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I was honored when Natasha of 5 Star Foodie and Lazaro of Lazaro Cooks! recently invited me to take part in February’s 5 Star Makeover (a huge thank-you to Natasha and Laz!), and then when I found out that the theme was “Bacon and Eggs” I was thrilled beyond words. Initially I didn’t know if I wanted to go the sweet or savory route for my dish, but after much brainstorming (to name just a couple of my ideas, how good does Herbed Choux with Bacon Custard or Savory Custard with Sweet Bacon Tuiles sound?), I decided on savory. Not only that, but I decided to keep it simple, with a dish that’s more reminiscent of bacon and eggs with toast than anything else.
In my mind I knew exactly what I wanted. For the bacon part, a pretty stack of toast rounds spread with garlic mayonnaise and fried (my version of “toast” for this dish), then layered into stacks with a creamy, flavorful bacon paste…a bacon pate, if you will. And for the egg component, I wanted nothing less than a glistening egg yolk (hold the white, please), poached to perfection in olive oil, sitting atop my bacon pate toast stack, oozing into oblivion and creating its own creamy sauce to engulf the whole dish. That’s not asking for too much is it? ;)
I started with the bacon pate, not only because is it the easiest component, but also because it can be made up to three days ahead of time (while the yolks have to be poached right before serving). I focused on bringing out the flavor of bacon with subtle enhancements from other flavors – vinegar for tartness, brown sugar for sweetness and a slight hint of bitterness, and soy sauce for umami. Celery, onion, garlic, bay, chives, and thyme also add various notes of flavor.
Bacon Pate
As far as the egg yolks, at first I wasn’t quite sure how to go about poaching them to achieve the result I wanted. I read a couple of articles on the properties of egg proteins (this one was particularly helpful) and in the end I decided that a water bath in the oven would probably be the best way to go. It ended up working perfectly for my purposes and I couldn’t have been happier with the result…a creamy, perfectly poached yolk bathing the whole dish.
Poaching the Egg Yolks
To finish it off I chose a couple of very simple garnishes: chives (for two reasons…they’re so pretty, plus they’re in the pate!) and thinly sliced cornichon. Since cornichons are usually served with pate to cut through the richness and provide a nice contrasting texture to the pate’s softness, I thought adding a few thinly slices of cornichon to this dish would be a nice play on that classic combo.
I thought the poached egg yolks would be my favorite part of this dish (after all, runny egg yolk is nature’s perfect sauce), but all in all, the bacon pate ended up being mind-blowingly amazing. In the end I have to say that my favorite part of this dish is how everything comes together so nicely to complement each other.
Garlic Mayo
By the way, if you make this and have leftover bacon pate, I have a few ideas for how to use it:
- Sandwich condiment
- Omelet filling
- Cracker spread
- Combined with sour cream as a dip for crudités/crackers/chips
- Combined with cream cheese as a spread for bagels
- Warmed up with cream and tossed with pasta
- Topping for grilled chicken/steak/tofu/veggies
- In salads (I speak from experience when I say that a huge bowl of salad greens topped with naught but this and a poached egg is perfection.)
Bacon Pate Toast Stack with Poached Egg Yolk
(Yield: 4 servings)
Bacon Pate (can be made up to 3 days in advance):
2 TB canola oil
6 slices turkey bacon, chopped
1 large stalk celery, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 bay leaf
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 TB minced fresh chives
1 tsp minced fresh thyme (or 1/3 tsp dried thyme)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp soy sauce (or tamari)
1/8 tsp black pepper
For the Bacon Pate:
- Heat 1 TB oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat; add bacon and cook until crispy (about 5 minutes), stirring occasionally. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside for now.
- Turn heat down to low and to the same pot, add the remaining 1 TB oil, onion, celery, and bay leaf; cook until the veggies are softened (about 15 minutes), stirring occasionally. Add garlic, chives, and thyme and cook another 2 minutes.
- Cool slightly, then transfer the bacon and veggies to a food processor along with 1/2 c water; puree until smooth, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times.
- Transfer the puree back into the pot and add vinegar, brown sugar, tamari, and pepper; bring up to a boil, then turn heat down and simmer until it forms a smooth, thick paste (about 25-30 minutes), stirring occasionally.
Poached Egg Yolks:
4 large egg yolks
Olive oil
For the Poached Egg Yolks:
- Preheat oven to 200F.
- Fill a bowl with hot water from the faucet (it should be about 105F); put eggs in water and let them sit until they come to room temperature. (Check them and turn them over every few minutes so they can come up to temperature on both sides. They’re ready when they don’t feel hot or cold to the touch. You may need to add more hot water if they’re not warming up fast enough.) Once the eggs are the right temperature, remove them from water and dry them off. Separate the yolks from the whites (put 1 of the whites in a separate bowl since you’ll need it to make the garlic mayonnaise; use the other whites in another dish).
- Fill an 8- by 8- by 2-inch pan with about 1 inch of hot water from the faucet. Fill 4 (6 oz) ramekins about 2/3 full with olive oil and with your fingers, gently place 1 egg yolk into each ramekin (the yolks should be completely submerged in the oil). Put the ramekins into the pan of water and bake 35 minutes.
- Use a slotted spoon to carefully remove the egg yolks.
Garlic Mayonnaise:
1 large clove garlic, peeled
1/4 tsp coarse salt
1 large egg white
1/2 c canola oil
1 TB lemon juice
1-2 teaspoons cold water
For the Garlic Mayonnaise:
- Add garlic and salt to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
- Add egg white and pulse a few times until frothy.
- Gradually add oil in a thin stream while pulsing.
- Pulse in lemon juice and continue mixing until fully incorporated.
- Pulse in cold water a couple times until smooth and creamy.
Other Ingredients:
Good quality bread (I used a multigrain sourdough)
Canola oil (for frying the bread)
A few cornichons, thinly sliced
A few chives (for garnish)
To Serve:
- Use a round cookie cutter (about 2 inches in diameter) to stamp out 12 bread circles (you will use 3 circles per stack); spread a light layer of garlic mayonnaise on both sides of each bread circle.
- Heat a large (preferably nonstick) skillet over medium heat; add oil to coat the bottom and once hot, add the bread. Fry until golden on both sides, then transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain any excess oil.
- To make each stack you will need 3 bread circles and 2 slightly heaping tablespoons of pate. Place 1 slightly heaping tablespoon of pate on a bread circle, top with another bread circle, top with another slightly heaping tablespoon of pate, and then top with another bread circle. Repeat 3 times (so that you have 4 servings).
- Carefully place a poached egg yolk on top of each stack.
- Serve garnished with chives and thinly sliced cornichons.
I’m the writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food stylist behind this blog. I love finding the human connection through something we all do every day: eat! Food is a common ground that we can all relate to, and our tables tell a story. It’s my goal to inspire you to get in the kitchen, try something new, and find a favorite you didn’t know you had.
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The picture really looks cute. I’m a big fan of egg yolks and I would love to try this one. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Holy crap. Garlic mayonnaise .. bacon pate … this is a fabulous dish!!
That is a truly elegant take on bacon, eggs & toast. Am especially fascinated by the poached yolk – will definitely have to try that sometime!
Faith, this is incredible, beautiful presentation & the flavours sound amazing. This is a very creative dish my friend & very worthy of being in Natasha & Lazz’s challenge. Well done :)
Very creative use of the given theme…looks wonderful and love the last photo :)
I really have to try the bacon pate! I loved the bacon jam that I made (so much so that I have no idea how long it lasts as it is gone within days) and this pate sounds wonderful! :D
Your dish looks amazing. Kudos to you for your creativity!
Lovely presentation, looks great.
Not many people use turkey bacon and I certainly was pleased that you did. I really like the idea of this paté. The ingredients you paired it with are perfect. Book marked!
Love the romantic photo…perfect for your montage ;o)
Ciao for now,
Claudia
This really sounds like an exceptional dish. I’ll have to try it this weekend. I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary
This is absolutely by far the most decadent gourmet creative version of eggs and toast that I have EVER seen. Can I live in your mind? It sounds like a delicious place.
Happy Wednesday!
Inventive and such a lovely presentation, Faith. Bacon pate sounds yummy!
Faith, I’m in awe. I’m terrified of poaching eggs (last time I tried I ended up with all the freaking things broken into the water… what a mess that was!) but this dish looks so amazing and sounds so appetizing… I might have to get over it and try poaching again!
Can I just say, your photos are absolutely stunning?! And I love your makeover, what a creative way to have your bacon and eggs!
What a brilliant idea! Looks and sounds so delicious too.
I have never had bacon pâté before but it sounds like something I would like a lot and my kids would adore! Great touch to have the egg yolks on top, and might I add, very stylish too~
That is simply stunning, and I want it for breakfast! I agree- egg yolks are the best over just about anything- including salad! I like them over lentils too! I love the combination of flavors and textures!
This looks like a dish straight out from brunch basket of a fine dining restaurant.Very innovative and wonderful presentation.My husband loves bacon..i ll surprise him this weekend :)
Very interesting, Faith. My students made a bacon spread for the grilled cheese olympics, and won! It was delicious. But, this food doesn’t look like your food. It looks like Natasha’s food. I wonder what the guidelines were to participate in their Makeover. I read they were doing something, but am terrible at deadlines, so really don’t participate in web round ups… though I love to read them and see them. I am sure this stretched your imagination and was a lot of fun to make. It looks lovely.
:)
valerie
Speechless! What a tasty and gorgeous display of the most important meal of the day. :) I’ve got to try to bacon pate. That sounds so good!
Pure genius. HOw do you do it?
You are just so creative! What a beautiful dish!
Awesome idea Faith! wow this looks really good and I like the pouched egg. The presentation is beautiful. I just want to dive in eating right about now!
Wow this looks very impressive! Looks like something they could serve in very expensive restaurants! Love it :D.
You did a spectacular job with your assignment… aren’t those guys the best?? I love the way the assignment rallies the troops and brings everyone out to look at new sites and learn what 2 little ingredients can inspire!
That bacon pate is going in my virtual recipe file. I can see how it would be great with all kinds of things.
Bacon pate sounds dangerous to a waist line. I adore the poached egg yolk, so neat. Stunning and straightforward.
I love it how you took some very basic ingredients and created something so elegant from it. Beautiful job daaaaahling.
*kisses* HH
oh my gosh! My husband would love this! I love your take on the traditional dish. Perfect for a fancy brunch restaurant!!
Beautiful,Faith!!!!!That really looks amazing!
This is so beautiful and creative that I don’t think I could destroy it by eating it!
Beautiful creation! Love how you stack it up and top it with an egg! Gorgeous!
Hi Faith – WOW! This is such a creative dish. I bet it tasted awesome. Ooh bacon pate!! I’m thanking Natasha and Lazaro for introducing your blog to me.
LL
P.S. I’ll be posting my bacon & egg dish on Thursday!
This dish combines my two favorites! Pate and poached egg! It looks so beautiful and so delicious tasting. Great job on the makeover!!
Your creativity delights me. What a fabulous dish.
You are genius always makes good food also lovely presentation.
Faith, what a great idea…bacon pate and egg…would definitely love to have this for a special weekend brunch :-)
You really created a whole new dish out of something ordinary. I particularly like the idea of bacon pate.
Faith, congrats on being asked to participate in this 5 Star Makeover! Natasha and Lazaro know true culinary skill when they see it and it’s no surprise to me that you got picked. Your dish is beautifully presented and so well thought out. I’ve never heard of poaching an egg yolk in olive oil, what a fantastic and genius idea. Love that you included that pictorial instruction. Your bacon pate is so creative and brilliant! I don’t eat pork but I would love try this fabulous creation of yours. Well done, my friend!
LeQuan, Thank you so much for your sweet words! I don’t eat pork either, which is why I used turkey bacon…it was fantastic!
Faith,
Inviting you was a no-brainer. Your talent and creativity shine through with this fantastic creation.
Bravo
this looks so lovely! thanks for sharing this and have a great day:)
You are creative beyond words! And that photo is stunning! I thought I was ready for lunch, but now I want that breakfast!!
Wowza, that’s definitely a 5 star dish!! I love the idea of bacon pate! And olive oil-poached egg yolks? Yes, please!! Great presentation :)
I don’t know how this is the first time visiting your blog, but I’m happy I participating in this challenge so that I could discover your site!
Love your step by step water bath pics—impressive twist on this classic combo!
So beautiful and creative! I can just picture myself sitting in a fluffy white bath robe on a beautiful patio eating this with a fresh Mimosa. Ooooooo!
Hello little miss fancy! This meal looks great! (The pictures look awesome as well) I have never had bacon pate but I can see myself loving it…yum!
wowww, this is most impressive, and i love how you can pretty much pair this up with everything under the sun!
I love this creation, Faith, just wonderful! The bacon pate sounds so smooth and flavorful, and the poached egg yolk is just perfect. A gorgeous presentation!
Absolutely gorgeous – I love the simplicity, as well as the juxtaposition of textures and height. Genius!
Gorgeous presentation! That poached egg yolk in olive oil sounds wonderful!Can’t wait to try it.
What a creative dish! I could just sit there and eat the pate with a spoon, but I wouldn’t want to miss the eggs or toast. Fantastic!
bacon pate? have i died and gone to heaven?
This is so creative! How do you think of this stuff?
How fantastic. I could eat this for breakfast lunch or dinner. A great submission.
Gorgeous, as usual :)
I know for sure bacon pate would be a big hit in my household!
Wonderful! I really like that idea. A perfect brunch item.
Cheers,
Rosa