Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 06:17, 16 June 2007

This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Egg in the basket" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (May 2007) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

An egg in the basket, or egg/eggs in a basket, is a fried egg cooked within the confines of a piece of (often buttered) toast, the center of which has been removed. The removed center can be fried and enjoyed as well. The dish is known by many names, including Rocky Mountain eggs and Rocky Mountain toast.

Preparation typically begins by cutting a circular hole in the center of a piece of bread with a cookie cutter or upside down glass. The bread is then fried in a pan with butter, margarine or cooking oil if the bread itself is not buttered. When browned satisfactorily, the egg is cracked into the "basket" cut into the toast. The egg is then fried to the desired consistency (it can also be flipped several times and fried on both sides). When eaten, the bread and egg yolk mix readily, giving this egg dish its special quality. It is commonly served with ketchup, jam, maple syrup (with a side of sausage & fruit), or cheese.

Alternate recipes for those preparing this simple dish who do not have access to a stove call for the bread and egg to be microwaved. Some people say that cooking an egg "in the basket" is easier than cooking eggs alone, because the bread adds stability if the cook wishes to flip the egg. Some people put the cut-out circle of bread back on the finished toast and egg, adding a type of "lid" to the "basket". Others will break the yolk within the "basket" while it is frying, in order to let the bread more evenly absorb the flavor. Yet others will sprinkle grated cheese over the eggs when nearly cooked, then place the pan under the broiler until the cheese is all brown and crispy.

Pop culture

This dish was famously featured in the 1941 Betty Grable movie Moon Over Miami, earning it the name "moon-over-miami" eggs (although it was referred to in the film as "gas house eggs").

It later made a notable appearance in the 1987 film Moonstruck, and several recipes for the dish have since been named "Moonstruck Eggs".

The dish also appeared in the 2005 V for Vendetta franchise as "eggy in the basket".

Musician Brian Wilson said in 1965: "I love "egg-in-the-hole". It’s about the only thing I can cook, but it is great. You pinch out the center of a piece of bread, butter it, place it in a frying pan and put a raw egg in the hole. The entire thing cooks together and is very, very tasty."

Musician Rob Crow composed the song "Eggy in a Bready II" in honor of the dish. The song was recorded by Crow's band Heavy Vegetable for their 1994 release The Amazing Undersea Adventures of Aqua Kitty and Friends. The lyrics of the song outline the ingredients and implements necessary for preparing the dish.

Other names

• Birds in a Nest
• Bulls-eye
• Egg in Bread
• Egg-in-a-frame
• Egg-in-a-hole
• Egg-in-a-Nest
• Egg in the Window (bread circle placed over yolk represents curtains)
• Egg Toast
• Eggy in a Bready
• Eggy Toast
• Egyptian Eggs
• Egyptian Eye
• Frog in a Pond
• Gas House Eggs
• Hole in One
• Hobo Egg
• Hole-in-the-Wall
• Moon-Over-Miami
• Moonstruck Eggs
• One-Eyed Jack
• Pop-Eye Egg
• Rocky Mountain Eggs
• Toad in the hole, a name shared with another dish

See also

• Boiled eggs
• Fried eggs
• Scrambled eggs

1. Brian Wilson interview, 1965, thebeachboys.forumsunlimited.com, topic: "The Beach Boys Reveal..."

• Articles lacking sources from May 2007
• Breakfast foods
• Egg