Eggs feature in so many recipes in my kitchen from baking to simply being brushed onto raw pastry to create a golden glazed top. They also create spare bits on many occasions where recipes ask for just the yolk or three whole eggs and two yolks, the question is what to do with the bits the recipes don't need?
This is when the freezer jumps into play and you will always find zip lock bags with eggs whites and yolks happily waiting in the bottom of my freezer till I need them. I freeze them in two's and they don't take long to defrost at all.
The following recipe calls for 2 whole eggs and 2 egg yolks. It was made for lunch with a friend and alongside a dressed green salad made a fantastic afternoon treat;
Link to printable recipe
Adding extra yolks to recipes adds fantastic richness to a dish but you are left with egg whites and I know you may be tempted to let them run down the sink when you separate them but think again, this is what two eggs whites can become with a little sugar;
This is when the freezer jumps into play and you will always find zip lock bags with eggs whites and yolks happily waiting in the bottom of my freezer till I need them. I freeze them in two's and they don't take long to defrost at all.
The following recipe calls for 2 whole eggs and 2 egg yolks. It was made for lunch with a friend and alongside a dressed green salad made a fantastic afternoon treat;
BACON, ONION AND CARAWAY TART
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 rashers of streaky bacon
- 4 onions, thinly sliced
- 2 tsp. caraway seeds
- Salt and Pepper
- 2 Eggs
- 2 Egg Yolks (See below before you throw away those leftover egg whites)
- 300 ml whipping/double cream
FOR THE PASTRY
- 300 g All Purpose Flour
- Pinch of Salt
- 75 g butter
- 75 g lard or shortening
METHOD
- To make the pastry add the flour and salt to a large bowl and chop the cold butter and shortening into small pieces and rub the mixture together until you get the texture of fine breadcrumbs. Add just enough water to bind and wrap in cling film and chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Pre-heat the oven to 200 C /400 F
- Chop the bacon into pieces and fry in a large frying pan until golden and crisp. Scoop out the bacon using a slotted spoon leaving all of the fat in the pan. Add the butter to the pan with the bacon fat and then add the thinly sliced onions and reduce the heat.
- Gently cook the onions, stirring often and add the caraway seeds and some salt and pepper. Cook until golden and tender then mix in the cooked bacon.
- Roll out the pastry and line a 22 cm (9 inch) flan/pie tin. Prick the base of the pastry and line it with backing parchment filled with dry beans (I used some dry chick peas, as that is what I had to hand but any dry beans will do). Place the base in the oven and blind bake for 10 minutes and then remove the parchment and beans and bake for a further 5 minutes. Leave to cool slightly.
- Place the cooked onions and bacon into the pastry base. Beat the eggs, yolks and cream and season with salt and pepper. Pour the cream mixture over the onion mix and bake for 30 minutes until golden and just set.
Link to printable recipe
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| Caraway Seeds |
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| Baking blind is the process of baking a pie crust or other pastry without the filling. Blind baking a pie crust is necessary when it will be filled with an unbaked filling (such as with puddings), in which case the crust must be fully baked. It is also called for if the filling has a shorter bake time than the crust, in which case the crust is partly baked. Blind baking is also used to keep pie crust from becoming soggy due to a wet filling |
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| All from just two egg whites! |
TWO EGG WHITE MERINGUE
INGREDIENTS
- 2 large egg whites
- 110 g caster sugar
METHOD
- Preheat the oven to 300 F
- Place the egg whites in the bowl (The bowl must be very clean as any grease will affect how the egg whites whisk up, if unsure of your bowls cleanliness use half a lemon and rub it cut side down over the bowl and it will remove all grease) of a mixer and using the balloon whisk start whisking on high for about 2 minutes, until the whites are foamy, then switch the speed to medium and carry on whisking for 1 more minute.
- Next turn the speed to high and continue whisking until the egg whites reach the stiff-peak stage. Next, whisk the sugar in on fast speed, a little at a time (about a dessert spoon), until you have a stiff and glossy mixture.
- Now you can place spoonfuls of the mixture onto baking sheets lined with parchment for small individual meringues, spacing them evenly or create one large or two smaller rounds. You can use a piping bag to create little nests or fancy shapes- just make sure you leave a little room around them on the baking sheet.
- Place them on the centre shelf of the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 275 F and leave them for 30 minutes.
- After that, turn the oven off and leave the meringues to dry out in the warmth of the oven until it is completely cold (usually about 4 hours but I usually leave them in overnight- just don't forget to pull them out before you switch the oven on again!)
So the next time you separate an egg, don't waste the bits you don't need, it really can become so much more than waste.
