It’s no secret around here that I love eggs. A friend and I were recently – and, rather excitedly – comparing our Top 5 egg-dishes, and there was one rather obvious common thread: we both love them runny.

Now, I haven’t always loved runny eggs. In fact, I still don’t really like the Singapore coffee-shop style of coddling eggs in a tub of hot water for a couple of minutes, until the whites are barely set and the yolks are still completely liquid. Two of these – as far as I’m concerned – completely uncooked specimens are cracked into a saucer, and doused in soy sauce and stirred into a pulp. Thankfully, while I still am not a huge fan of runny whites, I’ve learnt to love runny yolks, which are also the perfect sauce.

Oeufs en Cocotte (the fancy french name for Baked Eggs) are something I’ve read about for a long time. For some reason, I never really got around to making them till this past week – ramekins too small; ovenproof dish too shallow; no cream in the house…. All I can say is that I am one helluva fool for procrastinating for so long.

The entire dish comes together in about 15 minutes, and can be customised for any time of the day – add a little chopped ham or crisped bacon under the eggs for breakfast, unmould over a frisée salad for a light lunch, or serve in the shell, topped with a little caviar, for an elegant starter with grilled asparagus spears for dinner. Whatever the time of day, and however you choose to garnish it (or, eat it plain as below), if you love eggs even a quarter as much as I do, I’m sure you’re going to really enjoy this one.

Oeufs en Cocotte

4 eggs
butter for greasing
40g freshly grated cheese (I used emmental here, you could also use a mild cheddar, gruyere, parmesan, or any other melty cheese that tickles your fancy)
60-100g cream
salt and pepper

optional:
nutmeg
a few tablespoons of shredded/chopped ham/bacon/leftover roast chicken
a large handful of spinach, blanched and drained well

Preheat your oven to 180C, and butter two appropriately sized ramekins or oven-proof dishes (you want a dish approximately 10-15cm in diameter and 3-5cm deep). Sprinkle most of the cheese evenly into the base of the dishes. If using any of the optional extras, scatter the meat/veg in a thin, even layer over the base, then crack two eggs into each dish. Drizzle half the cream around the yolks (I prefer to have the egg yolks exposed), then season well with salt and pepper, grate over a little nutmeg, if using, and sprinkle the rest of your cheese over.

Bake in the preheated oven for 7-10 minutes. When done, it should still be pretty wobbly – the yolks should be runny and the whites just set. (Feel free to take them out a minute or so before the whites are set, as they will continue cooking from the residual heat.) Serve with plenty of buttered toasted bread to mop all the egg up, and a tall glass of iced coffee.

Yield: Serves 2

I find it a little disconcerting that I’ve never posted about les croque monsieurs et madames before. I’m not the hugest fan of sandwiches but I don’t think the words exist to adequately describe my love for these. Stripped back to its core, you really have little more than a glorified ham and cheese sandwich, but oh what a difference that little makes. In one of my most recent food posts, on Mac & Cheese, I waxed lyrical about the joys of pasta, cheese and bechamel. Here, that same heavenly combination of cheese, bechamel and carbohydrate perform in an equally loved sequel, only with ham making his debut.

Of course, no sandwich ever lamented the addition of an additional egg, and that’s where the croque truly shines in my opinion. A sunny side up is the perfect ingredient to any dish – especially if you like it the way I do, that is slightly browned around the edges. From one little 2 oz package, and in a single mouthful, you have the ultimate dish really – a combination of textures, flavours, and a self-saucing one at that. Naturally, the gooeyness of an egg yolk lends itself well to sandwiches which, especially when toasted, might turn a shade dry.

Now, simple as this sandwich is, I’m not going to try to convince anyone that it’s a dish one should be whipping up every morning for breakfast. It’s a little too rich for that, for starters. But on a lazy Sunday morning, I can really think of nothing I’d rather be eating on my balcony with the bunny. Plus, if you made mac & cheese earlier in the week, all you need to do is save a couple of dollops, and thin that out on Sunday morning with a splash of milk for a croque that will come together in no time. :)

Croque Madame

2 tbsp unsalted butter, plus more for spreading
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
500ml full cream milk
nutmeg
150g freshly grated cheese (I like using either a mild cheddar or gruyere)
4 large slices of country bread
1 tsp of dijon mustard
2 thick slices of smoked leg ham (or as much as you want to pile in)
olive oil
2 eggs
salt & pepper

Preheat your oven to 200C with a rack on the upper third of the oven. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Once it is liquid, pour in the flour, and stir briskly so that the butter and flour are evenly incorporated. Turn the heat up to medium, and, stirring often, cook for about 2-3 minutes, or until the butter starts to smell nutty, but before it takes on any colour. Slowly whisk in the milk, adding a little at a time and whisking all the while, to get a smooth sauce. Once all the milk is added, turn the fire down to medium-low and let it simmer, stirring and scraping the bottom every couple of minutes until it reduces into a velvety sauce. Season with salt and white pepper, and grate it about half a nutmeg. Whisk in 100g of the cheese, then set aside and keep warm.

While the bechamel is simmering, spread your bread on both sides with a little butter and toast it lightly. You don’t want it to get too brown, just to very lightly colour it. One one side of each slice, smear a little dijon mustard. Assemble each sandwich from the bottom up as follows: bread (mustard side up), ham, 1/4 of the cheese, bread (mustard side up again), a generous dollop of the cheesy bechamel, and another 1/4 of the cheese. Place the two sandwiches on a baking tray and bake for about 5-10 minutes, or until the sandwich is just warmed through and the cheese is bubbling and lightly browned in spots.

While the sandwiches toast, fry two eggs sunny-side up, or to your liking. Once the sandwiches are done, top each with an egg, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and tuck in!

Yield: Serves 2

Note: It’s hard to make the bechamel in a much smaller quantity than this, so I’d either save a little bechamel from another dish, or save the rest to use later. If you’re refrigerating bechamel, store it in an airtight container, with a little piece of clingfilm pressed to the surface (to prevent a skin from forming). It will thicken (or solidify, really), but you can thin it out easily but whisking a splash of milk in, and – if necessary – reheating it gently on the stove top. I don’t think it’ll keep for very long, but a little tub of bechamel has never lasted more than 2 days in my fridge anyhow. :)

Lane Crawford is a shopping haven for the well-heeled in Hong Kong. If you’re not familiar with the brand, think of a department store, then replace every single item in it with luxury brands, like Prada, Zegna, and a few dozen other less-known (but equally expensive) ones.

But we’ve already established that I’m not really into clothes. Nor bags, nor shoes, nor any of the usual wallet-killers. So what does Lane Crawford have over me? In particular, I’d direct your attention to the store at Pacific Place – which is where they conveniently house their Home & Lifestyle section. Along with a particular set of antique crockery, they also have the most awesome designs for flatware, glassware and tableware.

A couple of weeks ago, I was with bunny in Pacific Place (we were heading towards great supermarket – the other money sucker in PP), and we walked past Lane Crawford and noticed that they were having a sale. I started gathering up single plates of different designs, wanting so desperately to add them to our collection, but as wonderful as the discounts were, Lane Crawford still is a rather high end store. In the end, I settled for three things: a set of cherrywood palettes (they came in a pair), a beautiful spreading knife, and a real hot chocolate pot, complete with moussoir!

As you can imagine, I’ve been having a field day with the lot – the hot chocolate pot in particular. Hot chocolate is pretty much the only way that bunny will ingest any form of chocolate, so it’s been fun using the pot to whip up frothy, rich batches of hot chocolate for the two of us (and any guests in the house). Here’s a simple recipe I threw together, which makes it rather thick and rich – i.e. just the way I like it. Feel free, of course, to add in any other seasonings and embellishments you prefer, like cinnamon, freshly grated nutmeg, a pinch of spice, a shot of whiskey or even to float a handful of mini marshmallows over the top. I like it just like this though, and there’s really nothing better than huddling up under a blanket on a cold, windy night, cradling a warm cup of hot chocolate next to someone you love.

Hot Chocolate

80g dark chocolate (65% cocoa solids and up)
500g full cream milk
100g whipping cream
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp cocoa powder

Warm your serving jug by pouring in boiling water and covering it. Chop the chocolate into small shards and place into a bowl.

Combine the milk, cream, cocoa powder and sugar together in a saucepan over a low flame and gently heat until it comes to just below boiling point, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and pour over the chopped chocolate, and allow it to sit for one minute to melt the chocolate. Whisk the mixture thoroughly in order to dissolve any small lumps, then discard the hot water from your jug, pour in the hot chocolate and froth. Serve immediately.

(Serves 2-3)

Sadly, the most important meal of the day is also often the most neglected. Because I’m the farthest thing you could find from a “morning person”, I’m rarely in the mood to cook anything that takes longer than 3 minutes to rustle up. In other words, my breakfasts – when they actually manifest as a meal separate from lunch – are generally limited to cereal, toast, or quick-cooking oatmeal.

This week however, we’ve got a friend staying with us. And while we’ve been averaging 6 food-stops a day (I hesitate to call them meals, since some of them aren’t more than coffee and a snack), we’ve started the last three days with breakfast at home – something I wish I take the time to do more often, only it never really feels worth it to go through the trouble just for myself.

I woke up this morning in the middle of a particularly vivid dream. I was sitting at my dining table, gleaming knife slicing through a fluffy, golden pancake. It was as if my imagination had a macro lens attached, zooming in on the pillowy interior soaking up a river of maple syrup. Just as the fork – in slow motion – approached my mouth, I jolted awake. Needless to say, I was left feeling rather unsatisfied, and hence the breakfast menu for this morning. :) It’s a pretty easy recipe, the only slightly fussy bit involves separating the eggs, where the whites are beaten to stiff peaks before being incorporated into the batter. But it’s so, so worth it – it makes the lightest, fluffiest, most delicious pancakes. I hope you enjoy it too.

Pancakes, USA Style
(Adapted from Happy Days with the Naked Chef by Jamie Oliver)

3 large eggs
115g unbleached all-purpose flour
1 heaped teaspoon baking powder
1 tbsp vanilla sugar (or substitute caster sugar)
a pinch of salt
140g full cream milk
Butter or oil for greasing

Separate the eggs. Combine the yolks with the rest of the ingredients and whisk together to form a smooth, thick batter. Using an electric mixer or whisk, whip the egg whites until they form stiff peaks, then gently fold them into the batter until just incorporated.

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-low heat, and brush the surface with a little oil or butter. Pour the batter in to make pancakes of your desired size. Carefully regulating the heat so that they don’t burn, cook about 1-2 minutes on the first side, or until bubbles start to appear on the top, then flip them over and cook for another 45-60 seconds or until golden brown on both sides. If desired, you can add ingredients like fresh corn kernels, bits of crispy bacon, blueberries or chocolate chips into the batter before flipping them over. Serve with softened butter and maple syrup.

All of us have one of those dishes – something that transports you back to your childhood; which reminds you of those times you’d spend curled up with your mom (or [insert significant relative here]), sneaking off to buy these treats which the two of you shared in secret, lest your dad find out and scold the both of you again for wasting money. That’s what hot cross buns are to bunny, and since last year I didn’t manage to make them for her, I made up my mind to get it done by hook or by crook this week.

Now, that’s really easier said than done. You see, the last time I ate a hot cross bun was at least 10 years ago. Maybe even 15! I have no idea what they taste like anymore – apart from them being mildly sweet and being filled with dried fruit (which I don’t particularly like). All I really remember of them is that tune, and – even then – I often confuse it with the “Three Blind Mice” tune. Not a good start, I know. And although I’m more comfortable cooking savoury dishes, even when it comes to baking and desserts, I tend to prefer choosing recipes whose flavours and steps I can sort of envision as I read through them. None of the hot cross bun recipes I found really did that for me, so I ended up sorta winging it – taking a little from a Donna Hay book that I got last year, another from an issue of Waitrose Food Illustrated, and filling in the gaps in between with other recipes online, and then taking some creative leaps of faith.

Baking them, too, was not altogether uneventful. Because of the mixture of recipes, I ended up not really having a guide to follow. I realise now that I probably should have tried one recipe in its entirety first before having taken some creative license, but hey, at least it turned out pretty well.


Hot Cross Buns
(based mostly on a recipe from Donna Hay’s Modern Classics Book 2)

1 tbsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 1/2 cups milk at about 35C
4 1/2 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tbsp mixed spice
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp fine salt
50g unsalted butter, melted
1 egg
2 cups sultanas, mixed peel, candied cherries, or whatever else you can get your hands on
1/2 cup extra flour
2 tbsp vegetable oil (use something mild tasting)
1 tbsp water

For glaze:
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp water
2 tsp powdered gelatine

Gently stir the yeast into the milk with 2 tbsp of the sugar. Set it aside for about 5-10 minutes until it begins to froth, so you know that the yeast is active. Sift together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, mixed spice, and salt.

Add the egg and melted butter into the yeast mixture, stir in the remaining sugar, then – using a small spatula – stir in the remaining dry ingredients until a sticky dough forms. Scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, then knead until an elastic, springy dough forms (about 10 minutes). I re-dusted the surface with 2-3 tbsp more flour during this period. Place the dough into an oiled bowl, then cover with a damp dishcloth and set aside in a warm, draught-free place to rise until it has doubled in size (about 1 hour).

Preheat your oven to 190C, and grease a 9″ square cake tin, then line with non-stick greaseproof paper. (I don’t have a 9″ square tin, so I used a couple of smaller ones.) When the dough has risen, scrape it back out of the bowl, and divide it into 12 pieces. Roll each piece into a tight ball, then place into your prepared baking tin. Leave to rise for another 30 minutes, or until the balls of dough have expanded such that they are very snugly sitting next to each other in the tins. Mix the extra flour, oil and water together, then pipe crosses onto the buns. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until well browned and springy but firm to the touch.

While the buns are in the oven, make the glaze. Place the sugar and 1/4 cup water into a small, heavy-based saucepan on high heat until it dissolves. You may need to remove sugar crystals from the sides of the pan using a pastry brush dipped in water. Sprinkle the gelatine over the remaining 1 tbsp water, then add this to the pan once the sugar has dissolved. Boil for 1 minute, then remove from the heat.

When the buns are done, remove them from their pans onto a rack to cool. Drizzle or brush the glaze over, then cool completely on the rack. Eat them toasted with plenty of butter. :)

Yield: Makes 12 buns

Note: Okay wow, I just youtubed the Hot Cross Buns nursery rhyme, and it’s not at all like how I remember. It’s actually rather awful. I know some of you are on your way to youtubing it now, so here you go. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.

I love eggs. No, seriously, I love eggs. You know how you always have one retarded friend who’d take it upon themselves to inflict misery on you by forcing you to imagine what it would be like to only have one thing in the world that you could eat for the rest of your life? When that retarded friend of mine comes along, I always say eggs. (Maybe with prawns.)

As I mentioned previously, there’s a new cookbook store in town. And the first book that I picked off the shelves was Michel Roux’s Eggs. While my interest was simply piqued thanks to the rather in-your-face cover, I was immediately sold when I flipped through and found pages and pages of beautiful recipes, all of which either primarily feature eggs, or are on dishes whose specific characteristics rely on the behaviour of eggs (in whole or in part) to provide those features. And, as if I needed any more encouraging, amazing food photography accompanies the majority of these pages.

On Monday, I was due to cook for a friend’s birthday, while her girlfriend was out of town. (Babysitters.com, remember?) Unfortunately, she fell sick in the end, and hence the meal that was planned for her never really made it out the door. Or, it did, but it went straight into someone else’s mouth. Wei, lurking around after her immensely satisfying visit to 25 degree Celsius, quickly volunteered to fill in, and was hence treated to beer battered fish and chips, served with malt vinegar, tartar sauce, and some mustard Hollandaise. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

For our starters, I wanted very much to try a recipe that I saw in the abovementioned book. Its a recipe for sunny side up quails eggs, on miniature (4cm in diameter!) toast rounds and served with a light Hollandaise. However, due to some developments at work, I’m also a little obsessed with poaching eggs at the moment. Further, the bunny has been pleading with me – and making the bunny face – asking for Eggs Benedict for the longest time. Hence, I did a miniature version of Eggs Benedict, sans the bacon (which I kind of forgot about).

Mini Eggs Benedict
(inspired by a recipe from Michel Roux’s Eggs)

8 quails eggs (plus one or two extra if you’re not confident)
2 slices of plain white bread
melted butter
white vinegar
2 rashers of streaky bacon, halved crosswise.
chives to garnish
mustard Hollandaise (recipe follows)

Saw off the rounded ends of your quails eggs with a serrated knife, and place them in individual saucers. Bring a deep pot of water (at least 8-10cm deep) to the boil and add 2 tbsp of vinegar. This will help the egg whites to coagulate. When it starts to boil, gently tip one saucer at a time into the water where the bubbles are, then use a spoon to swirl the water around the egg to create a ‘whirlpool’. Let it cook for about 45 seconds over medium-low heat, and when cooked (press gently on the yolk to ascertain if it is done to your liking), remove using a slotted spoon, and transfer to an ice bath to arrest the cooking process. Repeat with the rest of the eggs.

When all the eggs are cooked, use a small knife to trim the edges. This can be done up to 2 days in advance and stored in the fridge in a bowl of cold water.

Prepare the mustard Hollandaise, and grill the bacon in the oven until crisp.

Use a 4cm pastry cutter and cut two rounds from each slice of bread. Toast the bread lightly on both sides until golden, then brush one side with the melted butter and keep warm. Heat a small saucepan of water to a simmer, then immerse all the eggs in for 10-15 seconds, just to warm through.

To serve, place one toasted round on each plate, buttered side up. Place one piece of crisped bacon on the bread, then top with two poached quails eggs. Cover half of each quails egg with some mustard Hollandaise, then serve a little extra on the side in a small spoon. Garnish with chives.

Yield: Serves 4.

Mustard Hollandaise

1 tsp white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp white peppercorns, crushed
1 egg yolk
65g clarified butter, cooled to tepid
1-2 tbsp lemon juice

20ml double cream
10g Dijon mustard
sea salt and powdered white pepper

Mix the vinegar with 1 tbsp cold water and the crushed white peppercorns in a saucepan. Reduce by one third, and leave to cool. Add egg yolk to the cold reduction, and whisk. Place your saucepan on a heat diffuser and whisk continuously until the sauce emulsifies, becoming very smooth and creamy after 8-10 minutes, with the heat gradually increasing. Do not allow the temperature to rise above 65C.

Off the heat, still whisking, drizzle the tepid clarified butter in a steady stream. Stir in the lemon juice, and pass the sauce through a muslin lined chinois to eliminate the peppercorns.

Whip the double cream in a bowl to soft peaks, then mix in the mustard until evenly blended. Whisk the mustard cream, little by little, into the Hollandaise. Season with sea salt and powdered white pepper to taste, and serve.

Note: The Hollandaise will not keep for long, so prepare it as close to serving as you can. Otherwise, keep it warm in a bain-marie (with hot water – not simmering water), with some clingfilm pressed down to the surface for an hour at most.

As those of you who read this space should know by now, I recently started work in a restaurant kitchen. It’s definitely tiring stuff, but I’m enjoying it. However, one thing that cooking for a living has made me miss is cooking at home for fun – pottering around in the kitchen just ‘cos I feel like making [insert dish], because I’m having dearly loved friends over and want to whip up a meal for them that I’ve spent days or even weeks planning, or – better yet – because I want to surprise my bunny once she gets home from work.

Thankfully, being in a professional kitchen 6 days a week hasn’t made me want to hurl the moment I step in my house and set eyes on my own beloved kitchen. That would pose a few problems, the biggest of which being that this job is clearly not for me. I’m glad to report that on my first day off, after having spent the morning rolling around in bed and getting a (foot) massage, my main activity of the day constituted flour, eggs, milk, yeast, sugar, and deep frying – that’s right, I made donuts. Mini donuts, if you will, since I didn’t feel like doing the entire recipe (I halved it) and used a tiny cutter since this way the entire thing can fit in your mouth (albeit rendering you unable to speak for a minute or so) and one won’t sprinkle sugar everywhere when munching on these deep-fried, sugar-coated goodies.

So here’s the recipe I used, and for those of you who love donuts, but – like me – can’t be arsed to spend hours at a time queueing for them, I’d recommend making your own. Sure, it also takes about 3-4 hours from start to finish, but at least you’re not stuck in a line, and most of that time is just spent letting the dough rise. Besides, none of those shops can beat a fresh donut, rolled in sugar while it’s still hot out of the oil.

Yeasted Doughnuts
(adapted from Baking Illustrated)

1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus 3 tbsp, and extra for dusting
¼ tsp salt
3½ tbsp caster sugar, plus extra for rolling (about ½ cup should suffice)
1/3 cup milk at blood temperature (about 35°C)
1 egg
1 1/8 tsp instant dried yeast
3 tbsp unsalted butter, softened but still cool, cut into 6 pieces
vegetable oil for deep frying
1 tbsp ground cinnamon, optional

Beat the milk, egg, and ½ a tbsp of sugar together lightly in the bowl of your standing mixer, then add the yeast and stir it in gently. Set the mixture aside in a warm place for 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together 1½ cups of the flour, salt and the rest of the sugar in a medium bowl. Once there are bubbles on top of the yeast mixture, secure the bowl in your standing mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add the flour, and mix on low speed until a ball of dough forms; about 3 minutes.

Add the softened butter once piece at a time, waiting about 15 seconds between additions. Continue mixing for about 3 minutes longer, adding up to 3 tbsp of the remaining flour if necessary, until the dough forms a soft, but elastic ball.

Place the dough in a lightly oiled medium bowl and cover with cling film. Let the dough rise in a warm and draught-free place for 2 to 2½ hours. After it has nearly doubled in size, scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and, using a rolling pin, gently roll it to a thickness of 1-1½cm. Cut the dough out using a 1½-2 inch cutter, gathering the scraps and re-rolling if necessary. Place doughnut rings and holes on a floured baking sheet. Loosely cover with cling film and let rise at room temperature until slightly puffy, 30-45 minutes.

Meanwhile, fit a candy thermometer in the side of a medium saucepan. Place oil in until the pan is at least half-filled, and there should be at least 2 inches of oil. Gradually heat the oil over medium high heat until it reaches a temperature of about 180-190°C. Fry the doughnuts 3-4 at a time until golden brown, about 20-30 seconds per side for the rings, and 15-20 seconds per side for the holes. Remove the doughnuts from the oil and drain on a rack lined with kitchen paper until cool enough to handle, then roll in sugar (well mixed with the cinnamon if using) and eat as soon as possible!

Yields about 20 small doughnuts, and will keep for a day in an airtight container at room temperature.

As you can see from the picture, mine’s french toast. When I was a kid, I used to badger my mom into making french toast for me every weekend – to the point that my poor brother started refusing to eat it. Soft pillow-y bread, soaked in a milky egg wash, fried to crisp perfection and served piping hot with maple syrup (or kaya, as I’ve now learnt to get my fix in Ya Kun and Killiney) – what’s not to love? I’ve always had a gigantic sweet tooth, and to be honest my love for french toast probably stemmed from my love for maple syrup.

French toast, or pain perdu (literally “lost bread”) as it is known in France and Belgium, which apparently may not even be French in origin, originated as a way to save stale bread. Bread is sliced on a bias off the hardening loaf before being dipped into the eggy mixture to soften it. I personally love using brioche, but the version that really sends me flying back to my formative years is made with thick sliced white bread, particularly Milk Bread. And instead of waiting for bread to go stale, I’ve often made trips to the convenience store for the sole purpose of buying bread to satisfy my french toast craving.

What’s your favourite comfort food? Here’s my recipe for mine. :)

French Toast

5 slices milk bread (or any other thick sliced soft white loaf)
2 large eggs
100ml full cream milk
pinch of salt
1 tbsp cinnamon sugar (or vanilla sugar)
butter for frying
maple syrup, icing sugar, kaya or jam to serve

Lightly whisk together the eggs, milk, salt and cinnamon sugar with a fork and set aside. Slice the bread diagonally into halves or quarters (I like slicing them into quarters so that I don’t need to cut them anymore after they’re cooked, and there’s more surface area for the bread to soak into).

Melt a good knob of butter into a non-stick pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted and started to froth, dip a piece of bread into the egg mixture and fry gently until golden brown, before flipping over and cooking until the other side is golden brown and crispy as well. Transfer onto a waiting plate lined with kitchen paper to drain. Repeat with remaining slices of bread, adding more butter as needed.

Once all the bread is cooked, arrange them on a plate and serve with syrup or jam on the side. You can also dust it with icing sugar. I particularly love eating this with a glass of cold milk or iced milo.

Serves 2 for breakfast, or 3-4 for a light snack.