Battle of the Benedicts

There's a reason why people tend to order Eggs Benedict when they eat out. The eggs need to be cooked to order, the hollandaise is finicky, and all of the other ingredients need to be timed perfectly for everything to be served warm. I personally vowed to never make it again for a group after one holiday breakfast with my family. When we finally sat down to eat after what seemed a whirlwind cooking session, my brother pointed out he still had an empty plate. Whoops! Since this was the weekend to reintroduce eggs back into my diet, I decided to indulge in this decadent breakfast that used to be my Saturday morning standard. While researching recipes for hollandaise sauce, I discovered to my horror that the primary ingredient is egg yolk. For years I was ordering my eggs poached hard just for the ability to cut out the yolk, and here I was eating it all along in the sauce! Feeling strengthened from my diet, I was determined to find an yolk-less alternative to the classic hollandaise. Elliott wasn't quite as excited, but he agreed to play along in what eventually became the "Battle of the Benedicts." Little did we know that after sleeping-in and embarking on what became a two hour cooking adventure, it would turn into the "Battle of the Low Blood Sugars!" See below to see which sauce came out on top! Classic Hollandaise, courtesy of Tyler Florence. Elliott's Egg-Less Hollandaise 1/2 cup cream 1/4 tsp. powdered mustard Pinch of cayenne Pinch of paprika Sprinkling of turmeric, for color Salt, to taste 2 tsp. of lemon juice In a sauce pan, simmer the cream and spices over the lowest heat setting for 10-15 minutes, stirring at least every minute, until thickened to desired consistency. If it gets too thick, add a spoonful of water. Take the sauce off the heat and let rest for a minute or two. Add the lemon juice and stir to combine. We decided to go for two different versions on one plate: One 'classic,' with smoked ham and chives, and the other a 'BST', with bacon, spinach, and tomato. Though Elliott loved the creaminess of the classic sauce, he did say that the egg-less version was just as tasty and much easier to make. Mwahaha.... [caption id="attachment_1832" align="alignleft" width="300"]

The Classic[/caption] [caption id="attachment_1834" align="alignleft" width="300"]

The Evil Genius[/caption]