Naked eggs Benedict: eggs baked in ham cups with lemon butter sauce

Brush the bottoms and sides of heatproof ramekins, one per egg, generously with melted butter; set them on a sheet pan.

Overlap two thin slices of ham so the solid parts cover the holes, and press them into each ramekin as evenly as possible.

Crack each egg into a small bowl first, then slide one large egg into each ham cup.

Season with a pinch of salt and a couple shakes of cayenne. Bake in the center of a 350 degree oven 20 to 25 minutes, until the white is just set and the yolk still jammy with a little wiggle.

Lemon butter sauce: combine the juice of one lemon, a tablespoon of cold water and a pinch of salt; bring to a simmer over medium and reduce by about half.

Turn the heat to the lowest setting, add two tablespoons of sliced cold butter and keep shaking and swirling until almost melted; turn off the heat and swirl a few more times until creamy and emulsified.

Toast and butter an English muffin; lift each baked ham and egg out with a fork onto it.

Spoon the sauce over and finish with freshly snipped chives. Optionally serve with a small green salad.