Eggs Benedict, simplified

First, here is a little background.

There is a general misconception (mostly) that eating healthy implies following an array of complicated recipes which use lots of ingredients, many more spices, and take lots of time to prepare or/and cook. Many times in the past, I found myself searching for something new to prepare for my meals. There are lots of recipes with beautifully staged, photoshopped photos out there.

When I finally get to read the list of ingredients, preparation, and cooking time I can’t help but get frustrated. “There is absolutely no way I will waste that amount of time cooking something that I will eat in 10 minutes or less,” I tell to myself most of the time. Whatever I eat is simple, delicious, and requires minimal or no cooking.

One day, Claudia, a friend who spends lots of time cooking three times a day just for herself, told me she was surprised that despite I don't cook, or cook very little I still manage to eat healthy. I told her that I really can’t waste so much time of my day just cooking. I don’t have the time or the patience for it. I explained that I like simple food, with a few ingredients, as natural as possible.

Many times, I make my own experiments and inventions out of whatever there is in the fridge. It’s nice to be creative and experiment with different flavours, combining things that are not commonly combined and see what it comes out of it. After all, if you don’t try something you will never know if you like it, or not, right?

We started joking about “cooking with Susan.” So I said: “Not cooking with Susan is more appropriate!” I wondered if anyone else would find my non-cooking or minimal cooking method useful. That’s how the idea of Not cooking with Susan was born.

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My version of Eggs Benedict

I initially bought Hollandaise sauce for a quick dish with asparagus. Unfortunately, I forgot to buy the asparagus. So, what else could I make with the sauce? Eggs Benedict! 

My challenge is how to make a version of anything faster and easier, with little dirty dishes left behind. And I came up with this, my own version of the classic dish, now reinvented for Not Cooking with Susan. 

First, the classic and original Eggs Benedict, which is ready in between 20 to 30 minutes. An eternity! 

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Eggs Benedict: the classic + four more ways 

Eggs Benedict is an American breakfast or brunch dish, usually consisting of two halves of an English muffin, each topped with Canadian bacon, a poached egg, and hollandaise sauce. It was served for the first time in 1894 in the Waldorf Hotel in New York. 

For beautiful results of Eggs Benedict by the great Jamie Oliver, I like watching this video. But it's just too complicated to make one just for myself, and more time consuming than my humble version.

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My simplified version of Eggs Benedict in five minutes

It was a really easy, quick, and delicious breakfast for a Saturday morning in just five minutes. This was my first time cooking this variation of Eggs Benedict.

Ingredients:

- 3 eggs

- hollandaise sauce (I didn’t make the sauce)

I boiled the eggs for 5 minutes. When ready, I peeled them and cut them in halves. I placed them on a dish and added the hollandaise sauce that I had warmed up in the microwave for a few seconds while the eggs were boiling. That’s it! Ready to enjoy. Easy, quick, and delicious.

You can put the egg halves on top of a toast or an English muffin, if you wish, and add toppings as you like.

For me, cooking is about making simple things and experimenting.

Enjoy with a cup of tea or coffee.

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