Kate’s Eggs Benedict

Serves 8

You will need:

• 4 egg yolks

• 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

• 425g butter, melted and warm

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

• Juice of ½ a lemon

• 2 eggs per person

• 2 pieces of cooked streaky bacon per person

• 2 slices of toast or an English muffin per person

1 To make the hollandaise sauce, put a pot half-filled with water over a medium heat and bring it to a simmer, not a boil. Put the egg yolks and the white wine vinegar in a heatproof bowl and whisk briefly with a hand-held balloon whisk, then put the bowl over the pot of simmering water and whisk until the mixture is light in colour.

2 Once the light colour is achieved, remove the pot from the heat. Put a tea towel on your counter top and make a nest shape of it, into which you can rest the heatproof bowl. Then slowly add the melted butter to the bowl, whisking all the time. Do this slowly, making sure to leave behind the butter sediment.

3 Once all the butter has been incorporated, season the sauce with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and add the lemon juice. Keep the hollandaise in a warm place — not on direct heat — until you’re ready to serve.

4 To poach the eggs, my preferred method is to break the eggs into water that’s at a rolling boil and contains a dollop of vinegar. These will help to hold the egg together.

5 Serve with the cooked streaky bacon and the toast or the English muffins, whichever you’re using, and either serve the hollandaise sauce on top of the eggs or on the side.