Southwest Eggs Benedict piled high on grilled cornbread is delicious. Add Smokey Bacon and Corn Salsa then, top with Citrus Chile Hollandaise Sauce to make the perfect (but not too spicy) brunch or breakfast recipe.
This is great for a regular breakfast or a fancy brunch. Poached eggs are much easier than you imagine. Just scroll down for step by step photos and recipe.
I am proud to announce that Everyday Southwest is part of the Daring Kitchen Challenge. My very first challenge was "Poached to Perfection" or poached eggs. The recommended recipes are eggs benedict and oeufs en meurette. That's pretty fancy for Southwest cookin'. We aren't known for our "nouveau, almondine, thin crust, bottled water, sautéed city food" around here.
But, what the heck? If I am diving into this challenge head first, then I better make a big splash!
First up, I decided to put a "Southwest spin" on the recipe and make Southwest Eggs Benedict for my entry and see what happens so, here goes!
Give Eggs Benedict Southwest Flavor
To spice up my favorite Eggs Benny recipe, I traded the classic ingredients for ingredients with Southwest favors like cornbread, smokey bacon, corn salsa and a dash of chile to spice up the hollandaise sauce.
Southwest Eggs Benedict with Southwest Hollandaise Sauce, Smoky Bacon and Corn Salsa sounds like a mouth full. Trust me though, it is just as easy to pack this breakfast dish with Southwest flavors as the classic eggs benedict recipe.
Cook along with me then, put we'll put our feet up and sip a Southwest Mocktail or an Apple Cider Mimosa. Of course, cider is another very Southwest ingredient.
Ingredients for Southwest Eggs Benedict
First up, classic English muffin layer. I traded Sweet Jalapeño Corn Bread toasted in a skillet with melted butter instead of classic Sourdough Discard English Muffins.
Next, I prepared a quickly sautéd fresh corn salsa that is packed with diced then fried Canadian bacon. Regular crumbled bacon is also great!
Eggs Benedict is topped it off with delicious hollandaise sauce. I created a citrus chile hollandaise sauce. To add a Southwest smoky flavor to the sauce, I used chipotle in adobo instead of chili powder.
If you are grilling your own corn, throw a couple extra ears of corn on the grill or into the smoker for Smoked Corn on the Cob and use it in the salsa. Grill the corn a day or two ahead of time to cut down on the early morning rush.
Last, are the eggs. I love poached eggs and used them in this recipe (see directions below).
Time Saving Tips
- Fluffy Scrambled Eggs make an easy, time saving way to make for this recipe. Just trade the poached eggs for scrambled.
- You can also make these Simple Egg Frittatas in a muffin tin or my crustless Mini Green Chile Quiches that are perfect for making ahead of time.
- Up the smoky Southwest flavor by trading Canadian Bacon for this Double Smoked Ham, it adds smokiness without additional heat of chipotle and can be purchased fully cooked.
- I like to cook a ham in a roaster and use leftovers in recipes all week long.
How to Make Southwest Eggs Benedict
Attention: Plan ahead! You're going to have to have all of the balls in the air at once for this recipe! I found it impossible to have everything finished at the same time and hot without prepping absolutely everything ahead of time. I even used two skillets. One skillet for the eggs and one skillet for the corn salsa with bacon and toasting the corn bread.
To make things a little less "heck tick" for your first time making Southwest Eggs Benedict, consider making EVERYTHING ahead of time.
You can also substitute the homemade cornbread for store bought cornbread or our my cornbread waffles recipe. Try soft rolls like these for Hawaiian roll breakfast sliders.
For the Cornbread Layer-
Trim the top (or Bottom) off the corn bread and grill in skillet with a little butter. Cover with foil and keep in a warm oven.
For the Bacon and Corn Salsa Layer-
Dice the Canadian bacon and sauté until lightly browned. Or brown it and then dice it... it's your choice.
Next, Add mushrooms and diced Anaheim Chiles.
Continue to sauté for 3 to 4 minutes or until the chiles are softened and cooked to al denté.
Add the corn last. Don't over cook the corn! It only takes a minute or two. Toss in vinaigrette and keep warm but do not continue to cook.
Tip: Add the fresh corn while bringing the water for the eggs to a simmer in a different skillet.
For the Hollandaise Sauce-
Add the water, lemon juice, salt and chile powder together in a small mixing bowl or the measuring cup of an immersion blender. Add egg yolks and briefly blend.
Drizzle in warm hot, melted butter while blending. This will cook the eggs.
Place the bowl in a hot water bath to keep the sauce warm.
For the Poached Eggs-
Bring an 2 inches or so of water and a teaspoon of vinegar to a simmer in a sauté pan or skillet. Reduce the heat. You should see steam, but the water should not be boiling.
Gently swirl the water in the pan to create a gentle vortex. The swirling water will help the shape of the egg.
Carefully drop the eggs one at a time into simmering water. For a "neater" shape, crack the eggs into a ramekin or large flat ladle before adding to the water.
Poach eggs until the white that covers the yolk is just translucent and the yolks are still runny. Remove the eggs from the poaching liquid with a slotted spoon. Allow them to drain slightly before placing them on top of the corn salad. Season with salt and pepper.
Assemble the corn bread, Canadian bacon and corn salad while eggs are poaching.
Top with warm hollandaise sauce and garnish with a little more corn salsa.
Southwest Breakfast Recipes You Will Love
- Hueavos El Diablo or The Devil's Eggs is a recipe for eggs cooked in salsa and spooned over potatoes, hash or just eaten straight out of the dish! Make the salsa spicy hot or as mild as you would like.
- Eggs in a Mini Pumpkin with Bacon and Roasted Squash Hash is a fun and show stopping Fall breakfast idea.
- Breakfast Burritos El Diablo takes the Huevos El Diablo and rolls them into a flour tortilla for a filling breakfast.
- Chilaquiles with Tomatillo Sauce is an all time Southwest eggs favorite
Southwest Eggs Benedict with Bacon Corn and Chile Hollandaise
Ingredients
- 6 squares of corn bread squares about 2 and ½ inches on each side
- 10 slices thick bacon or Canadian Bacon
- 2 ears of fresh corn or 1 to 2 cups frozen corn
- ½ cup diced mushrooms
- 1 Anaheim chile, seeded and diced
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 to 3 tablespoons vinaigrette
- 1 tablespoon water
- ½ lemon, juiced
- salt, a big pinch
- ¼ teaspoon New Mexico style red chile powder
- 3 egg yolks
- ¾ pounds unsalted butter, melted
- 6 whole eggs
- salt and fresh cracked pepper
Instructions
Toast cornbread in a skillet with a little bit of the butter. Dice 6 slices of Canadian bacon and saute until brown. Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook 2 more minutes. Add corn and green chiles and warm through. Do not over cook the corn. It only takes a few minutes. Toss with vinaigrette. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Bring a skillet with 2 tho 3 inches of water to a simmer. Add vinegar and a little salt.
Melt butter.
Whisk 1 tablespoon water, lemon juice, salt, New Mexico chile powder and egg yolk together. You may use a blender or immersion blender. Drizzle in melted butter while whisking. Keep warm over a hot water bath.
Grill 4 slices of bacon, keep warm.
Crack 4 eggs into separate bowls or ramekins. Slide them one at a time into the simmering water (do not let the water boil). Poach until the white of the egg above the yolk is just set but the yolk is still runny.
Place a heaping spoonful of corn salad on t0 the center of a plate. Put a slice of corn bread on top of the salad. Stack Canadian bacon and egg on top. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon hollandaise over egg and garnish with a little corn salad.
Eggs Benedict Southwest Style
4 squares of corn bread about 2 and ½ inches on each side
10 slices Canadian bacon
2 ears of fresh corn or 1 to 2 cups frozen corn
½ cup diced mushrooms
1 anaheim chile, seeded and diced
Salt and pepper to taste
2 to 3 tablespoons vinaigrette
1 tablespoon water
½ lemon, juiced
salt, a big pinch
dash New Mexico style red chile powder
3 egg yolks
¾ pounds unsalted butter, melted
4 whole eggs
salt and fresh cracked pepper
Directions for Eggs Benedict Southwest Style
Cut top off square of corn bread and toast in a skillet with a little bit of the butter. Dice 6 slices of Canadian bacon and saute until brown. Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook 2 more minutes. Add corn and green chiles and warm through. Do not over cook the corn. It only takes a few minutes. Toss with vinaigrette. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Bring a skillet with 2 tho 3 inches of water to a simmer. Add vinegar and a little salt.
Melt butter.
Whisk 1 tablespoon water, lemon juice, salt, New Mexico chile powder and egg yolk together. You may use a blender or immersion blender. Drizzle in melted butter while whisking. Keep warm over a hot water bath.
Grill 4 slices of bacon, keep warm.
Crack 4 eggs into separate bowls or ramekins. Drop them one at a time into the simmering water (do not let the water boil). Poach until the white of the egg above the yolk is just set but the yolk is still runny.
Assemble
Place a heaping spoonful of corn salad on t0 the center of a plate. Put a slice of corn bread on top of the salad. Stack Canadian bacon and egg on top. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon hollandaise over egg and garnish with a little corn salad.
Everyday Southwest is proud to announce that we are new members of the Daring Kitchen. Donna and I are big fans of the group and have watched the challenges for a long time. We have wanted to join and felt a little left out each time the new challenge was revealed. We weren't quite sure we could take the monthly challenges and give them our special "Southwest" spin and stay within the guidelines. The only way to find out was to dive in head first and see if we float, or something like that.
Blog-checking lines: Jenn and Jill have challenged The Daring Cooks to learn to perfect the technique of poaching an egg. They chose Eggs Benedict recipe from Alton Brown, Oeufs en Meurette from Cooking with Wine by Anne Willan, and Homemade Sundried Tomato & Pine Nut Seitan Sausages (poached) courtesy of Trudy of Veggie num num.
Here are some other poached egg recipes you might like to try:
Classic Eggs Benedict- Simply Recipes
Turkish Poached Eggs with Yogurt and Spicy Sage Butter- Orangette
Asparagus with Poached Egg, Tarragon and Chives- The Kitchn
-posted by Sandy
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