Prep Time 15 mins | Cooking Time 15 mins | Serves 6
Cooking for a crowd this Christmas? You can have this delicious and healthy breakfast, featuring everyone’s favourite Asparagus and Eggs on Toast, on the table in minutes.
For the first time in forever, we’ve realised that we’ve invited not one set of family members over for Christmas, and not even two, but three, plus some guests over New Year’s, and some more friends again in early January. It’s definitely looking like a full-house! Thankfully we enjoy entertaining here in the Smiling Chef household. I’m really looking forward to catching up with our family and friends during the Christmas Season, which will be a great chance to rekindle and share some wonderful memories together, most of which I’m sure will revolve around food.
The other day, Mum and I were wondering what we would cook for our guests during their stay, trying to come up with menus for us all to enjoy. Perhaps you’ve been in a similar situation before where you’ve had to cook for a small crowd? It got me thinking about breakfast. Now of course we would make our favourites including Pancakes, like my light-as-a-feather 4,3,2,1 Pancakes, or my Baked Eggs with Chorizo and Zucchini. If all else fails I know I could rely on my simple and foolproof Semolina Porridge, cooked with milk until creamy and served with ruby-red strawberries and other fresh, seasonal fruit.
Now although I love to cook, there are time when even I get a little lazy, and I can’t help but look for an easier option. Take the classic Eggs on Toast for instance. Sure it sounds simple in theory, but, to be honest, I couldn’t think of anything worse than having to worry about cooking 10 or so portions to perfection and making sure they are still warm when we sit down to eat. That’s why I love my Asparagus and Eggs on Toast Tray Bake which features everyones favourites, plus some green beans, tarragon, rosemary and chia seeds for an extra boost of Omega-3. This bake can be cooked entirely in the oven and is ready in minutes, plus you’ll only require a single tray so there’s less washing up involved. It’ll surely take the stress out of big breakfasts, allowing you to enjoy more time with your loved ones. Check out my simple recipe below and be sure to let me know what you think in the comments section at the bottom.
This post has been sponsored by the friendly folk at ASKO, makers of fine Scandinavian household appliances including stunning ovens like these ones here.
Ingredients
For the tray bake
- 12 thick asparagus spears, washed
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp dried tarragon
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 250g green beans, trimmed
- ½ baguette
- 6 eggs
To serve
- ¼ cup sweet basil, leaves washed and dried
- 2 spring onions, finely sliced
- Zest of 1 orange
- 2 tbsp chia seeds
Method:
Cook the Asparagus. Preheat your oven to 180ºC (350ºF). Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Trim 1cm from the base of each Asparagus spear and lay on the tray. Drizzle with the oil, dot with butter, and sprinkle with the dried rosemary and tarragon. Roast in the oven for 5 minutes or until tender. Remove from the oven.
Assemble the tray. Top the Asparagus with the beans and baguette, season with salt and pepper and toss with spoons to coat in the oils. Using a spoon, make six wells among the veggies and crack and egg into each. Return the tray bake to the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes or until the whites are set and the tops of the yolk have cooked slightly.
Serve. Top the tray bake with the fresh basil, sliced spring onions and orange zest and chia seeds.
Brendon’s Tips:
- Chia seeds can be a little hard to find so feel free to substitute with sesame seeds – they taste just as delicious!
- When zesting the oranges, it’s a good idea to hold your microplane zester with the teeth face-down (see image here). This way you can catch all the fine orange zest before sprinkling it on your tray bake.
- For a vegan twist, leave out the butter and replace the eggs with a punnet of baby Roma or cherry tomatoes. You could even use Swiss Brown mushrooms.
What are you cooking this Christmas? Share your recipes and food photos by tagging #brendonthesmilingchef and #whatsbrendoncooking on Instagram or Tweeting to @bthesmilingchef or leave me a comment below.
Happy cooking and keep smiling,
Brendon :)
