“How did you come to have an egg dish named after you?” I’m oft asked, (well this is just one of two egg dishes named after me, the other one is Eggs Ruaridh which is like eggs benedict but with black pudding instead of ham and is on the menu of two London restaurants -and counting!) So, I named them both myself as I figured that if I didn’t, I’d probably, go to my grave, like most people do, with a sum total of zero egg dishes named after me. The logic behind going for two was that hopefully at least one would remain in the general vernacular in perpetuum.

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At home, I have this for lunch several times a week. It always hits the spot and is very quick to make. Also not having to think too much about what delicious thing you’ll have for lunch leaves you with more mental space to think about other delicious things you’ll eat, say later on in the day. If you haven’t yet tried eggs and Marmite, then you’re in for a treat. If you think you don’t like Marmite, simply eat this every day for a week whilst repeating the mantra “I really love Marmite, it’s great, it’s also got loads of vitamins and stuff in it, also I cooked these eggs perfectly” If that doesn’t work then you can at least say you gave it a go.

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Ingredients

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2 Crumpets
2 really nice free-range eggs
Butter
Marmite
Smoked sea salt
Black pepper

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Method

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Lower the eggs into boiling water with a timer ready to give them six minutes and thirty seconds. Whilst the eggs are boiling, toast the crumpets once in the toaster, then toast them again- you want to take them almost to burning point so that they become crisp. A soggy crumpet can work well with jam or honey, not here I’m afraid, we need integrity, structural integrity and a crunchy texture. When the timer goes off, run the eggs under the cold tap for about thirty seconds. This stops the cooking and ensures the yolk doesn’t overcook. Peel the eggs and set to one side. Now butter your still-hot crumpet generously and apply a decent smear of Marmite. Cut the eggs and arrange the halves yolk side down on the crumpet, two halves per crumpet. Sprinkle with the smoked salt, some black pepper and serve.