One-Eyed Sandwiches
Share
- ✉
-
Author Notes: Although they go by many other names -- egg in the basket, egg-in-the-hole, bird's nest, to name a few -- in our house we called them "one-eyed sandwiches," and the technique originated with my grandfather. I'm biased, to be sure, but there are a few small details that I think really make Grandpa's egg sandwiches better than all the other versions out there. The first is the use of white bread. (Believe me, I love grainy, wheaty bread as much as the next person, but for these sandwiches, white bread is the way to go.) Grandpa always preferred Pepperidge Farm, which has a bit of sweetness to it. Another key step is toasting the bread before you fry it. This ensures that it's nice and crisp, which makes a nice counterpart to the salty, soft-cooked egg. Last but not least, Grandpa never threw away the little rounds of toast but instead fried them along with the sandwiches, and these then became little lids for the "eyes" at the end. My sister and I always saved these for last, as a final crisp, buttery treat. I'm guessing that any small people who happen to be at your house for breakfast will do the same. - merrill
Serves 2
- 2 slices white bread
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 large eggs, preferably free-range and/or organic
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Lightly toast the bread and butter both sides with 1 tablespoon of the butter. Using a 1 1/2" round biscuit cutter (or a shot glass), cut a circle out of the middle of each slice of bread. Do not throw away the circles!
- In a medium, nonstick skillet, melt the remaining tablespoon of butter over medium heat. When it starts foaming, add the toast slices and the little toast rounds and cook for a minute or two on each side, until nice and golden. Push the little rounds to one side of the pan, and then gently crack an egg into the hole of each slice of toast. Cook for about 2 minutes, until the white has set around the sides of the sandwich, and then gently flip and cook the other side for another minute or so, until the whites are cooked through but the yolks are still nice and runny. Put each sandwich on a plate, top with the crispy little toast rounds, and serve immediately with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
More Great Recipes
Share a Recipe
Enter one of our contests, or share that great thing you made for dinner last night.
Add a Recipe
2 months ago Droplet
I was leafing through a 30 years old cookbook recently and the recipe called for putting a whole peppercorn in the center of the yolk once it begins to set...somebody took their one-eyed sandwiches very seriously :)
8 months ago dawnek
I ate my fair share of these growing up, my dad, a former marine mess hall cook, called these elephant eyes.
10 months ago latinacocina
My little sister always called them "egg with a hole in the middle"!! Doesn't really make sense when you think about it, but she was 4, and it stuck.
11 months ago rpenovich
My sister-in-law in England calls these Toad-in-the-Hole like Msveedub above. My 10-year-old craves the buttery, griddled bread and we can always entice him to eat an egg if it's Toad-in-the-Hole. Although he always eats the "bread circle" first. Merrill, I don't how you and sister could resist and save it til the end. :)
about 1 year ago jumpinjavelina
Ours were One Eyed Jacks - like the Brando movie!
about 1 year ago bgardner
Our family always called these "Eggs in a basket" LOL
about 1 year ago bgardner
Our family always called these "Eggs in a basket" LOL
about 1 year ago Lyn Fenton
Berkeley in the fifties we called them Shanghai eggs ..... and the little rounds were the best part!
about 1 year ago Lyn Fenton
Berkeley in the fifties we called them Shanghai eggs ..... and the little rounds were the best part!
over 1 year ago jose ramon
My kids love when I make this for them, I call them " Moon over Miami. " and we use the circle " moon" to dip into the yolk.
over 1 year ago mcs3000
I make it the same way - mmm. Have you also had the one by 'ino (truffled egg toast) in New York? Amanda wrote about it in Cooking for Mr. Latte. Worth a trip just for that.
over 1 year ago Amanda.b
mmm, I just had to make these as soon as I saw the recipe. So simple and so satisfying!
over 1 year ago whmcdevitt
funny, all these different names......my dad made them for my brother and sisters
and he called them "dead eyed Dick"....lol
almost 2 years ago TaraT
Dinner tonight! We called them egg surprise, they were as tasty then as they are now!
about 2 years ago Msveedub
These were Toads in the Hole =)
about 2 years ago Miche
My fave as a kid- we called them one-eyed eggs. I can't believe anyone would throw away the middle circle!! Best part.
about 2 years ago violist
Is this an Americanized variation on the Croque Madam (sp), and if it is, do you know its history? The picture alone wants me to make it for dinner tonight!
over 2 years ago jamcook
In my family they are called "Egg with a Hat" and are always ordered with "extra hats".