Eggs In Shell

The usual method of preparing eggs for serving in this way is to put them into boiling water, and boil or simmer until sufficiently cooked. Albumen, of which the white of the egg is composed, is most easily digested when simply coagulated. The yolk, if cooked at all, is most easily digested when dry and mealy. Albumen coagulates at 160°, and when the boiling point is reached, it becomes hardened, tough, and leathery, and very difficult of digestion. If the egg were all albumen, it might be easily and properly cooked by dropping into boiling water, allowing it to remain for a few seconds, and removing it, since the shell would prevent its becoming sufficiently heated in so short a time as to become hardened; but the time necessary to properly cook the white of the egg would be insufficient for the heat to penetrate to and cook the yolk; and if it is desirable to cook the yolk hard, the cooking process should be carried on at a temperature below the boiling point, subjecting the egg to a less degree of heat, but for a longer time. The most accurate method is to put the eggs into water of a temperature of 160° F., allowing them to remain for twenty minutes, and not permitting the temperature of the water to go above 170°. Cooked in this way, the white will be of a soft, jelly-like consistency throughout, while the yolks will be hard. If it is desired to have the yolks dry and mealy, the temperature of the water must be lower, and the time of cooking lengthened. The most perfect results may be secured with water at a temperature of 150° F., and seven hours' cooking. The temperature of the water can be easily tested by keeping an ordinary thermometer in it, and if one possesses a kerosene or gas stove, the heat can be easily regulated to maintain the required temperature.

Another method, although less sure, is to pour boiling water into a saucepan, draw it to one side of the range where it will keep hot but not boil, put in the eggs, cover, and let stand for twenty minutes. If by either method it is desired to have the yolk soft-cooked, lessen the time to ten minutes or so, according to the hardness desired. Eggs are best served as soon as done, as the white becomes more solid by being kept in a hot shell.

It should be remarked that the time necessary to cook eggs in the shell will vary somewhat with the firmness of the shell, the size of the eggs, and the number cooked together.

Eggs In Sunshine

Take an earthenware dish which will stand heat and also do to use in serving the eggs. Oil it and break therein as many eggs as desired; sprinkle lightly with salt, and put into the oven for two or more minutes till the eggs are set. Have ready some hot tomato sauce prepared as for tomato toast; pour the sauce over them, and serve.

Eggs Poached In Tomatoes

Take a pint of stewed tomatoes cooked until they are homogeneous or which have been rubbed through a colander; season with salt if desired, and heat. When just beginning to boil, slip in gently half a dozen eggs, the shells of which have been so carefully broken that the yolks are intact. Keep the tomato just below the boiling point until the eggs are cooked. Lift the whites carefully with a fork as they cook, until they are firm, then prick the yolks and let the yellow mix with the tomato and the whites. The whole should be quite soft when done, but showing the red of the tomatoes and the white and yellow of the eggs quite distinctly. Serve on toast. If the flavor is agreeable, a little onion minced very fine may be cooked with the tomatoes.