Ruth Reichl's Shirred Eggs Over Potato Puree {Comfort Food Extraordinaire}

The Ruth Reichl recipe. The must make at the top of my list. Welcoming egg with ozzing yolk. Silky buttery potato puree. Best enjoyed with a spoon. Soft and comforting. Belly warming. Comfort food extraordinaire. One for the books.
"When you want to be really, really good to yourself,take the time to make this soft egg, gently cooked on a pillow of butter-rich potatoes. Then eat it very slowly, with a spoon. Each bite reminds you why you're glad to be alive." - Ruth Reichl in My Kitchen Year

Shirred Eggs with Potato Puree

Adapted from My Kitchen Year

by Ruth Reichl

Serves 4

4-5 young Yukon Gold potatoes (about a pound)

3/4 cup cream

salt and pepper

4 tablespoons butter

4 eggs

chives, bacon, cheese, for garnish*

Peel the potatoes and cut them into half-inch slices.Put them in a pot,cover them with an inch of cold water, and add a teaspoon of sea salt. Bring the water to a boil, reduce it to a ere burble, and cook for 20 minutes, until the flesh offers no resistance when you pierce it with a fork. 

Drain the potatoes and put them through a ricer. Or mash them really well with a potato masher. In a pinch, use a fork. Season with a light shower of salt and pepper.

Melt the butter and stir in half a cup of cream. Now comes the fun part. Whisk the cream mixture into the potatoes and watch them turn into a smooth, seductive puree. Season to taste, doing your best not to gobble them all up.

Heat oven to 375 and put a kettle of water on to boil. Butter 4 little ramekins and put about a half an inch of potato puree in each. Now gently crack an egg on top of each (being careful not to break the yolks). Set the ramekins into a deep baking dish and pour the boiling water around them (being careful not to splash the mixture or yourself). Set the dish in the oven for about 8 minutes, or until the whites have begun to set.

Spoon a tablespoon of the cream over the egg in each ramekin and bake for another 5 minutes or so, or until the egg whites are set but the yolks are runny. Garnish with flakes of salt, bits of chopped chive, or if you're inclined to true indulgence, crispy crumbles of bacon.