What can I do with a single egg…?
A PG Wodehouse thought ‘the good old egg’ was ‘the foundation of daily life… I’m never much of a lad till I’ve engulfed an egg or two and a beaker of coffee…’. Wodehouse was naturally engulfing in multiples; it probably would never have occurred to him that eggs might come singly. But even one egg is a feast in the making.
Assuming you have other things besides the egg, you can make a hangover busting prairie oyster; poach an egg and lay it on a bed of steamed spinach; make pancakes; scones (see below); and enough scrambled egg to cover one small piece of toast. You can make a small omelette, or boil the egg and make a gourmet feast for one by using asparagus spears to dip into it.
Unlike, Wodehouse, Hitchcock had a horror of eggs – ‘that white round thing without any holes … have you ever seen anything more revolting than an egg yolk breaking and spilling its yellow liquid? Blood is jolly, red. But egg yolk is yellow, revolting. I’ve never tasted it…’ that may explain a lifetime’s work in the cinema but meant that Hitch never experienced the easiest and one of the most delicious things to do with a lightly boiled egg: break it up on a piece of hot buttered toast.
And if you really can’t be bothered to do any of the above, give it raw to your dog – it’ll make his coat impressively shiny…
Scones
- 225g self-raising flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 35g butter
- 25g sugar (opt)
- 1 egg
- 125ml milk
Preheat the oven to 220c. Tip the flour and baking powder into a bowl. Add the butter in chunks and with your finger tips work the mixture into fine crumbs. Stir in the sugar if using. Beat the egg with the milk to make a generous 150ml. Put a tblsp of the milk mixture aside for glazing and gradually add the rest to the flour mix, stirring until you have a soft dough. Wet is better than dry at this point. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll lightly. Use a small cutter to cut out as many rounds as possible before repeating the process. Arrange the scones on a baking tray, brush with the reserved milk and bake for about 10-15mins or until the scones are well risen and golden.
