Best. Damn. Baked Eggs. Ever.
It's official.
Our society has finally achieved peak bacon.
I mean, c'mon… How else to explain the preponderance of bacon-centric products that have flooded the internet and retail outlets?
A simple Google search will highlight a wide range of cured pork products, including such delicacies as bacon-flavored chewing gum, bacon-infused vodka, bacon covered donuts, bacon wrapped hot dogs, baconnaise, bacon-scented dryer sheets, bacon soda, bacon ice cream, bacon-shaped memory sticks, and –– last, but certainly not least –– bacon-flavored sex lube.
Now, I'll be the first to admit that bacon is a mighty fine product AND a delicious product, too. But does the world really need a pork-flavored sexual aid?
Errrrrrhhh… You might not want to answer that.
Anywhooooo…
Here's where I'm going with all this: as delicious as bacon is, the plain and simple truth is that our kitchens and –– hell –– now our bedrooms, have become overwhelmed with the product, and it's quite possible that we're in the midst of a bacon bubble, similar in size and scope to the recent dot-com or real estate bubbles.
Believe me when I say that, when the bacon bubble bursts, it ain't gonna' be pretty (though it should be mighty tasty).
The other plain and simple truth I'd like to share with you all is this: there are other cured pork products available –– products much, MUCH tastier than bacon –– which deserve a place in the kitchen (and not your bedroom).
For example...
PROSCIUTTO!
Uhhhhh.... Yeah. Looks kinda' gross, but –– DAMN –– tastes amazeballs!
Yes, I just used the word "amazeballs."
And though prosciutto is really quite the treat on its own, true kitchen magic takes place when the salty, savory taste of this aged pork product is used almost like packaging –– a special kind of packaging that compliments and enhances the flavor of any food item it's wrapped around.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to present one of the easiest recipes imaginable, one of the most stylish recipes imaginable, and –– honest to God –– one of the most amazeballicious recipes imaginable…
Prosciutto-Wrapped Baked Eggs
Oh Sweet Holy Hell! This stuff is good! And oh-so-easy to make...
Here's what you're gonna do.
Step 1:
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (approximately 190 degrees Celsius).
Step 2:
Take a muffin tin (either metal or silicone) and pour about a half-teaspoon of olive oil into the bottom of each cup that you'll end up placing an egg into. In other words, figure out how many eggs you want to cook, and then drop a bit of olive oil into that number of muffin tin cups.
Steps 3:
Take strips of prosciutto, and trim them into pieces (scissors work great for this) approximately six inches long and about an inch wide. Then use these trimmed pieces to line the inside rim of each cup, forming a wrapper of sorts.
Step 4:
Drop a two finger pinch of shredded parmesan cheese into the bottom of each prosciutto-lined cup.
Step 5:
Drop a pinch of dried crushed sage into the bottom of each prosciutto-lined cup.
Step 6:
Crack a raw egg into each of the lined cups.
Step 7:
Drop a three-finger pinch of shredded parmesan cheese on top of each egg.
Step 8:
Sprinkle a dash or two of smoked paprika on top of the parmesan.
If you're confused in any way by these instructions, the photo below should provide some reference, and outline how the various ingredients go together.
Step 9:
Place the muffin tin in the oven, on one of the lower racks, about a third of the way towards the bottom, and bake for ten minutes or so.
Step 10:
Then place the muffin tin on an upper rack, about a third of the way towards the top, and bake for about five minutes.
Step 11:
Check in on the eggs, seeing if the cheese on top has started to brown and/or bubble up. If so, pull the muffin tin out of the oven and set on a counter; if not, continue to bake for another minute or so, until the cheese does start to brown or bubble.
Step 12:
Allow the tin to cool for a minute, then –– using a soft spatula or large spoon –– scoop each egg gently from its cup, and place onto a paper towel to drain.
Step 14*:
Once on the towel and draining, allow the eggs to cool down for another minute.
Step 15:
Close all the windows and lock all the doors.
Step 16:
Put on some nice, soft music.
Step: 17:
Light a candle. Maybe burn some incense.
Step 18:
Try to maintain some sense of composure as you dine in pure ecstatic delight on the Best. Damn. Baked Eggs. Ever.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
*Yes. I skipped Step 13. That would be the unlucky step.
I made these and they were delicious. I had a few substitutions: I didn’t have any prosciutto on hand, so I used deli turkey meat. I also added four leaves of spinach to the bottom of the muffin cups. Yum yum
Sara: Glad to know they were delicious, even without any prosciutto on hand. And I’m sure they turned out well with just turkey meat as the wrapping. I’d be willing to bet that thin sliced roast beef would work well, too.
Sara made these for us to have for our breakfast at airport departing from Portland to Florida.
They were delicious!!!
Sandy: This really is a great recipe, isn’t it? And if you’ve got friends or family coming over for breakfast/lunch/blunch, this is fantastic way to impress them with your cooking skills (just don’t tell them how easy it is to make these).