Spinach Baked Eggs

I think I may have mentioned, once or twice over the past few weeks, that we’ve had enough of winter here We don’t do winter very well here at chez Gerald, and Mummy truly believes that there is a strict patience quota for the amount of gloomy days, howling wind, squally showers, and sheer darkness by 6:00pm that one has each year. And ours was reached about a month ago

The good news, though, is that every day there are clear signs that spring is just around the corner. There are lots of exciting things in the pipeline for us over the next few months: in chronological order, it’s Mummy’s birthday next Sunday. As we mentioned in our previous post, Mummy has already received her birthday present from Daddy and Jerry, but the anticipation hype is now fuelled by Chef Gerald’s search for a suitable birthday cake recipe. He has not quite made up his mind yet, but please stay tuned for that over the next few days.

The big countdown till Mummy and Daddy’s holiday to Europe (and Jerry’s holiday at Uncle John’s) has also started!!! Only 23 days left now! And there will be a really special birthday cake and lots of birdie fun presents the week after Mummy and Daddy’s return, for Chef Gerald’s first birthday! No wonder we’re a little too eager in our spring anticipation this year….

Yet another clear sign that the change of seasons is about to happen came in our weekly veggie box this week, in the form of 2  lovely bunches of… spinach! That’s right, real spinach, not the baby variety, but the bright green, crunchy, fully grown species! Yay!

We just had to celebrate as soon as possible, which meant spinach baked eggs for breakfast. This is really easy to make, doesn’t take long to cook, and it makes you feel like you’re having a terribly indulgent and posh brekkie The flavour combination is fantastic, as the tow complement each other incredibly well.

Spinach Baked Eggs

1 large bunch spinach

4 good quality eggs

2 tbsp olive oil

A little melted butter for drizzling over the eggs

Trim the roots from the spinach, then rinse the leaves and stalks in several changes of water, until the water runs clear. Coarsely chop the spinach.

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan, then add the chopped spinach and cook for a fee we minutes, until wilted and most of the liquid is evaporated.

In the mean time, preheat your oven grill to maximum. Lightly grease 2 ramekin dishes (large enough to hold two eggs).

Divide the cooked spinach into two equal portions and place into ramekins. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Crack two eggs for each ramekins and place them over the spinach. Drizzle a little melted butter over the eggs.

Place the ramekins under the hot grill. Cooking times will vary depending on your grill temperature and how you prefer your eggs done. Here in the Land of Oz, we’ve been fortunate enough not be affected by a large scale salmonella outbreak, so we’re still quite partial to soft eggs. On the other hand though, we also believe that good quality eggs taste fantastic even when they’re thoroughly cooked – and Mummy even has a soft spot for “crunchy” eggs (but that may be an entirely different story…..).

So, going back to our cooking times – about 6 minutes should give you soft eggs, and 10 minutes should ensure that they are thoroughly cooked. Serve with good quality fresh bread or toast. Serves two.

Chef Gerald wasn’t able to sample this dish for us – “ouchy hot” contents! However, there was plenty of action in the Bistro kitchen to keep him otherwise entertained:

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