15Eggs

Eggs cost little, are easy to buy and are rich in protein. They turn up all through the kitchen, served on their own or worked into a dish, where they give texture, flavor, structure, moisture and food value to soups, sauces, breads and pastry alike. An old French kitchen story says the hundred pleats in a chef's tall white hat, the toque, stand for a hundred ways to cook an egg.

An egg has three main parts. The shell, made of calcium carbonate, keeps germs out and water in and protects the egg on its way to the kitchen. Its color, anywhere from bright white to brown, comes from the breed of hen and makes no difference to quality, flavor or food value. The yolk is the yellow center. It is a little over a third of the egg but carries three quarters of the calories, most of the vitamins and minerals, and all of the fat. It also holds lecithin, the compound that lets a yolk hold sauces such as mayonnaise and hollandaise together. The white, or albumen, is the clear part: about two thirds of the egg and more than half of its protein. Two thick, twisted cords of white, the chalazae, anchor the yolk in place. They are not flaws and not embryos, they do not get in the way of cooking or whipping, and the more prominent they are, the fresher the egg.

15.1 Grades, parts and storage

Egg grades

In Canada, every egg must be graded to a set standard. Any shell egg that is imported, exported or shipped between regions for sale must carry a grade. The grade is printed on the carton: Grade A and Grade B show the grade name inside the grade mark, while Grade C and Nest Run show it in plain block letters.

A grade tells you about quality, not size. The grade mark also does not promise where the eggs were laid; it promises that they meet the standard. Every egg-processing plant is inspected for wholesome, sanitary work, and the pasteurizing of packaged egg products is watched over too.

Graders judge each egg on these points:

• its weight;
• how clean the shell is, and whether the shell is sound and well shaped;
• the shape of the yolk and where it sits, and the size of the air cell;
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• whether there are blood spots, or a yolk that has broken down inside the egg.

Egg grades.

Only Grade A eggs are sold by size, and the size comes from the weight of the egg in its shell. An average large egg weighs about 56 g (2 oz).

Sizes for Grade A eggs.

What is inside

The yolk and the white are built very differently. The white is mostly water with a little protein and almost no fat. The yolk is about half water, and nearly a third of it is fat.

What an egg is made of, by weight; there are also traces of sugar and ash.

All of an egg's cholesterol sits in the yolk. The yolk is fairly rich in iron, while the white is high in calcium. Eggs also carry plenty of B vitamins and amino acids.

When you separate large eggs, a working estimate is 30 g (1 oz) of white and 20 g (0.7 oz) of yolk per egg. Another split is slightly different: 55 g for the whole egg, 38 g of white and 17 g of yolk, with no fat or cholesterol at all in the white.

Shell color, creamy white or brown, depends only on the breed of hen; the egg inside is no different. Yolk color depends on what the hens eat. Bakers like dark yolks because the cakes look richer. Tests found that darker yolks gave moister sponge cakes, but the crumb was a little coarser and less tender.

Storing eggs

A whole egg is an ideal place for bacteria and mold to grow. An egg that smells wrong may be carrying a lot of either. Baking drives off some of these smells, but a strong one can stay and spoil the taste of the finished product.

Eggs, fresh or cooked, count as a potentially hazardous food (PHF): a food that spoils at room temperature and lets germs grow. The critical control point for refrigerated storage is 4°C (39°F) or colder. see chapter 2: Refrigerated storage

• Keep fresh eggs in the refrigerator in their cartons. The carton stops them losing moisture and picking up smells from other food.
• Keep liquid eggs and cracked eggs refrigerated at all times.
• Use eggs while they are fresh. Eggs kept too long before use can cause food poisoning.
• An egg that has gone off turns darker and smells foul.

Testing for freshness

There are two quick checks for a whole egg.

• Candling. In a dark room, hold the egg up to a light so you can see inside. If the white holds the yolk firmly as you turn the egg, and the shell is clean and whole, the egg is good. A bad smell will not show up this way; you only find it once the shell is broken.
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• Salt water. Dissolve 100 g of salt in 1 L of water (3.5 oz in 1 qt). Put the egg in. A fresh egg sinks to the bottom; an old one floats up to the top.
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Quality you can see once it is cooked

Each plain egg dish has a standard it should reach. A good fried or poached egg starts with a good egg: a thick, compact white and a yolk that stands up tall.

• Fried: the yolk sits in the middle, unbroken, under a thin film of set white. The white is shiny and opaque, with no bubbles and no crisp or brown parts. The yolk has thickened but does not run. The flavor is mild, with the taste of the frying fat.
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• Poached: the same yolk and film of white, with a shiny, compact white that has no ragged edges.
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• Cooked in the shell: a white that is firm but still tender, and a yolk that is mealy, centered and has no green ring around it.
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• Scrambled: moist, tender, fluffy masses, all one light yellow.
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• French omelet: set but still moist and tender, with little or no browning on the outside.
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15.2 Egg products

Bakeries and food service kitchens buy many eggs out of the shell. All egg products except shell eggs are pasteurized by law to protect against salmonella. They are kept cold, which slows bacteria, but under some conditions they can still spoil very fast. There are three main kinds:

• liquid eggs: whole eggs, or whole eggs with extra yolks;
• frozen eggs: whole eggs, whites or yolks;
• dried or powdered eggs: whole eggs, whites, and meringue powder.

Liquid and frozen eggs

Large bakeries prefer liquid and frozen whole eggs because cracking thousands of shells by hand does not pay. They are also one of the cheapest ways to buy eggs. Some are "fortified", meaning extra yolks have been added. Some bakers feel these eggs give less volume in sponge cakes than fresh ones, and many still lean towards shell eggs.

Frozen egg products keep a long time, with little loss of quality, at -18°C (0°F) or lower. That is also the rule for all frozen food.

• Thaw them in the refrigerator. Cold water also works, as long as the container is not submerged.
• Never thaw them at room temperature. The outer layers warm into the range where bacteria grow while the center is still frozen. see chapter 2: The danger zone
• Never use heat to thaw them.
• Refrigerate any thawed egg you do not use, and use it within 24 hours.

Frozen yolks are sold as 90% yolk and 10% sugar. The sugar stops the yolk turning to a gel and keeps the fat from separating.

Dried eggs

Some bakers use spray-dried eggs to save time and money. Like frozen eggs, they have doubters for sponge cakes. They do work, though, because a carbohydrate, usually corn syrup, is added before drying, and it lets them foam about as well as fresh eggs.

Keep dried whole eggs unopened in a cool place no warmer than 10°C (50°F), ideally in the refrigerator. Powdered eggs count among foods that are not potentially hazardous; fresh or cooked eggs count among those that are.

Reconstituting dried egg products.

You do not always have to add the water first. In muffins and cake doughnuts, dried egg goes in with the other dry ingredients. In layer cakes it is blended with the dry ingredients, then the fat and part of the water go in, and the rest of the liquid follows in two stages. When dried white goes into a cake mix, it is blended in dry and the water drops to 7 L (7 qt) of cold water per 1 kg (2.2 lb) of powder.

Substitutes and meringue powder

Dry egg substitutes are a cost-cutter. Their ingredients include whey, sweet cheese, dextrose, egg whites, sodium caseinate, modified tapioca starch, and artificial flavor and color. Bakers use them alone or blended with fresh or dried egg, in cakes, fillings and cookies.

Meringue powder is not pure dried egg white. Vegetable gums and starches in it soak up moisture and help it whip. Bakers use it widely for baked Alaska, royal icing and toppings.

Pasteurized eggs in place of raw

15.3 What eggs do in a recipe

Eggs do many jobs at once, especially in the bakeshop. Once you know what each job is, you can change a formula with confidence. Most of the jobs come back to two facts: egg proteins set when they are heated, and the yolk carries fat. see chapter 7: Proteins set: coagulation

• Leavening. Eggs can carry many times their weight in other ingredients, because they form a network of tiny cells, alone or together with flour. The white is especially good at this: its protein builds a fine web that traps a great mass of cells.
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• Structure. Eggs bind with other ingredients, mostly flour, to build the frame that holds everything else up.
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• Moistening and binding. The fat in eggs keeps a product moist, and the proteins set when heated, holding the other ingredients together.
• Thickening. Eggs thicken custards and chiffon pie fillings.
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• Emulsifying. The yolk contains lecithin, a natural emulsifier that helps make batters smooth.
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• Tenderizing. Egg fat works like a shortening and makes a baked cake more tender.
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• Shelf life. The fat in the yolk helps a product keep longer.
• Appeal. Eggs add color and flavor and improve texture and grain.
• Nutrition. Eggs are a valuable food. About 4% of the fat in a yolk is cholesterol, which concerns some people; makers of poultry feed claim to have lowered or removed it.

Changing a formula

A few examples show how bakers adjust eggs to get a result:

• In French butter cream in summer, egg whites can replace whole eggs. The cream is more stable and resists bacteria, because egg white is alkaline, at pH 8.5.
• Working a yolk or two into a sweet short paste lets the dough stretch further before it tears.
• Extra yolks in the sponge for a jelly roll help it roll up without cracking.

If you swap some or all of the eggs for water, remember two things. An egg is about 25% solids, so use water equal to about 75% of the egg you take out. And the batter loses lift, so add chemical leavening to make up for it.

Points to keep in mind

• A blood spot comes from a small fragment of blood in the hen's ovary. The egg is safe to eat and can be used.
• Egg white dissolves in cold water. It sets at 70°C (158°F), and after that it will not dissolve again.
• Leftover whites or yolks go into the refrigerator, tightly covered. To stop yolks forming a crust, pour a little water over them or mix in 10% sugar.
• Never pour unused egg back into the main container, and always use a clean utensil to take egg product out of its container.

15.4 Cooking eggs: boiled, poached, fried, scrambled, omelets

Whole eggs recipes →

Breakfast cooking is often one of the first line jobs offered to a new cook. It asks for speed, timing and accuracy, and it is a good place to build tidy, efficient work habits.

Almost any cooking method works for eggs, and they can be served with a huge range of seasonings and garnishes. The most common are dry heat (baking, sautéing and pan-frying) and moist heat (cooking in the shell and poaching). Whatever the method, take care. Too much heat or too much time makes eggs tough and rubbery, and undercooked eggs can pass on harmful bacteria.

Heat and the egg

The white and the yolk set at different temperatures, which is how one egg can have a firm white and a soft yolk. The white turns firm and opaque at 62–65°C (144–149°F), and the yolk sets at 65–70°C (149–158°F). see chapter 7: Eggs

The cooking standard for eggs is 63°C (145°F) for 15 seconds, and 74°C (165°F) inside for at least 15 seconds for any mixture containing eggs. Guests who want a runny yolk should know that germs are not destroyed until the yolk has fully set.

Choosing the egg: grade, size and freshness

In the United States, eggs are graded by the USDA, or by a state agency that follows USDA rules. The grade, AA, A or B, rates the quality of the inside and outside of the egg, not its size, and it has nothing to do with food value.

United States egg grades. Spread is how the egg looks when it is first broken onto a flat surface.

In the United States, egg sizes go from Peewee through Small, Medium, Large and Extra Large to Jumbo, set by the weight of a dozen. Kitchens usually buy Large, at 24 ounces a dozen. Each size up or down is about 3 ounces a dozen apart, so Medium weighs 21 ounces and Extra Large 27.

Age changes an egg. As it gets older the white thins and the yolk flattens. That changes how a fried or poached egg looks, but makes little difference to food value or to how the egg behaves when cooked. Pick the egg to suit the method:

• very fresh eggs for frying, because the yolk keeps its shape and the white spreads less;
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• very fresh eggs for poaching too;
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• eggs a few days old for cooking in the shell, because very fresh eggs are hard to peel.
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Other eggs

To most people an egg means a hen's egg, but kitchens sometimes use eggs from other birds, and even reptiles.

Eggs other than the hen's.

Handling eggs safely

Eggs are a potentially hazardous food. They are full of protein, which makes them a fine place for bacteria to breed. Salmonella is the main worry, because it lives in the gut of the hen. Packing houses clean the shells, but some bacteria may be left behind, so keep bits of shell out of the cracked egg.

• Cold storage. Keep eggs at 4°C (39°F) or colder, at 70 to 80 percent humidity. Eggs age more in one day at room temperature than in a week in the refrigerator.
• How long. Properly chilled, cartons of raw eggs keep at least four to five weeks past the pack date.
• Where. Store eggs away from strong-smelling foods so they do not take on the odor, and rotate the stock so the oldest is used first. see chapter 2: Rotation: first in, first out
• Damaged eggs. Throw out eggs that are cracked, broken or dirty; they may carry bacteria or other contamination.
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• Frozen eggs. Thaw them in the refrigerator, and use them only in dishes that are cooked through, such as baked goods.
• Holding. Hot food is held at 60°C (140°F) or hotter and cold food at 4°C (40°F) or colder; between the two is the danger zone. The same two limits apply to egg dishes, and an egg dish should never spend more than one hour at room temperature in total, counting preparation and service.
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• Containers. Clean and sanitize any container that has held raw egg before you use it again.

For convenience, kitchens can buy eggs already out of the shell in the form they need: whole, yolks only or whites only. In the United States these egg products must meet strict pasteurization rules and USDA inspection. They come frozen, refrigerated or dried, and some are precooked, pre-portioned or blended.

Eggs supply the B vitamins as well as vitamins A, D, E and K, and are rich in minerals. Egg whites contain no cholesterol, so cooks often add extra whites to dishes such as omelets to lower the total fat.

Baked (shirred) eggs

Shirred eggs are eggs baked in a dish. The name comes from the flat-bottomed dish they were once baked in. They are simple, reliable and easy to vary. They are normally made in single ramekins, which can be lined or part-filled with bread, ham, creamed spinach or artichokes. Cooked in ramekins set in a water bath, they become the French dish eggs en cocotte. Done right, the white is set and the yolk is still soft and creamy.

• Brush each ramekin with melted butter and add any flavoring ingredients.
• Crack one or two eggs into each ramekin without breaking the yolks, then season with salt and pepper.
• Bake until the white is firm, about 12 to 15 minutes.
• Three to five minutes before the end, pour on some cream, or scatter grated cheese, diced ham or fresh herbs over the top.

A ham version follows the same plan:

• Line the buttered ramekin with thin ham and add the eggs.
• Bake at 325°F for 8 to 10 minutes, until the eggs begin to set.
• Top with warm cream, grated Swiss cheese and a splash of dry sherry.
• Return the dish to the oven until the eggs are done and the cheese has melted.
• Serve it hot, with the yolks still wobbly rather than hard.

Quiche

Quiche Lorraine began as an open pie of custard with smoked bacon or lardons, which are small pieces of pork fat; cheese came later. Its home is the French region of Alsace-Lorraine. The first versions were rustic, baked in a cast-iron pan with the pastry edge left plain. In France today the bacon is cubed, there is no onion, and the custard is thicker than in the American version.

• Prick a 10-inch pie crust with a fork, lay parchment on it and spread dried beans over the paper as weights. Bake at 350°F until the edges are lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Lift out the paper and beans and let the crust cool about 5 minutes.
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• Fry 4 ounces of diced bacon until crisp and drain it on paper towel. Spread it in the crust with 2 ounces of shredded Swiss or Gruyère.
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• Mix 4 eggs, 1¾ cups of milk and 4 fluid ounces of heavy cream, and season with salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. Pour this custard over the filling.
• Bake about an hour, until the custard is set and golden. The center may still wobble a little; the heat left in the quiche finishes it as it cools. see chapter 8: Carryover cooking
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• Let it cool about 10 minutes before cutting it into wedges.

Scrambled eggs

Scrambled eggs are whisked with seasoning and then sautéed, stirred almost all the time. They should come out light and fluffy, tender and creamy. Too much heat, or too long in the pan, makes them tough and rubbery. see chapter 8: Cooking

• Break the eggs into a bowl and season lightly with salt and pepper. For a more delicate result, add a scant tablespoon (12 mL) of milk or cream for each egg. Whisk.
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• Put clarified butter or oil in a hot sauté pan and let it heat until it begins to sizzle.
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• Sauté any extra ingredients in the hot fat, then add the eggs and stir.
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There are two ways to flavor them. Cook something in the pan first, such as onion, mushroom or diced ham, or stir something in just before the eggs are done, such as grated cheese or herbs. Good additions include:

• fresh herbs;
• crumbled bacon;
• diced beef, ham or turkey;
• cooked sausage, cooked shrimp or bits of smoked salmon;
• cottage cheese, or any firm cheese, shredded;
• finely diced peppers, onion, mushroom, zucchini or tomato.

You can scramble whites alone. With no yolk there is far less fat, cholesterol and calories, and using water or nonfat milk in place of whole milk or cream cuts them further. Whites set at a lower temperature than yolks, so lower the heat and shorten the time.

Omelets and frittatas

A rolled omelet shows the method.

• Season 3 eggs with salt and pepper and beat them with a fork until frothy, to work some air in.
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• Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a small or medium non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Add ½ ounce of diced ham and stir until it is just hot.
• Pour in the eggs. Stir them gently as they cook, and stop as soon as they begin to set. Lift the edges so raw egg can run underneath.
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• When the eggs are nearly set, scatter on chopped green onion or chives and 2 tablespoons of shredded cheddar. Fold the front edge over and roll the omelet out onto a plate.
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• Garnish with more green onion or chives and serve warm.

A frittata is an open-faced omelet with Spanish and Italian roots. Plenty of hearty ingredients are stirred straight into the eggs. It can be cooked as a single portion in a small pan, or in a large pan and cut into wedges. It starts on the stove and finishes in the oven or under a salamander or broiler.

• Cook any meat fully, and blanch or otherwise prepare any vegetables, before they go in.
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• Heat a sauté pan with clarified butter. Whisk the eggs with the flavorings and other ingredients and pour them in.
• Stir gently until the eggs start to set. Then lift the cooked edge so raw egg runs underneath, and keep cooking until the eggs are almost set.
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• Put the pan in a hot oven or under the salamander or broiler to finish cooking and brown the top lightly. Slide the frittata out onto a platter.
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Fried eggs

Pan-fried eggs are served sunny side up, or "over" easy, medium or hard. Each is a different product, and each depends on timing and technique. Pan-frying is a dry heat method. see chapter 8: Dry heat for tender cuts

Styles of fried egg.

• Choose a sauté pan just big enough for the eggs. An 8-inch pan holds up to three.
• Heat a little clarified butter until it just starts to sizzle. Break the eggs carefully into the pan.
• Cook over medium-low heat until the eggs are as firm as you want. Turn "over" eggs once; never turn sunny-side-up eggs.
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• To serve "over" eggs, flip them gently once more so the first side faces up, then slide them onto the plate.
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For any "over" egg, the white should be firm with no brown edges, and the yolk must never break, however well done the egg. A broken yolk looks bad, and the yolk that runs out sets on the hot pan and makes the egg hard to serve.

Basted eggs are a kind of sunny-side-up egg. They cook over low heat while you spoon hot butter from the pan over the tops. Another way is to add 1 to 2 teaspoons (5 to 10 mL) of water to the pan and cover it, so steam cooks the tops.

Eggs in the shell

• Bring enough water to cover the eggs to a simmer in a saucepan or stockpot.
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• Lower each egg in gently and simmer, uncovered, for the time you need.
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• Lift the eggs out with a slotted spoon or a spider.
• For soft-cooked eggs, gently crack the shell at its large end and serve at once.
• For hard-cooked eggs, peel them once they are cool enough to handle, or cover and refrigerate them for up to 5 days.
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Hard-cooked eggs kept in the refrigerator in their shells should be used within one week.

Poached eggs

A few points matter most when the food being poached is an egg. see chapter 9: Poaching an egg

• Use very fresh eggs, and keep them very cold until they go in. A cold white holds together better when it meets the hot water.
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• Use at least 3 inches (7.5 cm) of water and hold it at a gentle simmer, about 90°C (200°F).
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• Some chefs salt the water for flavor; others think salt makes the white come apart. About 2 tablespoons (30 mL) of white vinegar to each quart or liter of water helps the white cling together.
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• Crack each egg into a small cup or ramekin first. Pick out any shell. If the yolk breaks, keep that egg for another use.
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• Slide the egg into the water and cook it 3 to 5 minutes. Lift it out with a slotted spoon, trim off ragged edges with a paring knife, and serve at once.
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A finished poached egg is soft and moist: the white is firm enough to wrap the yolk completely, and the yolk still runs.

For large numbers, poach the eggs ahead and keep them up to a day. As each egg comes out, put it into a hotel pan of ice water to stop the cooking, and leave it there until needed. For a banquet, set the whole pan on the stove to reheat them all at once; for a few at a time, warm them in barely simmering water.

Whipped whites

Whipped egg white goes into soufflés, cakes, pancakes, custards and more. The air beaten into it makes them light and helps them rise.

• Use fresh whites with no trace of yolk or anything else in them. Let them warm to room temperature first; they foam better.
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• Use a clean bowl and whisk. The smallest amount of fat can stop the whites foaming.
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• Whip until very foamy, then add salt or cream of tartar if the recipe asks for it.
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• Keep whipping to soft peaks, then add sugar a little at a time if the recipe calls for it.
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• Whip to stiff peaks. Well-whipped whites look moist and shiny. Whipped too far, they look dry and spongy, or curdled.
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• Use them straight away. If liquid starts to seep out, throw them away; they will not whip up properly again.

15.5 Breakfast and brunch

Breakfast is often eaten in a hurry, which is why breakfast sandwiches, jumbo muffins and take-away coffee cups sell so well. Brunch is the opposite: a slow, social meal that joins breakfast and lunch. Its menu runs from breakfast dishes to almost anything else. Unlike breakfast, it often comes with champagne or another alcoholic drink and ends with a pastry or dessert.

Kitchens serve breakfast in many forms:

• A hotel or resort may run several at once: a free continental breakfast (coffee, juice, sweet rolls), a full-service dining room ordering à la carte, room service, and a casual snack bar.
• The big hotel brunch buffet on Sundays and holidays is an American tradition for celebrations.
• Small shops in office and shopping complexes sell bagels, muffins, sweet rolls and coffee.
• Coffee houses sell coffee drinks, pastries, breads and quiche.
• Fast-food places now open early with breakfast menus.

Breakfast can include nearly any food eaten later in the day. What a guest thinks a proper breakfast is depends on their culture, background, money and home region, and on when they sleep and work. A typical breakfast menu covers these groups:

• coffee, tea and other hot drinks;
• fruit and fruit juice;
• eggs;
• breads, including sweet breads, and cereals and grains;
• potatoes;
• pancakes, waffles and French toast;
• breakfast meats such as bacon, breakfast sausage and smoked ham, or fish;
• dairy foods: milk, cheese and yogurt.

Hardly anyone eats from every group at one meal, but most kitchens offer something from each so that guests find what they expect.

Breakfast around the world

A North American traveling today can usually find a familiar breakfast almost anywhere, but in many countries people still eat their own traditional morning food.

Traditional breakfasts.

Breakfast meats

At most meals meat is the main food. At breakfast it is usually a side, and breakfast meats tend to be spicy or strongly flavored. A hearty menu may offer a small steak, usually sirloin and often pan-fried, or a pork chop. For a breakfast hash, dice or shred roast turkey, roast beef or corned beef and sauté it with potatoes and other ingredients. Fish is served too, especially smoked fish.

The favorites are bacon, ham and sausage.

• Bacon. Cook it on a flat griddle, in a heavy skillet, or on a sheet pan in the oven. However it is cooked, drain it on paper towel to take off the extra fat.
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• Canadian-style bacon is very lean and needs little cooking; the slices are usually sautéed briefly. The round slices are served like ham, and eggs Benedict cannot be made without them.
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• Ham. A ham steak is a thick slice, ideal at breakfast. Fully cooked ham only needs to be heated briefly in a sauté pan or on a griddle.
• Breakfast sausage is mostly made from uncured, uncooked meat. It runs from mild to spicy, can be slightly sweet or strongly seasoned with sage, and comes loose, in links or as patties. Links are often part-cooked by steaming, then browned in a sauté pan at service and drained on paper towel.

Griddlecakes and crepes

Pancakes and waffles are griddlecakes, also called griddle breads. They are usually raised with baking soda or baking powder and cooked quickly, with very little fat, on a waffle iron or a very hot griddle. A good one is more than a carrier for butter and syrup: its flavor is rich and its inside light, tender and moist. Batters can be flavored with tangy buckwheat flour, fruit, whole grains or nuts, and both usually come with plain or flavored butter and syrup or fruit compote.

A waffle needs a waffle iron, which gives the grid pattern and the crisp texture. Electric irons come in square, round and even heart shapes. Season the grids well and then never wash them, following the maker's instructions. Belgian waffles are extra light and crisp because they contain whipped egg whites, yeast or both. They are often baked in an iron with very deep grids and served at breakfast, or as a dessert topped with ice cream, whipped cream or fresh fruit.

Crepes are thin, delicate pancakes with no leavening. The batter is a very thin egg batter, cooked in a crepe pan or a small sauté pan heated very hot. Buckwheat flour, cornmeal or other grains can flavor it. Crepes are never served plain. They are filled and garnished with sautéed fruit, scrambled eggs, cheese or vegetables, and can be made ahead, then filled and reheated in the oven. A blintz is a crepe cooked on one side only, then filled with cheese and browned in butter. Serve it with fruit compote, preserves or sour cream.

Drinks

Water, coffee and tea are on almost every beverage menu. They cost the guest little, but a good cup of coffee or tea, or the right bottled water, shapes what a guest thinks of the whole place. Coffee is often the first thing a guest drinks or the last, and tea, hot or iced, often runs right through the meal. These drinks are also important sources of profit, so a cook needs to know how to make and serve them well.

Water. Bottled water is the fastest-growing part of the drinks business, partly because people are more health-minded and partly because they think it is safer. In the United States, bottled water is drinking water sold for people to drink and is regulated by the FDA. It can come from a city supply, a spring or a well. Spring water comes from underground and flows up to the surface on its own. Mineral water must have at least 250 parts per million of dissolved solids, and those minerals often give it its taste.

Bottled water is sold still or sparkling. The sparkle usually comes from added carbon dioxide, which also stops the water spoiling; the more of it, the sharper the taste. Serve bottled water lightly chilled, without ice unless the guest asks.

Coffee. Roasts are named by how dark the beans are taken.

Coffee roasts from light to dark.

Tea. The teas a breakfast or brunch kitchen meets most fall into black, green and oolong.

Teas for the breakfast and brunch menu.

15.6 Foams: meringue, soufflé, puffy omelet

Egg whites recipes →

A foam is air beaten into egg white. As you beat, the white passes through five clear stages, in this order:

• foamy;
• soft peak;
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• upper soft peak;
• stiff peak;
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• dry.
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Each stage has its own stability and its own uses, and a recipe tells you which one to stop at. Soufflés and puffy omelets are beaten to the upper limit of the soft peak stage.

Meringue

A soft meringue is egg white beaten with sugar. Sift a little cream of tartar over one egg white and beat the white to the start of the soft peak stage. Then add 2 tablespoons plus 1½ teaspoons of sugar gradually while you keep beating, and watch how the meringue at each stage differs from plain beaten white.

The same meringue is the base of an angel cake.

• Beat the whites and cream of tartar to the start of soft peak, and add the flavorings.
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• Add the rest of the sugar 2 teaspoons at a time until the meringue reaches the upper limit of soft peak.
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• Fold in a sifted flour-and-sugar mix a quarter at a time, just until the flour disappears.
• Bake the batter in an ungreased loaf pan at 375°F, about 25 minutes, until it springs back when touched.
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• Turn the pan upside down and leave the cake hanging until cool, then cut it with a serrated knife.
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Soufflé

A soufflé is a thick white sauce, enriched with yolks and flavored, then lightened with beaten whites and baked until it puffs. Savory soufflés use cheese, broccoli or tuna; sweet ones use chocolate or lemon.

• Set a water bath with a rack and a 1-pint baking dish in the oven to heat. Use 350°F for cheese, broccoli or tuna, and 375°F for chocolate or lemon. Separate the eggs.
• Make a thick white sauce: melt the butter, stir in the flour and salt off the heat, add the milk, then bring it quickly to a full boil while stirring gently.
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• Stir in the flavoring, such as cheese, or lemon juice and zest. Blend the sauce into the yolks a little at a time.
• Beat the whites with cream of tartar to the upper limit of soft peak. For a sweet soufflé, start adding the sugar gradually at the beginning of soft peak.
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• Fold the whites into the base as described above, and pour into the hot dish standing in hot water.
• Bake uncovered for about 30 to 45 minutes, until a clean metal knife pushed into the center comes out with nothing on it.

A good soufflé has a puffed, slightly rounded, browned top. Inside it is one even color and texture: an even foam, a little moist but set all the way through. It eats light, fluffy and tender, well seasoned and tasting of its main ingredient.

Puffy omelet

A puffy omelet is also built on beaten whites, but has no white sauce. The yolks are beaten thick instead, and the omelet starts on the stove and finishes in the oven.

• Heat the oven to 350°F. Separate 2 eggs.
• Add a little salt and 2 tablespoons of water or milk to the yolks, and beat on the mixer's top speed until very thick, about 5 to 7 minutes.
• Melt 1 teaspoon of butter in a 6-inch heavy aluminum pan and coat the inside with it.
• Beat the whites with ¼ teaspoon of cream of tartar to the upper limit of soft peak, and fold the yolk mixture into them.
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• Pour at once into the hot pan and cook over medium heat until the side is lightly browned, about 2 to 4 minutes.
• Bake until a knife in the center comes out clean, about 10 to 15 minutes. Turn out onto a warm plate and serve right away.

A sweet version adds 2 tablespoons of sugar and uses orange juice as the liquid.

A good puffy omelet:

• is well risen, with a delicate brown outside;
• does not fall when it leaves the oven;
• is even in structure and color;
• tastes light, fluffy, tender and delicate.

When a foam goes wrong

Common faults in egg foams and their likely causes.