Sunny side up by Molly England & Perfect sunnies by Claire Handleman

When it comes to eggs I can’t help but think of the film Forrest Gump. Shrimp aficionado, Bubba and I are similar, except instead of shrimp, I cook eggs in every form imaginable. Boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, fried eggs, egg sandwiches, eggs frittata, eggs in a burrito, until eventually, like Bubba, I’m hunched over, scrubbing a dirty floor with a toothbrush… and the list runs out.

There are only so many times you can serve breakfast for dinner. In most households, breakfast for dinner is a novelty. One random weeknight, the “fun” mom decides to be oh so kooky and serve pancakes and eggs for dinner! Ha. Imagine that. But, in our house – it’s an all too familiar scenario.

My endeavor to conquer cooking requires baby steps. No doubt, I’ll occasionally falter, resorting back to my favorite ultra easy dinners… Enter Claire Handleman, the culinary expert. With her tips, even the most basic cooking can be refined and improved. Our collaborative new blog post series, The Dinner Dance, serves you new and fresh family meal ideas, as well as weekly tips.

This week’s tip is on “sunnies” or fried eggs. Usually served for breakfast, fried eggs are a staple that now add a retro vibe to lofty meals. Many Sunday Brunch menus serve fried eggs with the most unlikely pairings. My favorite is Down House’s Pork Hash. Obligatorily gluten free, this dish boasts spicy smoked pork, potatoes, feta and two eggs sunny side up (substitute duck eggs for a sophisticated touch).

Maybe one day I’ll be brave enough to try fried eggs atop a homemade, hand tossed pizza or cook quail instead of chicken eggs, but for now I’m learning the basics. Check out Claire’s video on frying eggs flawlessly.

Food and Video By Claire Handleman.

Claire Handleman has been a chef in New York for 10 years, working at some of the city’s best restaurants. She previously worked on ABC’s Emmy-award winning show The Chew as an assistant producer and participated in Food Network’s Chopped competition…and won.
Claire has been traveling the world for the past dozen years but focuses a majority of her time in South-East Asia. She has come to regard Thailand as a second home and spends many months each year learning Thai cuisine.
She is currently working on a book with the hopes of sharing the incredible cuisine her Thai friends have shared with her.
While she travels and works, she shares stories, recipes and travel tips on her blog Passport to Eat.