Eggs Orsini aka "GrEggs Orsini"

 The first official sort of holiday I spent with my beau and his family - kids, ex-wife - was father's day. Inquiring what his favorite brunch meal was, his ex told me he loved Eggs Orsini.

Eggs Orsini? I had never heard of it, but thank God for Google, something popped up when I went searching for this elegant sounding dish.

The story goes that Monet was quite the gourmet and had a guest at his house by the name of Count Orsini and he prepared eggs for him in this manner: Whip egg whites, slide the yolks into little holes of the whites and bake into a souffle like dish with gruyere cheese grated on top. Voila! Fancy and simple, all rolled in one.

So I diligently made Eggs Orsini, but they lacked the excitement of "GrEggs Orsini" which include the phyllo cups in which the dainty souffle-bearing yolks are cradled. Now that's fun!

In the original GrEggs Orsini recipe, it calls for placing the phyllo in a "taco shell mold." Not to be daunted since I lacked this culinary tool, I made foil "collars" and all turned out swimmingly!

GrEggs Orsini

Phyllo Sheets, 1 per serving
oil for spraying on phyllo
2 eggs per serving
1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice
hard cheese for grating (parmesan, asiago, pecorino romano)
salt
pepper
foil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make circles out of foil that are three inches high and about 5 inches in diameter (across). Use the folds to hook the ends together. Separate the whites from the yolks very carefully, keeping the yolks intact and leave them in the shells. Whip the whites with the lemon juice until they form very stiff peaks. Cut phyllo sheets in half and then in half again. Place foil collars on a baking sheet and spray inside the collar with a little oil and drape a phyllo sheet over the collar, pressing in to form a mold. Follow with three more sheets, spraying each sheet as you press them in the mold. Spoon the whites into the foil shells and salt and pepper the whites. Then make indentations in the whites and carefully slide a yolk into each hole. Grate cheese on top and bake for 10-12 minutes until whites are browned on top as the picture shows. Serve immediately.

Hugs!