The Fluffy Eggs That Have Taken Over Instagram (and My Heart)

Over the past few days, I’ve been seeing an increasing number of cloud eggs on Instagram. They're pretty little things, sunny pearls of yolk ensconced by pillowy whites, and they look an awful lot like meringues.

They’re created by separating the yolks from the whites, whisking the whites furiously, placing the fluffy whipped whites in a on a baking tray with concave dips for the yolks, seating the yolks back in those pouches, and baking them in the oven at 350°F until they’re golden and firm. (Some instructions have you bake the whites, sans yolks, for five to eight minutes and then add the yolks in before baking them for a bit longer in the oven. Pick your poison.)

There’s precisely nothing new about cooking your eggs this way, but it’s a method that has gained so much traction on Instagram over the past few weeks that it’s been fermented into what we’d call a “trend," permeating even the Today Show, that most mainstream of outlets. At the very least, it’s inspired a coterie of images on Instagram that are pretty striking. Cloud eggs have been photographed lovingly in different milieus—beds of greens, milky-white plates, pale slices of toast. Another day, another food fad that’s swallowed social media. But I’m not mad at it.

See more cloud eggs here—and let us know how you make (or photograph!) yours in the comments.