Vegan Eggs Benedict
The last day of our breakfast week has begun, and we end solemnly with an American classic: vegan Eggs Benedict. Which already sounds like it would be impossible because vegan eggs are (so far) unfortunately not as easy to get as vegan sausage or cheese alternatives. And certainly no vegan poached egg. To take away any hope right away - we won’t be poaching anything today. Instead, we’ll be mixing, chilling, simmering, and baking. Basically, this recipe is a hodgepodge of several already existing recipes on our blog.
The vegan eggs are the same ones you know from our recipe for vegan boiled eggs in a creamy mustard sauce and are based on silken tofu, which you can find at organic stores or Asian supermarkets. Together with plant-based heavy cream, chickpea flour, miso paste, turmeric, agar agar, kala namak, salt, and pepper, you’ll get a thick mixture that is simmered briefly and then filled into silicone molds. We used half-round ice cube molds for this, but of course, you don’t have to buy them extra. Other ice cube molds also work wonderfully – your vegan eggs are just square then. You can even try using the egg molds from your fridge. However, if you don’t use silicone molds, you should grease the molds with a little oil to be able to easily release the tofu eggs later. The mixture should rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour or until it sets. If you can’t find silken tofu at all, or if you want to make it easier, you can also follow our recipe for vegan Eggs Florentine and just use a thick slice of baked tofu and sprinkle it with some kala namak salt. You can usually find the baked tofu in Asian supermarkets.
We’ve also shown you our eggplant bacon on the blog before. Even more often, we make a vegan bacon substitute with rice paper that gets super crispy. I tested it for this recipe as well, but I have to say that it’s very hard to cut and makes the vegan Eggs Benedict difficult to eat. Therefore, I opted for eggplant as a base, but it ends up in the same marinade and is just baked longer. But if you don’t feel like bacon at all, you can switch back to our Eggs Florentine recipe and use spinach instead.
You surely know our vegan Hollandaise from many of our recipes, but there’s also a shortcut here because you can now buy ready-made vegan Hollandaise in organic stores or supermarkets.
Eggs Benedict is available in numerous variations, from which you can also draw inspiration. How about “Eggs Hussarde“ where you use rusks instead of English muffins and a bordelaise sauce instead of a Hollandaise. Or try “Eggs Atlantic“ and use vegan carrot lox instead of vegan ham. And with “Huevos Benedict,” avocado ends up on the muffin instead of ham, with extra salsa on top. No matter what you choose, there’s nothing standing in the way of a fancy breakfast at home!
Vegan Eggs Benedict
Ingredients
For the vegan egg:
- 150 g (5.5 oz) silken tofu
- 3 tbsp plant-based cream
- 2 tbsp chickpea flour
- 1 tsp light miso paste
- 4 tsp agar agar
- 1 pinch turmeric
- kala namak
- salt
- pepper
For the eggplant bacon:
- 1 eggplant
- 4 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp liquid smoke
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp mustard
- vegetable oil for frying
For the vegan hollandaise:
- 4 tbsp vegan butter
- 2 tbsp flour
- 100 ml (0.5 cup) vegetable broth
- 100 ml (0.5 cup) plant-based heavy cream
- 1 tsp mustard
- 1 tbsp vegan white wine
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- salt
- (white) pepper
Also:
- 2 English muffins
- chives
- vegan butter
Instructions
For the vegan eggs, drain silken tofu and add it to a liquid measuring cup along with plant-based cream, chickpea flour, miso paste, agar agar, and a pinch of turmeric. Season generously with salt, pepper, and some kala namak. Then let the mixture sit for approx. 5 minutes.
Afterward, add the mixture to a small pot over medium-low heat and warm for approx. 5 minutes, or until you get a really thickened texture that is bubbly in the pot. Remove from heat and fill the mixture into silicone molds. Let the mixture cool down to room temperature first before refrigerating it for approx. 1 hour, or until they are firm. In our case, the mixture was enough to fill six half-round molds.
Preheat oven to 200°C/390°F (top and bottom heat). For the marinade, mix soy sauce, liquid smoke, maple syrup, and mustard in a shallow bowl. Thinly slice the eggplant and dip it into the marinade to cover both sides of the eggplant slices, then transfer them to a lined baking sheet. Bake for approx. 15-20 minutes, or until the eggplant is browned and crispy on the edges.
For the vegan hollandaise, melt 2 tbsp of the vegan butter in a saucepan and stir in flour. Keep stirring to keep the mixture smooth. Add vegetable stock slowly and keep stirring all the time. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat and add plant-based cream, vegan white wine, the remaining 2 tbsp vegan butter, mustard, and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste and let the sauce simmer for approx. 5-10 minutes, or until it's thickened to the desired consistency. Season again before serving.
Halve and toast English muffins. Spread them with vegan butter and top them with a few slices of eggplant bacon and one or two vegan “eggs“. Drizzle generously with vegan hollandaise and sprinkle finely chopped chives on top.
