Baked Eggs in the Basket

Ingredients:

(Yield:  1 serving)

• 2 pieces of bread
• 2 eggs
• Butter
• Salt and pepper
• Minced fresh chives, or any other green herb you like (optional, for garnish)
• A muffin tray or 2 individual ramekins

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 375F; generously butter two muffin wells or two individual ramekins.  Trim the bread to fit inside the muffin wells or ramekins.  Place a piece of bread into each well, then gently crack an egg into each piece of bread.  Sprinkle a little salt and pepper on top of each egg and bake until the egg reaches your desired consistency (about 14-18 minutes gives set whites with runny yolks; increase time from there if you like a more well done yolk).  To serve, if you used a muffin tray, let the egg baskets rest about 5 minutes in the tray, then run a sharp paring knife around the outside and use a fork to gently remove (if you used ramekins, you can serve them in the ramekins.)  If desired, sprinkle minced fresh chives on top before serving.  You can also serve with hollandaise if you like.