This was no effort at all to whip up on a Saturday for brunch. We were a bit concerned when we saw the quantity of peppercorns, but they work superbly and give much less heat than expected.
Peppercorn Eggs & Ham Baguette – to serve 4
- large baguette, cut in 4 and sliced in half
- good quality olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, peeled
- 55g unsalted butter
- 8-12 large eggs
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns, cracked in a mortar
- a handful of basil leaves
- 4 slices of good quality ham or prosciutto
- 2 large tomatoes, cored and sliced
Scoop out the dough from the slices of baguette to make room for the filling. Pour olive oil over each slice and rub with the garlic clove. Put the slices on a tray and toast under a grill on both sides.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a frying pan and whisk the eggs. Add the cracked peppercorns and tip the mixture into the pan. Tumble and push the eggs around the pan with a flat wooden spatula (think half scramble, half omelette).
Remove when still soft as they will continue to cook, and season with a little salt. Put a few basil leaves on the base of 4 baguette slices, then add the ham, the tomato and finally the egg, finishing with the top pieces of baguette.
(Original recipe from Tamasin’s Kitchen Bible by Tamasin Day-Lewis, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2005.)
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