Cracker Eggs

Author Notes

Growing up, I spent many a summer at my aunt and uncle's house on Long Island where we spent hours clamming, crabbing, cooking, and eating. My uncle’s usual job was cleaning up and loading the dishwasher—a task only he was allowed to do. But "cracker eggs" were, apparently, the one dish he could make and he took it pretty seriously. A riff on matzo brei, it used the pantry's ever-present saltines—the little red plastic and wire cracker sleeve closure thingy being saved by my aunt for “terribly-useful-stocking-stuffers.”

The eggs are whisked until frothy while a good-sized puddle of butter is melted in a pan. The saltines are then dunked in the eggs and placed in the pan filling as much space as possible. The eggs are poured over the crackers, the pan tilted to cover every nook and cranny. Once set, the pan is flipped to brown the other side, then the cracker eggs are slid onto a plate. My uncle would serve them with jam, which was often a homemade concoction from heaven knows what year, a horrible skin of sorts having been removed prior to being set down in front of me. As a result I usually ate them as is with just salt and pepper, but I have a new addiction to chile crunch, which would be great as well. —savorthis

Test Kitchen Notes

I made this recipe twice, once as written and once with a small tweak. I found there was too much butter the first time, so I reduced to 1 tablespoon the second time. It was still good for dinner with a green salad. —TNH