confit egg yolks
I love eggs, in all forms. Runny, hard, scrambled, in a quiche, frittata, heck even the little eggy edge of a French toast is so good. As a self-proclaimed egg aficionado, it was about time that I did something fancy - and nothing is fancier than a confit. What is a confit? Who knows, who cares, but it sounds fancy! (Confit is a French term to slowly cook something in fat at a low temperature; it’s great for preserving produce or creating fall-off-the-bone tender meats).
Confit egg yolks is one of those party tricks that no one really asks for but everyone is wildly impressed by. Egg yolks slowly simmer in a bath of olive oil, and the result is kind of like a yolk butter - it’s jammy, spreadable, and extremely satisfying. And while I believe everything belongs on toast, these 100% do, so slather these confit’d yolks on some crusty bread with some black pepper, flaky sea salt, and grated parmesan and you have a simple yet extremely fancy appetizer.
prep time: 10 minutes | cook time: 25 minutes
INGREDIENTS
for the egg yolks:
4 high-quality eggs (pasture raised, organic are best…we’re looking for orange yolks!)
1 cup high-quality olive oil
2 cloves garlic
optional: peppercorns, thyme, chilis
for the toasts:
4 small slices of sourdough OR 8 slices of baguette, toasted
2 oz. parmesan
flaky sea salt + cracked black pepper
2 tbsp. honey (optional)
2 avocados (optional)
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 200°F. In a small mixing bowl, crack each egg and gently separate the yolk from the white using your hands, peeling away any white membrane that might be stuck to the yolk. Gently drop each egg yolk in an oven-safe ramekin (2 yolks per ramekin).
To each ramekin, add 1 clove garlic. Cover the egg yolks and garlic with enough olive oil to completely cover the tops of the yolks, about 1/2 cup olive oil for each ramekin. Bake for 25 minutes.
Spread 1 egg yolk per slice of toasted sourdough, or 1/2 egg yolk per slice of toasted baguette, whichever you’re using. Sprinkle each toast with flaky sea salt, then finely grated parmesan, cracked black pepper, and honey, if using. If using avocado for a breakfast toast, add right before the parmesan.
