RECIPE: Chestnut Mushroom Benedict with Eggs and Bearnaise Sauce
| 8th December 2021
If you are looking for the perfect breakfast recipe for Christmas morning, well look no further! This Chestnut Mushroom Benedict with Eggs and Bearnaise Sauce is rich, decadent, comforting and oh so festive.
Mushrooms are the perfect winter ingredient, especially if you are looking to have more of a green Christmas.
To promote sustainable eating over the festive period, the UK and Ireland Mushroom Producers are working together with Matt Tebbutt, celebrity chef and TV presenter, to advocate for a more sustainable Christmas this year and encourage the nation to think about choosing locally sourced products.
Tebbutt states: “All of us want to enjoy a special Christmas feast this year with close family and friends, with last year’s festive season spent in lockdown. This being said, it’s important to consider a more sustainable Christmas too, looking closely at the festive ingredients we’re purchasing. Mushrooms have been widely used in Christmas cooking over the years, due to their sustainability credentials, meat-like texture and versatile nature.
When purchasing Christmas ingredients such as mushrooms, it is important to check the country of origin, which can be found on front of pack, to ensure you are purchasing the freshest and highest quality produce available.
The UK and Ireland Mushroom Producers is a partnership between key mushroom farmers across the UK and Ireland who are naturally enhancing mushrooms with the sunshine vitamin, Vitamin D. Their passion for these sunny sponges drives desire among the nation’s consumers on the health benefits of eating British and Irish mushrooms and in particular, those enriched with Vitamin D.
So without further ago, check out Matt’s Chestnut Mushroom Benedict with Eggs and Bearnaise Sauce recipe below:
Ingredients
- Olive oil
- 300g British Chestnut mushrooms
- 1 knob of butter
- 1 shallot, finely chopped
- 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp tarragon, chopped
- Chives, diced
- 2 English Muffins / or British sourdough
For the Bearnaise Sauce
- 150g Butter, room temperature
- 1 tsp Vinegar
- 2 Egg yolks
- Salt and ground white pepper
For the Mushrooms
- Heat oil in a frying pan over a medium high heat
- Add Mushrooms, cook until golden and there is little moisture remaining
- Remove mushrooms, set aside
- Reduce heat to medium
- In the same pan, melt butter
- Add shallot and garlic until tender, 1-2 minutes
- Add mushrooms and chopped Tarragon
- Season with salt and pepper
- Set aside and keep warm
To make the Bearnaise
- Pour a few centimetres of water into a saucepan and bring to a low simmer.
- Select a heat proof mixing bowl that will comfortably sit on top oof the saucepan, well above the water to create a double boiler.
- Place the egg yolks and vinegar in the heatproof bowl and beat the eggs with a whisk until fluffy
- In another saucepan, melt the butter carefully.
- In a steady stream, slowly add the melted butter to your egg mixture, continually stirring.
- Once incorporated, remove the bowl from the pan and season with salt and white pepper to perfection.
- Keep bearnaise warm on the residual steam from the saucepan, removed from the heat.
- Slice the english muffins and toast
For the poached eggs
- Fill a small saucepan with 3 inches of water and bring to boil. Add a splash of vinegar and with a whisk, furiously spin the water to create a whirlpool.
- Immediately drop the egg into the centre of the vortex and cook until the whites are set, and the yolks are still soft, about 2-4 minutes.
- Remove with a slotted spoon.
- Spread a little of the bearnaise over the toasted muffin
- Top with mushrooms, the poached egg and a spoonful of warm bearnaise.
- Top with chives and serve immediately.