Homemade Sausage and Egg 'McMuffins'

I don't really get the obsession with McDonald's breakfasts. I like a McDonald's burger well enough - in fact it's something of a guilty pleasure - but I was disappointed when I tried one of their breakfasts (and also disappointed that they only serve the breakfast menu in the morning). Yet I know people who will literally go out of their way for a McDonald's breakfast - if you do the same, please let me know in the comments, and let me know what is your favourite item to order!

 

As it's sometimes hard to think of brunch or lunch dishes to cook on the weekends at home, I had an idea and decided to make my own sausage and egg muffin - like the 'McMuffin' - to see if I liked it any better.

I've no idea how they get the egg like that - obviously they use a shaped mould to make it perfectly round, but it's so deep as well! For me the sausage patty is a bit on the thin side so that is one advantage of making your own.

I have never even attempted to make poached eggs by slipping the egg straight into a pan of water - one of my friends is an expert at this but says it could have something to do with using freshly laid eggs from her own chickens. I have a microwavable egg poacher which is very handy as it means I can have smoked salmon and poached eggs for breakfast at work - one of my favourite meals to start the day. However it's very easy to overcook the eggs and even make them explode and I never seem to get the yolk to stay runny when the white is cooked. Even if I follow the instructions it depends on the size of the egg and the power of the microwave.

So when I was offered an egg poacher by British Lion eggs I was really excited - not least because it is a traditional egg poacher (rather than an electronic one) which I remember my mum using when I was a child. I didn't even like poached eggs at the time but was fascinated by the little cups that sat in the pan!

Eggs are really good for you - a great source of protein and while there has been a lot written about cholesterol in eggs, evidence now suggests that dietary cholesterol does not increase the risk of heart disease in most healthy people. Eggs are also pretty cheap and it's easy to make a filling meal from them. Check out the British Lion Eggs website for more information and recipes.

The egg poacher was very easy to use - simply put some water in the base, and bring it to the boil on the hob (this pan even worked with my induction hob) with the lid on top. You do need to lightly grease each cup - I sprayed them with Fry Light, or the eggs will stick when you try to take them out. Crack your eggs into the cups and replace the lid and simmer for 4-5 minutes, and you're done! My eggs came out perfectly poached with a solid white and runny yolk, just how I like them.



The poacher is made by Kitchen Craft, available from lots of stockists but you can buy one from Amazon here:



So here's the recipe for my sausage and egg 'McMuffins'
An original recipe by Caroline Makes

You need
2 English muffins
5 sausages - the fairly soft kind rather than butchers' sausages with the higher meat content. I used Richmond.
2 eggs
2 cook-from-frozen hash browns
2 processed cheese slices

Squeeze the sausage meat out of the sausages and shape into patties. Heat some Fry Light in a frying pan and fry the sausage patties on both sides until cooked.

Meanwhile cook the hash browns according to pack instructions - I fried mine.

Poach the eggs as explained above.

Slice the English muffins in half and lightly toast just before the sausage and hash browns are cooked.

To assemble, place the bottom half of the muffin on a plate and layer up the sausage patty, hash brown, egg and cheese slice then place the top of the muffin on top.

I pressed down gently and sliced mine in half as it made it much easier to eat. It tasted delicious - far better than takeaway fast food in my opinion - and was very filling!

I'm sending this to Cook Blog Share hosted by Lucy at Supergoldenbakes

I'm also sharing it with Tea Time Treats, hosted by Karen at Lavender and Lovage and in alternate months Janie at The Hedgecombers as their theme this month is anything toasted.