It’s not eloquent, but it’s not a lie like that lying toad in his fabricated hole. Come to think of it, do toads even hang out in holes? Maybe a pile of mud, or a stream, or a riverbank? I don’t know too much about toads, but I know that’s not what’s in the middle of a scooped out piece of bread. Toads give warts and bad suitors turn into them…what part of any of this do you want in your breakfast??!?!

I digress.

I like simple breakfasts. Scrambled eggs are perfect. An omelette is a great post workout dinner. But all of these lox clad eggs or Benedicts made with the finest regional meats and crabs and fishes freak me out a little. That’s why I’m always looking for simple twists on basic breakfast. It’s what I like.

A tablespoon of cream cheese and chives stirred in at the end of a scramble is a nice addition. So is an omelette of tomato, cucumber, and feta topped with tzatziki, a recent find I’ve made a few times. Breakfast casseroles are great for company, so what’s my next twist on eggs?

Egg in a Pit

You take an egg. And you crack it into a pit.

Here’s what I mean.

You defrost a sheet of phyllo dough and cut it into a circle with a large biscuit cutter. I’m not southern enough to own a metal one, so I opted to use a pizza cutter. While it is is a circle itself, the angles made were more octagonal than smooth arch. Whatever, just eat the corners off of your “circle.”

That’s when it occurred to me I could just make a square. So I made one of those too.

You’re going to want to score a 1/2″ border, or whatever you want to puff up when baking and then make your “pit” by stabbing the center repeatedly with a fork.

Comme ca…naked and afraid…

Place your phyllo pits on a parchment covered cookie sheet in the fridge until the oven heats to 400. Transfer the cookie sheet from the refrigerator and bake for 8 minutes.

…half baked…

 

Now if your pits aren’t deep enough, rip out a few layers and discard. Careful not to burn your fingers…it’s steamy in the pit.

Sprinkle some cheddar cheese in the bottom of the pit, then crack an egg on top of the cheese. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then bake until the egg white is cooked, around 12 minutes.

Voilà! Egg in a pit!

 

Circle clearly wins on beauty here. Your guests won’t notice if your yolk broke, talking to you square, if you top it with enough chives.

 

Mmmmmm….

Now, breakfast is complete, but you have a strange shaped puzzle of phyllo on your counter…what to do with it?? Phyllo is not cheap people! I’m not made of phyllo! Even though I’ve been attempting to cut sweets, I decided to make cinnamon twists with the carnage.