I’m lucky to have access to fresh free range eggs on a daily basis so I’m always looking for a different way to serve them that doesn’t involve too much hassle.

Of course I took the hassle out of this recipe by making a large batch of duxelles (a fragrant wild mushroom reduction) in advance and freezing it so that I can transform a pile of mashed potato, a burger, pizza, steak or in this case a fresh free range egg, at a moment’s notice –  and duxelles defrosts in seconds.

This simple appetizer is voluptuous, divinely mushroom-y and rich-tasting and all you’ll need is some hot buttered toasted baguette for dunking. Absolutely wonderful!

Yes, you’ll need to make duxelles which can take up to an hour but trust me, if you make a sizeable quantity, it’s totally worth it! As a little goes a long way I recommend freezing it in ice cube trays first then transferring to a plastic container making it easy to use in small amounts.

Baked Eggs (En Cocotte) with Wild Mushroom Duxelles

Ingredients:

Per person, 2-3 heaped tablespoons of duxelles (recipe here)

Per person – a 3 inch diameter 1.5 inch deep ramekin, well-buttered

Per person, one large fresh egg, preferably free range

One cooked mushroom set aside to top each ramekin

A heaped tablespoon of crème fraîche per serving, divided

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Chopped parsley to serve

Action:

Preheat the oven to 350F (180C). Stir 1/3 of the crème fraîche into the duxelles and divide it between each buttered ramekin. Make a well in the center and drop a freshly cracked egg in there. Gently spread a spoonful of crème fraîche on top of the egg and top that with a reserved cooked mushroom.

Arrange the ramekins in a deep-sided baking pan and pour boiling water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins.

Bake in the center of the oven for approximately 18 minutes, making sure there’s a bit of a wobble going on as you don’t want the yolk to be overcooked.

Scatter with a little chopped fresh parsley and serve immediately.