An Inspired Cook

There’s a cozy little restaurant “Hannah and Nates Market Cafe” that serves some of the best breakfast and lunch dishes in Corrales and Albuquerque. One of their signature dishes is the Heavenly Hash which is a mound of hash browns topped with cheese, bacon, sausage or ham, eggs cooked your way with red or green chile. They also make some of the best Eggs Benedicts in town. I always have a hard time deciding whether to order the Heavenly Hash or the Eggs Benedict, so today I’m combining the two with my own version of the perfect breakfast dish. It starts with hash browns that are cheesy and crisp on the outside topped with perfectly poached eggs with hollandaise sauce, crispy bacon bits and diced green chile. The combination is heavenly all right! Joe and I ate every bite, it was so good! But if you want a healthier version, ditch the hollandaise sauce as it is very rich in butter and egg yolks. I took several short cuts to make this timely dish easier with less mess. For instance using dehydrated potatoes cuts down the time it takes to make hash browns from scratch. Microwaving the bacon in less than 5 minutes while leaving no mess on top of the stove is a big plus! And I can’t say enough about using poaching bags; they are the way to go for perfectly poached eggs in only 4 – 5 minutes. It shouldn’t be hard to make breakfast this good!

I cooked the bacon first so I could save the grease to fry the hash browns in. I have a microwave bacon rack with a lid that I use these days. It takes approximately 4 minutes give or take to cook the bacon to the crispness you prefer. Here’s the Nordic Ware bacon rack that I found at Walmart for under $10. No more frying on top of the stove for me. I cooked 3 slices of bacon that is perfect to cut into bits and sprinkle on top of the Heavenly Hash.

I’ve found that for myself the easiest and tastiest hash browns are made with dehydrated hash browns. One carton box will make enough hash browns for both Joe and myself. Costco has packs of 8 cartons reasonably priced that I tend to keep on hand. Pour hot water inside the carton to the fill line and wait 12 minutes. Drain any excess liquid and they are ready to go. Here I have the rehydrated hash browns, 2 tablespoons of melted butter, 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese and salt.

Add the melted butter and stir to combine.

Add the grated cheese and fold into the hash browns.

I usually just sprinkle a bit of salt into the mix. I would guess it’s around 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon.

Heat a 9 or 10 inch skillet over medium heat and add 1 – 2 tablespoons of bacon grease to the pan, it gives the hash browns a crispy outer crust. If you don’t have bacon grease you can use olive oil.

Let them cook on one side several minutes until they are crispy brown on the bottom. Once you’ve achieved that, turn them over to cook the other side until they are also crispy brown.

I have found that using poaching bags make the process of poaching eggs easier. If you can’t find poaching bags at your favorite kitchen store, you can order Perfect Poach from Amazon. To poach the eggs, fill a big pot with water and set to boil. Line a small cup with a poaching bag and fold the top over the lip of the glass. Crack an egg into each prepared poach bag. Gently lower the eggs into the boiling water with tongs and let boil 4 minutes if you like a runny yolk or 5 minutes for a firm yolk. **If you are in a pinch for time, boil the eggs for 3 minutes, remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and place in ice water to stop the cooking process. Meanwhile leave the water boiling on top of the stove. When you are a minute or two out from having the hollandaise sauce blended, place the eggs (still in the poaching bags) back into the boiling water and boil an additional 1 minute for a runny yolk or 2 minutes for a firm yolk.

To make the hollandaise; add 3 egg yolks to a blender.

Add a tablespoon of lemon juice.

And 1/4teaspoon of salt.  (only if using unsalted butter, otherwise omit the salt). Pulse a few times to blend it together.

While the blender is on puree, add the melted butter and continue blending for 30 – 90 seconds or until the hollandaise is a smooth sauce.

To assemble, place half of the hash browns on the bottom of a plate or bowl. Add 2 poached eggs and spoon as much of the hollandaise sauce that you want over top. Sprinkle with bacon bits and chopped green chile.

Heavenly Hash Eggs Benedict

1 carton (4.2 oz) Dehydrated Hash Brown Potatoes
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, melted
1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese, grated
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoons Salt
1 1/2 tablespoons Reserved Bacon Grease to fry hash browns (can substitute Olive Oil)
3 slices Bacon, cooked and chopped into small pieces
1/4 cup Roasted Green Chile, chopped
4 large Eggs, poached
3 Egg Yolks, extra large
1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter

Cook the bacon to the desired crispness. (I microwaved the bacon on a bacon rack with a lid 4 – 5 minutes). Remove bacon to a plate lined with paper towels to blot any excess grease. Save reserved grease to fry hash browns.

Prepare dehydrated hash browns according to package instructions. When rehydrated, strain the hash browns and pour into a large bowl. Add melted butter, grated cheddar cheese and salt and fold in together until the cheese has been blended in evenly throughout the hash browns. Prepare a 9 or 10 inch skillet by adding 1 1/2 tablespoons reserved bacon grease to the pan. Heat on medium heat and when hot add the hash browns evenly over the bottom of the pan. Allow the hash browns to cook several minutes until they become brown and crisp on the bottom. Turn the hash browns over to cook the other side. Let cook until brown and crisp. Remove and divide between 2 plates or bowls.

To make poached eggs: In a large pot add water and heat to boiling. Poach eggs in the poached bags for 4 minutes for a runny yolk or 5 minutes for a firm yolk. Use a slotted spoon to retrieve eggs. **If you are in a pinch for time, boil the eggs for 3 minutes, remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and place in ice water to stop the cooking process. Meanwhile leave the water boiling on top of the stove. When you are a minute or two out from having the hollandaise sauce blended, place the eggs (still in the poaching bags) back into the boiling water and boil an additional 1 minute for a runny yolk or 2 minutes for a firm yolk.

To make the Hollandaise Sauce: Place the egg yolks, lemon juice and salt in a blender and puree 30 seconds. Continue processing while pouring the warm melted 1/2 cup butter through the removeable cap at the top of the blender. Process for a minute or until it makes a smooth sauce.

To assemble the Heavenly Hash Eggs Benedict: Divide the hash browns between 2 plates or bowls. Top with 2 poached eggs on each and spoon the desired amount of hollandaise over each egg. Sprinkle bacon bits and diced green chile over top.