As a child, I grew up having Eggs and Cigars for dinner on the reg and assumed it was a classic, both in name and substance. It consisted of a perfectly cooked, soft boiled egg delicately sitting in an egg cup, and buttered brown bread, cut into strips we pretended were cigars for dipping in runny yolk, as if stubbing out a cigar in an ash tray.
In writing this recipe, however, I was stunned to find out that “Eggs and Cigars” is nowhere to be found on the internet. The dish is known as “Dippy Eggs and Soldiers” in the UK, but I couldn’t find any reference to the cigar nomenclature of my childhood! Was this a name we invented as kids? (Unlikely, since our cigar exposure was minimal.) Was it a name my mom came up with? It’s times like these that I really miss having her here to ask.
Whether you call them soldiers or cigars, this is a slightly more fancy version of a classic, with lemony herbed chile butter slathered onto toast strips just before they take the plunge. Serve with a side of wilted spinach for a light supper.
You can make up the herbed chile butter ahead, so you have it on hand for quickly turning a humble egg and toast — or a sandwich of any kind — into something special. If you don’t have an egg cup, you can set the egg on a napkin ring, a shot glass or even a decorated cross section of an empty toilet paper roll — no need to be fussy.
Eggs and Cigars
INGREDIENTS
Half a stick butter, softened
¼ cup minced fresh dill, parsley, basil or chives
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
½ teaspoon salt
Fresh cracked pepper
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 egg per person
1 slice brown bread, per person
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DIRECTIONS
To make the herbed chile butter, use a fork to mix together the butter, herbs, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, lemon zest and juice until combined. This compound butter can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
To soft boil the egg, bring a small saucepan of water to a simmer. Carefully lower the egg into the boiling water and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the egg using a slotted spoon.
Toast the bread until golden brown. Slather with the herbed chili butter before slicing into 1-inch wide strips. Set the egg in an egg cup and use a knife to whack the egg about a quarter of the way down to remove the top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Serve immediately with the toast strips.
Registered dietitian and food writer Laura McLively is the author of “The Berkeley Bowl Cookbook.” Follow her at @myberkeleybowl and www.lauramclively.com.
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