Eggs benedict. Asparagus with Hollandaise. The thought makes me go weak at the knees and my mouth water. Everytime I make this sauce for visitors they are wowed that I’ve made it from scratch. The thing is, I’ve bought pre-made Hollandaise sauce and I’ve been really underwhelmed – it just doesn’t compare to the homemade version.
Unfortunately, lots of people are intimidated by making Hollandaise because it’s known for being finicky and temperamental, or to be more precise, splitting. I’m pleased to report this easy Hollandaise sauce recipe has never split on me, far from it: It turns out perfect everytime, the only problem is reigning in how much you eat! It’s also easy – it takes two minutes for the sauce to come together, which I like, I’m not known for having the best attention span in the North Island. I think the secret with this fool-proof recipe is that it contains less butter than most other Hollandaise recipes. Before you starting high-fiving me thinking this is a calorie friendly sauce, hold fire: It’s not. But it’s delicious. Give it a go!
Ingredients
- 50g butter
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 egg yolks (freshest eggs you can get, ideally free range)
- 1/4 cup cream
- 1 teaspoon wholeseed mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Pinch of cayenne pepper
- 1/8 tsp of honey (the tiniest amount!)
- Cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Get a double boiler saucepan (or a saucepan and a heat proof bowl that will sit over the saucepan). Place water in the saucepan and bring it just to the boil (you want it barely simmering). Make sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl/saucepan on top.
- Melt the butter in the saucepan/bowl.
- While the butter is melting mix together in a small jug: Lemon juice, egg yolks and cream.
- When the butter is melted, turn the heat down (low to medium heat) and add lemon juice etc and stir, stir, stir. You can use a whisk to do this, I usually use a wooden spoon or a spatula and that works for me. The secret is really the low heat and not taking your eye off the stirring ball, if you stop stirring, or let the sauce boil, it'll curdle and the egg will start to scramble and you'll have lumpy Hollandaise. Equally if you haven't got the heat up far enough the sauce won't emulsify (come together).
- As soon as the sauce has reached the desired consistency, which should about two minutes, remove from heat, add mustard, cayenne pepper, honey, pepper and beat the hell of it till it's smooth.
Dish it up over your favourite Hollandaise friendly food (like poached/fried eggs/asparagus) and refrain from licking the plate while other people are looking. If it’s Christmas time, this little Hollandaise number goes beautifully with my Christmas ham! Actually, it’s so good – I often double it (the photos below are of the recipe doubled).
What’s your favourite dish to serve Hollandaise with?
