Normally I don’t look anything food-related up on the internet because my blog is all about what I already know after all my years of cooking professionally and otherwise. But when I came across this recipe that I had made once a long time ago, the name of it really intrigued me. So I googled.
And, I got nothing. Besides all kinds of info regarding the cathedral in Chartres, there was no insight into why this dish is called eggs Chartres. It does seem to be unanimously Creole in nature, which is exactly where this recipe lives, in the American Cooking: Cajun and Creole recipe booklet, part of the extensive Time Life Series Foods of the World.
It’s a very easy recipe – the hardest part is peeling the hard-boiled eggs!
So, without any further ado, I give you this fabulous and a little spicy egg dish. It would be great for breakfast, but also fabulous for lunch or brunch.
I’m copying the recipe exactly as it is in the cookbook. However, I made a half recipe since I am only feeding two people, including myself, these days.
Creamed Egg Chartres
To serve 8
1 tablespoon butter, softened, plus 8 tablespoons butter, cut into 1/2-inch bits
5 medium-sized onions, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick rounds
3/4 cup flour
3 egg yolks, plus 12 hard-cooked eggs*, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
6 cups milk
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground hot red pepper (cayenne)
1 cup freshly grated imported Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons paprika
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. With a pastry brush, spread the tablespoon of softened butter evenly over the bottom and sides of a 14-by-9-by-2-inch baking-serving dish. Set the dish aside.
In a heavy 12-inch skillet, melt the 8 tablespoons of butter bits over moderate heat. When the foam begins to subside, add the onions and, stirring frequently, cook for about 8 minutes, or until they are soft and translucent but not brown.
Add the flour and mix well, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 3 or 4 minutes to remove the raw taste of the flour.
Meanwhile, in a deep bowl, beat the egg yolks with a wire whisk or a rotary or electric beater until they are smooth. Beat in the milk, salt, and red pepper, and set aside.
Stirring the onion mixture constantly with a wire whisk, pour in the egg yolks and milk in a slow, thin stream and cook over high heat until the sauce comes to a boil, thickens heavily and is smooth.
Taste the sauce for seasoning, remove the skillet from the heat and gently stir in 9 of the hard-cooked eggs.
Pour the eggs and sauce into the buttered dish and scatter the Parmesan over the top, followed by the paprika.
Bake in the middle of the oven for about 15 minutes, or until the top is browned and the sauce begins to bubble.
Garnish the top with the remaining hard-cooked egg slices and serve at once, directly from the baking dish.
* Don’t do what I did. I cooked a dozen eggs for this recipe, and to have some hard-boiled eggs extra for salads. When they were done, I poured off a lot of the hot water, then added ice. But then I forgot about them, and when I got back to them, the water was still warm. Normally I would have changed out the water within minutes of the ice melting, and added more ice, eventually refrigerating the eggs. If you have an eagle eye, you’ll notice that there is a green ring around the yolks of my eggs. This is from letting the eggs sit in warm water, without forcing a freeze on them with icy water. I even used to do this little trick when I taught girls’ cooking classes. By the end of the two hours, the “properly” cooled egg would be perfect, with a nice uniformly yellow yolk, and the improperly cooled egg would have that dreaded green ring. Horrors. Fortunately no one in my house cares. But the green definitely isn’t pretty!
note: Eggs Chartres is delicious as is, but is also good with sausage or bacon. I could enjoy it with a green or a tomato salad. But it is very rich.
That sounds really delicious, it brings back some very distant memories of something my Mom made. This would be a wonderful for a holiday brunch. Happy Thanksgiving!
It would be great at Thanksgiving. I guess I made it too soon!
Yum…yummy..YUMMY… I love anything egg. <3 I totally agree with Suzanne…what an awesome recipe for a holiday brunch. Or a weekend breakfast. Or a weeknight dinner. Or lunch anytime. Or all of the above. <3
If you love eggs, white sauce, and cayenne, you will love this dish!
Mimi – A great use for all of our chickens’ eggs. So creative, elegant and different. Bookmarked this immediately! Thank you for sharing with us. Warmly, Shanna
You are so welcome. It’s a fabulous dish that can also be made ahead.
Oh, Mimi – Perfect for Thanksgiving morning? :-) Best, Shanna
Absolutely – especially since it can be prepared in advance.
I think I’m going to love this egg Chartres. Useful trick about cooling the eggs to prevent the green ring. Although I wouldn’t mind. I’m more concerned about how to prevent the shells from sticking to the filmy skin of the eggs. Thanks for sharing!
Isn’t egg shelling just a pain in the rear?!!
This dish looks delicious! Never had an egg dish like this before. Thanks for sharing :D
Last time I made it must have been 30 years ago. I’m glad I found it again!
Great that you can make this delicious dish upfront! Looks like a great sunday brunch recipe!
It would be great as part of a brunch because it’s eggy and spicy!
Always looking for new ideas using eggs. This looks great. thanks MImi
Very caloric, but excellent!
There’s such thing as “Oeufs a la Chartres” but the recipe is much different. Your recipe reminds me of “Oeufs farci Chimay” (stuffed eggs Chimay) without mushrooms which is one of the classics of French cooking and served as a hot starter.
I’ve been talking to a French friend Stephane, about the exact thing. (myfrenchheaven.com) I had never heard of oeufs a la Chartres, and I have a French mother! Since creole cooking came about with French influence, I’m sure there’s a reason for the similarity!
You could be right about the creole bit. I am French, living the expat life in Kenya and allow me to provide a link for “eggs a la Chartres” http://www.whatamieating.com/oeufs_a_la_chartres.html
Now, I have never cooked this dish but I have done “Oeufs farci Chimay” . A dish where the hard boiled whites are stuffed with hard egg yolks, a mushroom duxelle, parsley, bechamel and covered with a Mornay sauce.
The name of the dish, “eggs a la Chartres” rung a bell as my grandmother had a vacation house in the Loire-et-Cher, a department next to Eure-et-Loire where Chartres is located and food was her favorite topic and she always put me on duty to pick up these brown snails after the rain.
I have checked “My French heaven” and I enjoyed the blog as much as I enjoy yours.
I can’t believe I’ve never had eggs prepared this way! Yum!
They’re pretty amazing! And caloric!!!
I enjoy your blog very much! Your onion series is especially appealing. Love onions. The idea of adding red pepper is so clever. I may substitute with paprika. Good to make with late summer onions!!! I will make this tomorrow…I have German bangers. So perfectly timed. (I may add a side of sauerkraut )!!!Bravo to you for your great recipes.
Thank you! This egg and onion recipe is really superb! No need for cayenne – I’m just an addict of spiciness!