassier.  I also love the way both Australians and British say fillet as “fil-let” instead of “fih-ley“, so I say it that way too…let’s celebrate the “T” shall we?  In the same line, I always pronounce the “t” in often (oft-ten) — in fact, I say the word “often” quite often because I just can’t get enough of the way it sounds.  Same with the “l” in salmon.  I say “sal-mon”, not “sa-mon” no matter how many time my mother cracks a whip at me.  I very secretly love the way the British say “maths” instead of “math”…although admittedly, I haven’t mustered the guts to use it…yet.

Anyway, this is all to say that, and this is just my humble opinion, in life there are things you can’t change and things you can.  The secret is knowing the difference.

Also, almost everything sounds much more sophisticated in French.

Bacon and Eggs en cocotte

  • Butter for the pan
  • 2 eggs (or, alternately, 1 egg + 1 egg yolk)
  • 2 strips of bacon, each cut into half
  • 1 teaspoon full of cream cheese
  • 1 tablespoon of cream
  • Sea salt and pepper

– Place a small pat of butter in a ramekin or any oven proof dish that will hold 2 eggs.  Rub the butter to coat the inside of the ramekin.
– Place the bacon strips on the bottom and sides of the ramekin.  Place the cream cheese on the bottom of the ramekin, on top of the bacon, and spread to cover the whole bottom part.  Gently pour in your 2 eggs (or 1 egg and 1 yolk).  Pour your cream on top of the egg white, leaving the yolks exposed.  Top with some sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
– Place the ramekin in a pan and pour into the pan some hot water until the water comes up to about halfway the sides of the ramekin.  Place in a pre-heated 350F oven and baked for about 15 minutes (more or less, depending on how you like your eggs cooked).  Serves one.

Whether you call this en cocotte or simply baked eggs, does not ultimately detract from its deliciousness.  It is a warm, creamy, luscious blanket of comfort.  Whether to fortify you for a busy day, or reward yourself on a bright Sunday morning for a hard week of work, it is perfection in its simplicity.  Which is really what bacon and eggs is, in my book at least…that stalwart pair you will keep coming back to no matter what bizarre diets or mystifying food trends may come.  A piece of warm toast to dunk in and make a mess with, and you are set for the mother of all therapy sessions.

So while we are cozily installed amidst our Sunday morning breakfasts, let’s take a look around, our rooms and our lives, and see what we could change towards making us happier people.  It could be moving the sofa to the other end of the room, or changing the way we see the world, or simply changing the way we say the word “often”.  Make sure to take a good look because there may be things lying around (our rooms or our lives) that we always thought were unchangeable…but actually are the very things ripest for change.

Comments

  4. Haha. I guess I am like that too. I borrow words that I think sound cool or I pronounce it the way I think sounds best. Ofcourse with English not being my mother tongue, I'm forgiven most 'mistakes' even the ones I made on purpose!

    Reply

  5. My favorite egg dish of all time is something similar, Ina Garten's baked eggs. I add half a strip of bacon halfway through as Chrissy Teigen (a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model with a food blog) suggested. Delicious!!

    Reply

  7. I'm having brunch while reading this and now your gorgeous pic just made me ravenously hungry for eggs & bacon. Off to the freezer to get the B pack! Thanks for sharing,Joey! Love all your posts! Happy Thanksgiving from over here. Grateful for your friendship, love and support! Hugs!

    Reply

  9. Hi Cath! Yes it did — it's a contraction for mathematics ๐Ÿ™‚

    Hi Laura! That's what I thought when I made it ๐Ÿ™‚

    Hi Rosa! Thanks!

    Hi Simone! I should just claim ignorance! ๐Ÿ˜‰

    Hi Kat! I will check out that recipe!

    Hi Mieke! Hope you like it! ๐Ÿ™‚

    Hi BettyAnn! Thank you for your warm words! Hugs back!! ๐Ÿ™‚

    Hi Fork and Whisk! Thanks! ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply

  13. I remember seeing "maths" in the Enid Blyton school-stories my aunts passed on to me when I was a kid! And, having done some voice acting over the years, I know the appeal of trying out different accents. (The Scots burr, in particular, is most intriguing…)

    And I love the idea of oeufs en cocotte; they're so moreish and comforting. ๐Ÿ˜€

    Reply

  16. Hi Jen! I hear you! ๐Ÿ˜‰

    Hi Gio! I think we learned to make a version of this in high school cooking class as well except we used muffin tins! ๐Ÿ™‚

    Thanks Scott!

    Hi Midge! You are a voice actor! How exciting!

    Hi Eric! Enjoy!

    Hi Kamฤa! Thanks ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply

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