Broiled Eggs with Goat Cheese and Arugula

Post and images by guest blogger, Rebecca White, of A Pleasant Little Kitchen. 

Visit her full blog or find out more about her here. 

My first introduction to baked eggs was from Ina Garten. The ease of the recipe was appealing and the flavors were everything I craved. When I wanted to impress guests at breakfast, I would make her creation.

It was an addictive combination of eggs, butter, cream, garlic, fresh herbs and parmesan. French perfection.

The more I made this recipe, the more it transformed into my own...as many recipes should in your kitchen as well.

To perfect my recipe, I read up on French baked eggs (with the assistance of the hallowed Julia Child).

I kept the traditional flavor profile of French shirred eggs of butter and cream but maintained a broiling method like Ina. However I abandoned individual thin gratin dishes for one to two large tart pans and opted for a different flavor profile.

Goat cheese, arugula and hot sauce.

When it comes to the ingredients for these broiled eggs, the selections available at Market Street are easily accessible and full of variety. From basic to fancy, the options are well-priced and varied.

While hot sauce may seem like the cherry on top, it can affect the overall taste of the final dish. These sauces contain different ingredients that yield different flavor profiles.

Have fun with what you top these eggs with.

The hot sauce selection at Market Street contains some of the most expected varieties: Texas Pete, Louisiana, Tabasco. However, if you focus a little more on the shelf, you will see a vast array of hot sauces.

Orange Label Habanero! Wildfire Hot Sauce! Creamy Hatch!

There is also my old faithful. The hot sauce that always has a place in my pantry. Cholula.

For the first few rounds of testing, I went with Cholula. On the last test I went with Frankie V’s Orange Label Habanero. It did not disappoint.

Take a peek at the variety of hot sauces that your Market Street has to offer.

With all the flavors combined in one dish, the result is exactly what I crave in my breakfast. Rich. Creamy. Tart. Salty. Spicy.

Once the cream and butter are broiled, the eggs quickly go into the pan and are then topped with more ingredients (salt, goat cheese and freshly chopped garlic) to create poignant flavor.

Back into the oven to cook the eggs and brown the cheese. Patience is the only thing required.

The warmth and aroma float from the oven and it's hard not to get excited.

Out of the oven the pan comes for a final touch of freshly chopped arugula and an artistic  splash of hot sauce.

Ohh and ahh your way to a fast, delicious and impressive breakfast.

Serve with crusty bread, a cup of coffee and a giant smile.

Broiled Eggs with Goat Cheese and Arugula

Author note: A glass or ceramic pie pan also works for this recipe. If you want to double the recipe, use two pie pans. This is a easy way to serve breakfast to a crowd.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup cream

6 eggs

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

4 garlic cloves, chopped

1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese

1/2 cup arugula, chopped

hot sauce

Instructions

1) Heat the broiler to 500 degrees.

2) Crack the eggs and set aside. Prepare all other ingredients (chop garlic, chop arugula, crumble goat cheese).

3) In a 9 inch tart pan, add the butter and cream. Adjust the oven rack so the pan is 6 inches from the broiler and broil for 3 minutes.

4) Remove pan. Add the eggs and then evenly distribute the salt, garlic and goat cheese. Place back into the oven.

5) Broil for 4-5 minutes and remove (4 minute for a runny egg, 5 minutes to a cooked egg).

6) Top with arugula and hot sauce. Serve warm with crusty bread.