Eggs Benedict Ingredients:
½ English breakfast muffin 1 egg 1 slice of soccer ball ham 1t butter (for muffin) Dash of vinegar
Hollandaise Sauce:
30g butter at room temperature 15ml cream 1 egg yolk (slightly beaten) 2t lemon juice 1/4t dry mustard 1/8t salt Sprinkling of cayenne pepper
Method: Preparing Sauce:
Place a heatproof bowl over a medium saucepan that is filled with about a quarter of water. The bowl should not touch the water. Remove the bowl and put a lid on your saucepan and bring the water to a boil, reduce heat to very low so the water is barely simmering. It is important that the water is barely simmering while making the sauce, if it is too hot, the egg yolks will cook too much and the sauce will curdle. Place the egg yolk in the heat proof bowl and place over the pan. Use a whisk to whisk the mixture constantly taken the bowl of and on the heat. Add the butter, 1 cube at a time, keep whisking hard, fast and constant and keep adding butter cubes 1 by 1. Don’t cook the sauce far too long or it may curdle. The sauce will begin to thin when you start adding the butter. However, once the emulsion is established, after about the third cube, it will begin to thicken again. If your sauce begins to separate or curdle it can be saved as long as it isn’t too grainy and the egg hasn’t set. Gradually add the cream, whisking constantly. Remove the bowl from the pan and place on a heatproof surface. The sauce should have the consistency of very lightly whisked thickened cream. Whisk in the lemon juice, dry mustard and salt.
Assembling eggs Benedict:
Place a saucepan on the heat and fill it ½ way with water. Add a dash of white vinegar to the water. When the water has started simmering spin the water in a circular motion and then crack the egg directly in the middle of the saucepan. Cook the egg for about 3 minutes. Whilst your egg is being poached tats your English muffin and fry your ham. Take your egg out and assemble your ingredients onto the muffin Drizzle your hollandaise sauce over the top Place your finished product in good lighting with a nice backdrop and either center your product or place it to the side slightly. Capture your image and then enjoy your meal.
Analysis of Food styling/Photography To style my food a decided to make a muffin to do this I placed my ingredients on the muffin and tipped them slightly to the front to show the effect and different colours of the ingredients. I then garnished with salt and pepper and drizzled my hollandaise sauce over the top before then adding my top muffin. To take the image I laced my meal on a black plate and placed it in front of the blue kitchen wall tiles and kneeled down the the side of my muffin and slightly tilted my top muffin back to capture the image.