Eggs Benedict with Homemade Hollandaise

Eggs Benedict with Dairy-Free Homemade Hollandaise

Hollandaise sauce is one of the most famous French sauces. It’s like a ”must have” component for eggs benedict. There are so many recipes for hollandaise that I have tried. However, I found that the best hollandaise sauce technique is still the classical way. So, the inspiration comes from the classic cookbook “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck. I just love that book and this Hollandaise sauce is inspired by this book! I have introduced that book before in this post. If you read the instructions, then it might look like it’s too hard or long. However, it’s worth it and I have given you very precise instructions. So, don’t be afraid of it!

So, after I tried to make the sauce for several times I changed the amount of the ingredients a little bit (the recipe said that 170 – 220 g butter) but I decided to make a little bit smaller batch (90 g butter). Then finally I was so curious to try to make the Hollandaise dairy-free. So, I tried to use coconut butter. IT WORKS! Also, you can always use usual butter as well if you don’t have anything against dairy. But at least you have a choice! I’m not even gone say that it’s healthy but at least you can make it a little bit healthier and if you don’t eat too much sauce at once, then you’re gone be fine. I just think that I don’t have to go too crazy with “healthy” eating.

This eggs benny recipe here isn’t the classic recipe. Usually, you need to use English muffins and always you have to use bacon. However, sometimes I don’t have bacon at home and then I just improvise. The vegetarian version of eggs benny is of course with mushrooms. So, again you have a choice.

Eggs Benedict with Dairy-Free Homemade Hollandaise

Eggs Benedict

Serve for two

Ingredients

  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tbsp of vinegar
  • 4 bigger mushrooms (or some slices of bacon)
  • a handful of rocket leaves & some cherry tomatoes
  • 2-4 slices of wholegrain bread (or gluten-free bread)
  • For the Hollandaise sauce:
    • 90 g coconut butter without coconut taste (or usual butter) for melting + 15 g cold butter + 15 g cold butter
    • 2 egg yolks
    • 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
    • 1 tbsp water
    • salt
    • Some extra salt, white pepper, lemon juice for seasoning

Instructions

  1. How to make hollandaise sauce?
    • Melt the coconut butter in a saucepan. Set aside.
    • Whisk egg yolk in a different saucepan (or bowl) with hand wire whisk about 30-60 seconds until it goes a little bit thick. Then add lemon juice, water and salt. Whisk another 30 seconds.
    • Add 15 g cold butter and place the bowl or a saucepan over barely simmering water (water bath) and keep whisking until the mixture goes into nice creamy and quite thick (it shouldn’t be too hot and even if you see it going to scrambled eggs then you might save it over cold water bath). However, when you get the scrambled eggs then there’s not much to do and you can’t get Hollandaise sauce). It’s ready when it coats the back of a spoon Be patient!
    • Remove from the heat and whisk in another 15 g of cold butter.
    • Start beating in the melted butter what you did before. While whisking the egg yolks mixture pour the melted butter drop by drop until the sauce begins to look more like heavy cream. Start adding more and more melted butter until you’re out of butter (like making mayonnaise by hand).

I usually make a bigger batch of sauce. There’s enough sauce here for at least 8-10 people. I can always use it for later. It should stay refrigerated for a few days in a jar. There’s always possible to freeze the sauce. You just need to heat the refrigerated sauce in a water bath before using and if it’s too thick then add some 1 tbsp of hot water. Also, it goes perfectly together with fish!

Troubleshooting guide:

  • The sauce goes to scrambled eggs? You heat the egg yolks too quickly and the temperature was too hot. The heating part has to be slow and gentle.
  • Not thick enough? Try to heat the egg yolks longer. The other problem might be the amount of butter. When you add too much butter at first, then the sauce will not thicken. The eggs just can’t absorb the amount of butter that quickly. If that happens, then you can always take one tbsp of lemon juice and 1 tbsp of sauce and whisk it together until it thickens. Then add the rest of the sauce. However, when there’s too much butter, then the sauce might still curdle.
  • Too thick? Beat in one tbsp of hot water, milk or cream.
  1. How to poach an egg? There are thousands of solutions for poaching an egg. However, I have found that the best way for me is to use a non-sticking saucepan. Before I used a whisk and lightly swirled the water. But when I worked in the kitchen and I had to poach for example 20 eggs for every breakfast, then I realized that using the saucepan is easier. It just depends on how many eggs are you doing at the same time and how much mess you would like to make. So, how I poach an egg?
  • Choose very fresh eggs (then it´s easier to poach an egg).
  • Just fill the saucepan with water and add a tbsp vinegar.
  • Get the water to boil and then lower the heat a little bit. There has to be only very small bubbles. You don´t need the big bubbles. If the water boils too much, then it will break the egg into small pieces.
  • Gently break the egg into the water (you can put the egg into the small bowl and pour them from there as well). Do the same thing with the rest of the eggs.
  • The water has to simmer for 2-3 minutes. The egg yolk should be still soft when you gently touch it with a finger. You would like to have runny eggs. The egg white should be thick.
  • Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and put it on the paper towel to get rid of the excess vinegar.
  • Still sounds confusing? There are many good videos for poaching an egg.
  1. Fry the mushrooms with coconut butter until golden (or fry crispy bacon without oil and start on a cold pan). Toast the bread in a frying pan with some coconut butter.
  2. Serve the poached eggs with toasted bread, mushrooms (or bacon), salad leaves and warm hollandaise sauce. Add some freshly ground pepper.

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