Madhouse recipe : Full English Breakfast Egg-in-a-hole

This is great as a light lunch or evening meal but would also be perfect as a special breakfast in bed, for Valentine's day or maybe even father's day in a couple of weeks. You could change the toppings to suit your tastes, with a spicy tomato sauce for a huevos rancheros-style Mexican twist or a side serving of mashed avocado and lime wedges to go a bit Californian.

 Full English Breakfast Egg-in-a-hole

ingredients :

(per serving)

2 slices of bread

margarine

150g bacon pieces

1 onion, chopped

1 tomato, cut into wedges

2 mushrooms, sliced

1 egg

Fry the bacon pieces and onion. Reserve.

Use the bacon fat to fry up some mushrooms and tomatoes. Reserve.

Lightly spread one side of the bread slices with margarine and fry them in the same pan that you used for the other ingredients. Alternatively pop them in a sandwich toaster "buttered" sides facing out - I used the Optigrill which gives them these lovely ridges. Lay the slices on top of ech other and use a cookie cutter (I used heart shaped but round would work just as well, or any other shape you like) to cut out a hole in each slice. 

Turn the heat down on the pan and pop the bread slices in it, then carefully crack an egg into the hole. It's easier to crack it into a bowl then slide it gently into place so that the yolk doesn't break. Cook for a couple of minutes until the bottom of the white is firm.

Place the tomatoes and mushrooms around the edges, as well as the heart-shaped cutout of bread. Scatter bacon pieces and onions over the top (or around the edges if you want the heart-shaped egg to be more visible). Pop into a preheated oven (at 180°) for a few minutes until the top of the white has set but the yolk is still runny.

Carefully transfer to a plate with a fish slices and serve with a dollop of ketchup or brown sauce on the side.